Swain on the three-horse race
Tuesday 24th February 2009, 12:45PM GMT.
Chief Sports Writer Martin Swain looks in depth at the race to win the Championship – a three team onslaught that no one seems keen on closing.
Wolves have won just twice in the last 12 games, once in the last 10 – and still they top the Championship by four points.
Yes, it has become the title no one wants to win, but if you think the howls of anguish around Molineux these past few weeks have been deafening, then rest assured they are no louder than the panic rising from the throats of Birmingham and Reading fans.
Last weekend was the most difficult yet for the “big three” – the trio of teams who have pretty much dominated the promotion race from the outset, from which the top two automatic promotion winners were expected to emerge.
Blues and Reading were beaten by Coventry and Bristol City, while Wolves had to settle for a point against Cardiff.
Those scorelines continued a theme of faltering from the top three that has shaken their grip on the division, and partially re-opened the door to the top two spots to the inevitable queue of ‘wannabes’ beneath.
Bristol City, Preston and Cardiff still need to make up three wins on second-placed Birmingham to reach the top two. But the way the top three have been going lately, it is hardly a remote prospect.
While Wolves have given the appearance of a side waiting to hand on the leaders baton to either one of their main pursuers, Reading and Birmingham have shown themselves to be no more capable of taking up the pace.
Steve Coppell’s Reading, widely regarded as the most likely champions, have stumbled alarmingly – wins over Watford and Wolves sandwiching a defeat at Swansea, followed by two draws and a defeat.
On the night that Neill Collins’s own goal settled what many thought would be a pivotal meeting of the top two at the Madejski Stadium, Reading fans crowed that they would overtake Wolves by the weekend.
Two points from the last nine on offer and eight from the last 18 have let Mick McCarthy’s side off the hook.
Now even Coppell, whose quiet, undemonstrative style of leadership is so admired, owns up to being perplexed by – and not necessarily able to remedy – his team’s fumbling.
He said: “Recent results would suggest that teams have worked us out. I don’t know why we’re not scoring at the minute. If I knew why we weren’t, I obviously would have done something about it by now.
“Whether we’re a one-trick pony or not I don’t know – only time will tell.”
Those are honest words of vulnerability from Coppell which can only be issued by a manager whose security of tenure is supreme – one wonders what the reaction would be if McCarthy ever opened up to reveal such self doubt.
But that is not to say the Reading boss is not subjected to the same kind of messageboard hostility which featured in these columns last week.
Undoubtedly, the most heavily-criticised boss of the top three is Blues’ Alex McLeish. A popular guy, well respected and with a handsome track record north of the border – but again a Scot who appears to be finding the relentless intensity of the English challenge difficult to handle.
Privately, McLeish is understood to have conceded that he under-estimated the sheer force of English football’s second tier. Those Blues fans who aren’t turning away in their droves are turning their back on him.
Attendances have dwindled to an average of 18,608, the 10th best in the division. More damningly, nearly 40 per cent of St Andrew’s is unfilled every time Blues run out, a clear sign of massive disenchantment.
They go to Crystal Palace to play their catch-up match on Wolves, which could take them to within a point of the leaders although you would not imagine that from the derision being aimed at McLeish, a disenchantment heightened by the supporters’ frostiness towards the boardroom.
Defeat at Coventry last weekend continued an identical stumble for Blues – eight points from the last 18.
The fans have been moaning about the football all season at St Andrew’s but now that the results are drying up as well, the critical backlash is growing in volume and severity.
McLeish said: “I think the players have to expect the jeers, we all have to expect that. Our fans’ expectations were that we’d come here and win handsomely, but I knew realistically that wasn’t going to happen, especially when Coventry were on a decent run.
“We certainly had the players to come here and get the positive result, but we just didn’t bring the level. Too many players never played to their level.”
A glance at the fixture list – as much as that can provide any guide in a division where bottom is as likely to beat top as the other way around – suggests the tension Cardiff boss Dave Jones spoke about smelling at Wolves should be even more pungent at St Andrew’s.
Games against Sheffield United and Bristol City make Blues’ the trickiest of the next half dozen for each of the top three. Wolves have arguably the kindest and Sunday’s glimpse of their autumn form returning should be further comfort.
Most of all, they will hope their pursuers continue to trip over their own feet.
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Whilst the top three have been stumbling along 4 straight wins in a congested fixture list is a lot for Cardiff to do.However they do play 6 of the next 9 at Home.From Wolves point of view they must now kick on rediscover the early season form,but more importantly Win any way they can.
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Brilliant article.
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Anyone can criticise other peoples opinions, and I do not always agree with Mr Swains comments , but this is just about spot on.
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Why is this an “in depth” look at the race to win the Championship?
Is Mr Swain saying anything that already hasnt been said or thought about?
Wolves have it in their own hands – Win more than the other two and hey presto we’re up!
Yet more drivel and supposition (Poor journalism)
UP THE WOLVES!
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COME ON PALACE.WE ARE WOLVES
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It isn’t that the 3 don’t want to win it,none seem good enough /consistent enough to win it.One will by default.Why do these articles always tow the party line? Why not put some pressure on the owner and the ‘budget kid’ Moxey, to bring in some quality additions via the loan system. In previous years the loan system has been used to great effect,most notably by Stoke last season.The Express and Star should speak for the fans.Whatever happened to publish and be damned.
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wolves will win the title .everybody must get behind them or stay away.do we really want to wait another 5 or 10 years.come on wolves . you can do it.
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Great article.
Hold on to your seats, the season is warming up nicely!
I think Wolves wil p**s it personally.
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Just had a look at Readings’ last 14 games and after they play Forest at home on Saturday, they have 8 of the last 13 AWAY from home. Fixtures also include games against two current ‘form’ teams Derby and Doncaster, as well as Sheffield Utd and Blues (the last game of the season). On paper that looks like a pretty tough run in to me. We shall see. Up the Wolves.
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AT LAST!!!!
A cracking piece of journalism. Its about time!
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an article that generalises the problem. we can all see that football is not as cut and thrust as we would like to expect when it comes to results. so many factors have to be taken into effect. confidence, tiredness, skill level, players playing and positions, bad day or week at home, closeness within the team, debts, car not working maybe even the credit crunch. i could go on and on, but what is obvious is that the good fortune we had at the beginning of the season has eluded us for a long time now and the sooner that comes back the better and on sunday that happened and i hope it brings a freefall of good luck coming our way. we are no different from any other team apart from we do have a little more class and our beggining of the season runs have put us in a position to be shot down, but it has not happened yet, what does that say about the rest of the chasing pack. all i will say is keep the faith and come on the wolves
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All our remaining 7 home games are against sides in the bottom half of the table.Everything is totally in our own hands
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E-banks Blake is the wanderers number 9, Nah na na na, na na, na na ,na nah, na nah!!!
SEB holds the key to our promotion, if kites and jarvis can hit form to provide the chances. he wont be far off 30 by the end of the season. which in turn will give us enough points for an auto place.
I cant see both Reading and Blues hitting for and I think it will be us and reading going up with Cardiff in the play offs.
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This article echoes much of what I’ve heard from both Blues’fans and Reading supporters. History shows that it is rare for one team to run away from the rest of this league and this year is no exception. I can really see it going all the way to the last day when Reading play Blues and we are at home to Doncaster. Both fans and players alike are now getting nervous.It will be the teams that hold their nerves the best that will triumph
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Reading and Blues to go up automatically and Cardiff to win the play offs when they beat Swansea in the final.
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The Usual Suspects said: Feb 24th, 2009 at 1:15 pm Why is this an “in depth” look at the race to win the Championship?
Is Mr Swain saying anything that already hasnt been said or thought about?
Wolves have it in their own hands – Win more than the other two and hey presto we’re up!
Yet more drivel and supposition (Poor journalism)
OK WE WIN ONLY 2 MORE GAMES AND Reading AND Brum ONLY WIN GAME UNTIL THE END OF THE SEASON…dO YOU REALLY THINK WE WILL GO UP….
No !!!!!!
Cardiff / Swansea / Sheff utd will have a large part to play in the promotion run in…
There is more than 3 teams going for the top 2 spots..
Get head out of clouds.
Good artical.
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Blues have still to come:
Sheff Utd (away)
Bristol City (home)
Doncaster (away)
Ourselves (home)
and Reading (away)
to me they will not win any of these 5 and if they do fair play they will deserve to go up. That leaves a further 8 games remaining with some tricky ones in there too.
Its Blues that I think will be in the play offs and have the worst run in.
We have now played all the top 8 twice bar Blues!! Reading, Sheff Utd, Bristol City, Cardiff, burnley, Swansea all played twice and out the way!
If we play like the way we did the first half on Sunday we will breeze the rest of the season without a worry.
Come on Wolves
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Mick should now be setting the team targets for promotion for the next 13 games such as,Plymouth H 3 points, Palace A 1 point, Sheff Wed A 3 points, Ipswich H 3 points, Charlton H 3 points, Forest A 3 points, Blues A 1 point, Southampton H 3 points, Derby A 1 point, QPR H 1 point, Barnsley A 1 point, Doncaster H 3 points.
That’s another 26 points whic should see us to the Premier League.
Here’s hoping!!
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and if keogh again and again and again is so afraid of that net why keep playing the rubbish that he is.
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Excellent, well thought out, supportive comment no. 19 wolves.
I don’t think I could of put it better myself (who says sarcasm is the lowest form of wit?)
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Have to agree with 15.Nedball. Don’t want to be negative, but I can still see us slipping back into the pack and like 2004 we’ll not make it.
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1 to 19-Good discussion points on most one or two suspect- -Good article by Mr Swain-We are going up guys thatsa fact I know it I feel it-The Gods are with us-We need to keep our heads build on Sunday-We have new blood feeling their way–Come on you WOLVES
Dream very much alive-No more misery please LETS BE POSITIVE–Crazey Dave
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15.oddball your thoughts on who is going up are commendable but one thing is for sure the steptoe’s of sandwell will be in the championship next year.
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Wolves deserve it. We have no parachute payments, the 2nd youngest squad in the division, a smaller wage budget, a smaller transfer budget and we have better attendances than both! We have been top since august and I think we will do it. I think it will go down to final 2-3 games but maybe not the last game.
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15. nedball you really are very silly! this is the same guy who said albion could finish in europe with mowbray there! Swansea are better than cardiff and we are the best side in the division, you know the one the albion will be back in for many years after this one!
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If we can win our next 3 games then we can do it because we got Plymouth,Palace and Sheff Wed and i can see us winning all them! Brum have got Palace,Sheff Utd and Bristol, they will strugle to get 3points out of any of them games i think and with reading playing, Notts Forest,Sheff Wed and Plymouth i cant see them getting all 6points out of them! plus with brum and reading playing each other on the last day of the season its all in our hands!
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I read earlier that some Wolves fans were praising Blues strengthening their squad. I spoke with a few mates on their return from Coventry and they were dire. Carr is overweight and don’t tell me useless de la cruz and traore are any good.
Whilst we are not playing well we still have the best centre forward and two quality wingers and the best right back. If others raise their game we will do it. I am still going with us and Reading bearing in mind Blues fixture list eg Sheff Utd and Reading away and us at home for starters and they are without Phillips for a few weeks!
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Is Mr Swain saying anything that already hasnt been said or thought about?
Wolves have it in their own hands – Win more than the other two and hey presto we’re up!
Comment 16 – Try reading what is stated – As it stands IF Wolves win more than the other 2 – Blues and Reading – we will go up!
Any other permutation right now is pure conjecture/ guesswork regarding the other teams in the play off pack
Games in hand still have to be won and we have the points on the board – fact
Cardiff may have several games in hand BUT they still have to win them – they were in a similar position last season and ran out of steam
UP THE WOLVES
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warnock push palace for victory tonite
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they’ve got fill the newspaper pages with something , wether it makes sense or not , personally if i had jez moxey’s power i’d have appointed someone to advise mm ,someone who knows the league and its pitfalls any suggestions?
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IT IS TOTALLY IN OUR HANDS, WIN 7 OF THE LAST 12 AND WE ARE IN THE PROMISED LAND…
PLAYED 7 WON 7 = 21 POINTS
PLAYED ANOTHER 7, WON 7 = 21 POINTS
THE OTHER GAMES :-PLAYED 20 WON 5 DRAWN 7 LOST 8 = 20 POINTS
ADD ANOTHER 21 POINTS AND A COUPLE OF DRAWS AND WE ARE THERE!!!!!!!!
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I love Wolverhampton Wanderers. I breath Wolves. My blood is gold and black, but make no mistake, if my beloved Wolves go up, they will come down the following year. At least the scouser will make a ton of money though, eh.
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And another terrible performance by Blues tonight against an average Palace side.
Doesnt look good for them does it..
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Don’t worry chaps Captain Craddock will see us over the finishing line. What we need is a bit of Craddock inspired dogged deturmination to get the job done.
As Kipling Said (He was a Wolves fan by the way)
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:
If you can dream – and not make dreams your master;
If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build ‘em up with wornout tools:
If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’
If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings – nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And – which is more – you’ll be a Man my son!
And – We’ll all be in the Premier League!! – So hold your nerve, stop moaning, and get behind the lads!!
Come on me babbies!!!!
(Sorry, got a bit poetic there)
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Stayin’ poetic -
Slip slidin away
Slip slidin away
You know the nearer the playoffs
The more you’re slip slidin away
I know a man
He came from my home town
He wore his passion for his team
Like a thorny crown
He said Mick
I live in fear
My love for Wolves is so overpowering
I’m afraid that we won’t be going up
Slip slidin away
Slip slidin away
You know the nearer the playoffs
The more you’re slip slidin away
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Goal 1 on Sunday was pure class – exactly what we had become used to in the first half of the season.This team – Mick McCarthy’s team – has played the best football that we have seen for years, and shown the greatest hunger to win. I know that recently this certainty has all but disappeared but it is still the same team that slaughtered others earlier in the season ( no moans about Mancienne please he was not actually that pivotal.)
What had the ‘Booh Boys’ and anti-McCarthyites got to say 2 months ago ?? At this stage if you have nothing positive to add then shut up, your contribution is not useful nor wanted.
Incidentally I thought that the ‘barmy army’ was brilliant on Sunday for much of the time giving just the support that was needed, however the absolute quiet that followed ‘their’ goals was telling – showed a nervousness that we should get over – make more noise whatever’s happening!
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We’ll do it this season. Its not going to be easy staying top of the league or even top two. I can only remember a reading promotion the first time they got promoted to the prem being in second or pole position right the way through the season.
You always knew that we had a chance to go up at the start of the season, and perhaps we all thought promotion through playoffs.
Although going through a tough and bad patch at the minute, we have got some easier games coming up, like Palace, Charlton, Forest and Southampton still to play.
I dont think Blues or Reading have the bottle to do it. Where as we do. If Mick can get the lads to play like we did against Cardiff in the 1st half, I cant see much teams getting points from us. Dont forget Cardiff were and still are in good form and have always been an arkward side to play against.
Sylvan, Jarvis, Vokes, Kites, Hennessey, Ward and Foley will be the key to our promotion this season. If they play well like they had been at the start of the season, then EASY automatic!
Up the Wolves
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Do we have to have somebody quoting Rudyard Kipling every week?
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blues are awful it is swansea who are the dark horses. Cardiff have too many fixtures, but if we go up we have got to look to buy roger johnson and ledley. This club is made for the premier league and steve morgan knows it.
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im a loyal albion fan but i have to say that i hope you get promoted… but i dont think that it will happen.
its alrite saying if we can win our next 3 games – 26.
and comment 18, sayin you will win all them games,
but realistically you wont do it.
what is it ? 1 win in 9 ?
so how can u say that you will do that with you recent form.
looks like you are bottling it again !!
time for a new manager ???
and andy keogh is a total waste of space.
anyways, good luck for the rest of the season, hope you get promoted, even though cant see it happening.
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Spot on article, resembles last years run in if I remember correctly!!
Easier said than done. We’ve got to get behind the team to ensure they get there form back, lets not follow the blues form and turn our back on our team when they & us need it most
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Birminghm closing in the gap now and reading and cardiff will finish strong,i just know we gunna blow it,if we cant beat norwich who we gunna beat,
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40. owen.
Aint you got enough to worry about as it is. I really hope you lot stay up too
42. Collins…..tootle off with owen
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I’m an Albion fan and I love the championship. I’ll leave a space here for all the ‘you’re going to be in it next season comments.’ The reason I love it is because the run in to the season is always exciting. This in turn is because it is a proper league.
As we all know the prem is 3 leagues in one, this year Villa look like getting promotion from Div 2 to Div 1. The test will be whether they can stay up or get relegated again next season. It’s taken Villa from the beginning of the Prem until now, allied to having a very rich owner to achieve this. The likes of Albion, Wolves, Stoke etc will struggle to make Div 2 of the Prem in the forseeable future, due to the fact that promotion from the CCC isn’t the end of the rainbow but the beginning of a nightmare, a very exciting nightmare but ultimately a very depressing one. I fear even Mr Morgans millions probably won’t be enough for you to prosper.
Don’t panic Wulfies, I’m not going to make a habit of coming on here and boring you, I’m just a bit p—–d off with some of my own fans at the moment.
I’m sure you’ll make it up, so enjoy the close season looking forward to it, that’s the best part of it. Good luck anyway.
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NEED 6 WINS AND A FEW DRAWS… CANT BLOW IT NOW…..CAN WE????
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lol, makes me laugh all the albion fans on here, we wont bottle it. Seems like the albion fans are forgetting once again:
We will have the youngest ever squad to be promoted
no parachute payments (reading, brum)
reading, brum etc have bigger wage and transfer budgets
we have bigger crowds
Our young players will only get better we have a great chairman and the future is bright, we have had a blip in form who cares, a blip is what it is we have been top since august! remeber leicester at home last season?
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Well, Owen, perhaps you should concentrate more on your own stripey lot, although I do feel relegation would be the better outcome for Albion than managing to hang onto the prem by the skin of your teeth – At least in the ccc you have more chance of winning a few more games than the lucky odd one or two. Perhaps then you won’t have time to chew over whether Wolves will be promoted or not because hopefully your own blogs will have a bit more positivity.
Back to Wolves.. With Blues and Reading playing the way they are.. I wouldn’t say that has cut us a ‘lucky break’ because it isn’t lucky, it’s just proof that many teams suffer form dips at this point in the season, not just us… But the point being they are both also doing terribly at this point and they both still have a couple of tough matches coming up, despite games in hand.. Wolves have pretty much an easy few fixtures approaching.. Or at least they would have been considered ‘easy’ 5/6 months ago .. Obviously that isn’t the case anymore because every teams constantly changing form, and bottom half teams have a habit of playing better than the top teams towards the crucial last few games.
But even though Sunday was a draw, I still feel the way we played was a complete 180 degree turn from .. say for instance, the burley match.. and I think it Should.. And Will, give the lads back some of the confidence they need.. I think a win on Saturday (which i’m confident in) will add that last little spark to the team, that we need, to go on and win the majority of the rest of our matches. We won’t win them all, but we can, and will win the majority.
Whoever is on that pitch in the gold and black on Saturday will have my support, regardless of personal opinion. So lets see a turn around lads, we deserve it by now.
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Lol notice how at the beginning of the season the stripey lot were leaving little snidey messages about us being in the ‘fizzy pop league’ and them flying high and mighty in the prem.. Now they’re all talking about how much more exciting the CCC is compared to the prem and so on .. Lol .. very suspect.. Wouldn’t have anything to do with the fact you’re going to be back in it next season would it :)
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48 J wolf.
I presume by ‘they,’ you mean me. My message was in good faith, inspired by the article which I thought was very good. I ‘ve probably been on this site about half a dozen times in the past 12 months saying ‘snidey’ things like ‘I thought Iwelumo would be a good signing.’ I take the p–s out of the likes of LW when they come on our side trying to wind us up, but surely that makes them fair game. I also finished my message by wishing you ‘Good luck,’ what a horrible b—d I am. I’ll get back to my own side now, thanks for the gracious words, much appreciated.
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Actually no, I wasn’t referring ‘solely’ to you.. Or i’d have begun my comment with ‘Number 44, the real etc etc’ .. No, I was referring to the ‘stopping up the Mowbury way while the dingles wallow in the fizzy pop league’ stripey lot. The same ones who are now declaring that the CCC will be much more satisfying than the premiership.. How quickly the tables turn.. Was more or less the gist of it.
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It is our title we are elite
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49.much appreciated thanx , wolves to go up
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3 horse race?? What a laod of rubbish!!! Have you not seen if Cardiff win their 4 games in hand they could well go top!!
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the real bully
you are right mate,its not the end of the rainbow but the begining of a very real nightmare,
without massive investment and the ability to sell the club to players that are good enough for the prem as you have found out
he ability
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