Watching Wolves win in Ireland is a first

I've finally done it - watched Wolves win away in Europe, writes Express & Star reporter and die-hard fan Jon Pritchard.

It came after a two hour delayed flight, a nightmare getting Wi-Fi at my hotel and an expertly timed catnap.

OK, so it's only Dublin and it was against Shamrock Rovers. And it was a friendly. But that's not the point.

From the moment the Old Gold shirts turned up at Birmingham Airport yesterday morning, to collapsing into a chair to write this up at midnight, watching Wolves away couldn't have gone much better.

There may not have been the nearly 9,000 there was at Milton Keynes Dons last season, but this had the feeling of something altogether different.

Today, I have been out of my comfort zone. Thrown in with a bunch of hardened pre-season travellers, my naivety was clear from the outset.

I forgot the string for my Black Country flag, while others tied their huge flags to the seats at Tallaght Stadium, home of Shamrock Rovers.

But, aside from that, I can't say enough about the great atmosphere there has been around this place ever since I arrived.

From the fans who know each other having banter on the plane, to the friendly questions as we get to know each other, all has been well.

Much like the start to this trip, there was disappointment at the start of the match.

Mirroring the two-hour delayed flight was the ninth minute goal from Shamrock Rovers, coming from a slip by goalkeeper Aaron McCarey.

Jackett opted for a 'second-string' side in the first half, followed by a stronger force in the second. Leon Clarke again failed to attract much praise, despite being at the end of a superb move for the equaliser.

Wolves were gifted the lead after the otherwise impressive Craig Hyland in the Rovers' goal messed up, with Liam McAlinden the beneficiary.

New-boy Rajiv van La Parra had a bit of a shocker in the first 10 minutes, running Leon Clarke close for the 'Player with the Worst First Touch' award.

But he soon settled in and looked exciting with his pace and trickery. One guy who should also get a mention is Declan Weeks.

In what must be Wolves' smallest ever midfield pairing, he and Jack Price complemented each other perfectly.

The youngster seemed keen to make an impression on his first start, and certainly did on me.

Happy to take the ball with players around him and always looking to move the ball forward when possible, he might just be a fan favourite in the making.

But by far the best moment of the first-half was when the Wolves substitutes, made up of a much stronger team, warmed up with around 10 minutes left.

With giant elastic bands around their feet, they stepped in, out, in, out and then shook it all about to the delight of the travelling support.

They responded with chants of Okey Cokey and "let's all have a disco" which brought smiles to the Wolves players.

In all fairness, their moves were much better than some of the stuff I've thrown out on the dance-floor in Faces in recent weeks.

The Shamrock side was made up of trialists and fringe players, but offered a decent amount of threat with some crisp passing and a couple of decent ball players in the middle.

But, in the second-half, with a team made up of Michael Jacobs, Bakary Sako, Nouha Dicko, Danny Batth et al, Wolves took control.

Dicko slid in to convert a Edwards cross after a slick move, while Sako fired in a penalty after Jacobs showed it's not just Arjen Robben who can make the slightest touch look like a sledge-hammer.

This morning the fans, including myself, will be off to Malahide to watch the team train, meet the players and King Kenny.

Part B of my mission this morning is to see how much of the much-feted PR campaign to get the club closer to the fans is real and how much is just PR.

Plan A? A selfie with Danny Batth. Wish me luck!