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Video: Stearman backs Wolves to bounce back

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Captain Richard Stearman has backed Wolves to bounce back at Cardiff tomorrow after admitting the team lacked belief during the 3-2 defeat to QPR.

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Wolves head to Wales on the back of their first defeat – including pre-season games – since April, when they went down 2-1 at Middlesbrough.

They will be looking for an instant reaction at the Cardiff City Stadium with Kenny Jackett keen to garner some momentum in the early stages of the season.

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For Stearman, who turned 28 on the day of the QPR game, it wasn't a happy birthday.

But the experienced centre-half felt there were positives to take from the defeat.

"Obviously the best present would have been three points and everyone go home happy, but unfortunately it didn't pan out like that," he said. "We probably played some of the best football that certainly I've seen us play in a Wolves shirt to get 2-0 up

"They've scored against the run of play and we seemed to fall apart a little bit and stop doing the things we did to get 2-0 up."

Stearman said the goals Wolves conceded were 'very disappointing' but called for the team to recreate last season's two 1-0 victories over Cardiff.

"I don't think it was just the second half, as soon as they scored we lost the belief a bit in what we'd done so well, which we've got to learn not to do," he said. "We've got a bit of a young inexperienced side and maybe that didn't help but we've got to try and rectify that come the weekend.

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"There are positives to take from the game, there are swings and roundabouts and hopefully it'll even itself out and maybe we'll nick some points against the run of play like I felt they did. To get 2-0 up we were brilliant and maybe if we'd stuck it out to half time it would be a different story.

"It's a benchmark. We did it last year as well, came up against the relegated sides early on and did well against them.

"Saturday will be another different game, we did the double over them last year so hopefully we can do something similar."

Wolves will be missing loan striker Adam le Fondre who is ineligible to face his parent club.

Teenager Bright Enobakhare will take his place in the squad, while winger Jordan Graham is also set to travel with the first team after impressing in last weekend's under-21 defeat to Stoke City.

Cardiff's one-time Wolves target, winger Sammy Ameobi

Jackett is unlikely to make wholesale changes after just one defeat, although he did call for Wolves to tighten up at the back.

"For us generally we want to keep playing, passing, on the floor and keep that brand of football going but it can't be to the detriment of getting it right at both ends," he said. "The goals against column would suggest we need to tighten up."

And of the opposition, the head coach added: "Cardiff are a big side physically, Alex Revell is there and Kenwyne Jones has been coming off the bench and is very good in the air. We had a good game against them at the back end of last season and like three quarters of the division they'll think they've got the squad that's capable of getting in the top six.

"It's a very tight division and we've seen it already, a lot of the games can go either way."