Cork v Wolves - five talking points

Niall Ennis and Bright Enobakhare were on the scoresheet as a young Wolves side beat Cork City 2-1 in Ireland.

In their only match during a six-day pre-season trip, Kenny Jackett fielded an XI with an average age of just 20.

But how useful was the game as far as Wolves' Championship preparations go?

And which of the young starlets look ready to make the step up? Wolves correspondent Tim Spiers picks out five talking points.

It was 12 months ago when Bright Enobakhare first burst onto the scene, impressing during the trip to Clairefontaine, France and then scoring a wondergoal in the friendly victory at Doncaster.

A debut goal in the Capital One Cup against Barnet aside, that initial excitement and promise wasn't replicated in the (albeit) sporadic substitute appearances he accrued in the Championship, while off-the-field discretions were also an issue.

Now a year old and a year wiser, Bright suddenly finds himself as second-choice striker behind Joe Mason.

So is the 18-year-old about to make his mark on the Championship?

The raw talent is clearly there - the Nigerian is quick, strong, can skip past defenders for fun, displays good movement and pops up in dangerous areas, as witnessed for his smartly-taken goal, a close-range header from a pinpoint Ben O'Hanlon cross.

On the negative side his decision-making can at times be poor, he often tries to take on one many too many rather than picking out a team mate, and he has a tendency to dive in the penalty area.

These, though, are negatives that can all be eradicated.

With Jackett having slim pickings for the time being, it looks like Bright will feature more heavily in the opening weeks of the season as Nouha Dicko works his way to match fitness.

More minutes on the pitch in the number '10' role as an alternative to James Henry, coupled with a Championship goal or two, could see the youngster flourish.

Quite how fruitful this exercise will prove to be in the long run is unknown.

But whether the takeover happens or not, the law of averages tells us only a select few of this batch of 17-to-20-year-olds will make the grade at Wolves.

So who look the most likely to succeed?

Niall Ennis is a special talent. In this, our first glimpse of the 17-year-old playing men's football in a Wolves 'first team', he shone.

A goal within four minutes was Roy of the Rovers stuff, and you could see in his passionate celebration just what it meant to him.

In his 45-minute he regularly looked to roll his man, race into space with the ball and play with positivity, energy and enthusiasm.

Circumstances will dictate whether he gets a chance in the Championship, but Wolves have a precocious talent in their ranks to rival the very best that have come through their academy in the past 20 years.

Elsewhere Aaron Hayden was big, strong and composed at the back, alongside Connor Johnson whose distribution was impressive.

O'Hanlon's cross for the goal was excellent and he put in a tidy performance, while on the opposite flank Hakeem Odoffin has pace and power in the Dominic Iorfa mould.

Donovan Wilson looked lively and will benefit from a loan move this season. Ryan Leak only had 17 minutes to impress but held his own.

And then to Connor Ronan. The young Irishman is a joy to watch when the ball is at his feet.

He dazzles defenders with his movement, possesses wonderful technique and can pick out a pass with his eyes closed.

What a prospect this boy is. His physicality is likely to be holding him back from first-team involvement at the moment.

But he has the talent to play at a high level. And there's only one way to find out if he's good enough.

In such a young side it was left to old, wise head Conor Coady to skipper the XI in the first half.

Opinion on Coady's debut season in Wolves colours is split, with some fans unfairly targeting him as a weak link and others seeing a box-to-box tackling midfielder in the mould that Wolves have been screaming out for in recent years.

What couldn't be doubted in Cork on Monday night was his leadership abilities.

In a quiet Turners Cross stadium, Coady's unmistakable scouse tones will have ranked higher on the decibel level than anything else.

He barked orders and instructions at every single team mate, urging them to close down the opposition, or race back into position, or press the ball harder, while all the while offering encouragement.

It was a proper captain's performance. And Coady's leadership qualities should not be underrated in an inexperienced squad that many have suggested lacks leaders.

Coady is only 23 and while there is room for improvement in his game (as he'd readily admit), he is the type of grafter that will do just that.

No one at Wolves needed reminding of it, but this game highlighted in black and white the lack of strength in depth in the squad.

This was Jackett's reserve XI. And while Dicko, Mike Williamson, Ethan Ebanks-Landell and then Jordan Graham and Michal Zyro will all return, to embark on a Championship campaign in two-and-a-half weeks with such a threadbare squad is deeply concerning.

The youngsters will make up the numbers, but there's no guarantee at all that they'll make up the quality.

Having not one left winger in a 25-man touring party is a damning indictment of the current state of affairs, as of course is having four senior defenders and one senior striker.

Jackett knows this, Moxey knows this, the players know it, the fans know it.

Until Wolves' squad has competition for places, their prospects of a successful season will be bleak. In that sense, the takeover cannot come around soon enough. If for whatever reason it doesn't happen, Wolves could find themselves in big trouble.

As ever, the Wolves fans turned out in their numbers, taking advantage of glorious Irish sunshine to don their gold and lime green shirts around Turners Cross.

The centre of Cork was full of them both before and after the game. And it seems a great day was had by all, topped off by seeing their team win.

There is a legitimate question, though, on whether it was fair on those who had travelled so far to watch a second-string side.

Speaking to supporters, opinion was generally 50/50.

For many the match was always going to be secondary to having a great day out in Cork, drinking Guinness, soaking up the sun and mixing with locals.

But others took issue with forking out £400 minimum to watch a team that likely included none of the XI (Carl Ikeme aside) that will start at Rotherham on August 6.

At a time when relations between supporters and the club are strained, to say the least, it was certainly an unfortunate PR exercise.

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