Martin Swain on Wolves 1 Chelsea 0

The deeper the hole they dig for themselves, the higher they climb to get out of it.

A week after conquering Anfield, Wolves scaled another Premier League peak last night by summoning another extraordinary effort to defy English football's reigning double winners.

This may not have been the Chelsea who ruled the domestic game with such aplomb last May but it was still title-chasing opposition.

Wolves' reward for their victory, other than the thunderous acclaim of an ecstatic Molineux at the final whistle, was to go leaping from the bottom three in yet another twist to the congested struggle for Premier League survival.

They did so despite having as little of a game as they have in any contest this season. Chelsea dominated possession, racked up a 17-3 advantage in shots at goal and 9-4 in corners.

But this was a Wolves victory which captured both in tone and spirit that famous defeat of Manchester United, seven years to the month of the club's first Premier League venture.

This time, there was no moment of high-quality finishing from Kenny Miller, midway through the second-half, to win the game but the kind of soft goal Wolves have become more used to conceding than scoring during this curious campaign of extreme highs and gloomy troughs.

It came early in the game, too, leaving Chelsea a full 85 minutes or more to retrieve a result which damns their manager Carlo Ancelotti to more heavy pressure.

But the same defiance and unremitting stubbornness linked last night's effort to the one from Dave Jones' team all those years ago - Wolves fans will only hope that the three points do not go down as a stand-out moment in an ultimate disappointment but form part of a survival-clinching total.

Watching the drama was Steve Sidwell, the new recruit lined up to join Mick McCarthy's squad, fresh from agreeing to sign after the breakdown of his deal to West Ham.

Sidwell has had his feet up for much of the last four seasons, having played just 31 league games for Chelsea and Villa. Watching this effort from his new team-mates, he knows those days are over.

McCarthy's demands for nothing but total effort shows no sign of fading from a group of players who were only able to emerge with this famous and heartening result through a level of application which was genuinely admirable.

The manager said afterwards: "We might lack quality, but the players leave absolutely nothing out there on the pitch. I am both proud and grateful for that."

So, I imagine, are the supporters.

Once they had scored what would prove to be the match-winner, Wolves had to survive on the fragments of the game and were frequently left beating away wave after wave of Chelsea attack with nine men bottling up their penalty area.

They ventured forward spasmodically with a late free-kick from Stephen Hunt, which clipped goalkeeper Petr Cech's woodwork, their only other telling effort on target.

But at times it seemed as if it was a quite deliberate ploy from Wolves, who were always mindful of their defensive stations and were content to retreat and allow Chelsea to play in front of them.

As a result, goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey had only one uncomfortable moment, instinctively stretching out a leg to deflect away a Salomon Kalou effort on the half hour.

This opportunity sprang from the only drop in concentration from Wolves back-line, a loose throw-in by Ronald Zubar which played Richard Stearman into difficulties and from which Chelsea so nearly profited.

Otherwise, there can be nothing but praise for a defence culpable in previous matches for some brittle performances but absolutely unshakeable in their resistance to all that Chelsea could bring their way in this game.

Among them, perhaps a new folk hero is emerging.

Although each and every member of McCarthy's team would play their part, it was Zubar who set the tempo and mind-set for this epic win with his early impact on Chelsea's authority.

First the Wolves defender flashed a swirling left-footer at Cech which was beaten away and then made a fool of Ashley Cole by brushing aside the England full-back, who had tried to take a few liberties by dribbling his way out of trouble.

Then from the Cech save of Zubar's shot came the corner which would prove decisive.

Hunt might even have mis-hit it but George Elokobi's run across its line confused Cole into impotence and the ball flew past a startled Cech off the knee of Jose Bosingwa.

Hennessey remained solidly protected throughout but, when Chelsea did get through, their finishing lacked conviction.

Twice, and only twice, in the second-half they slipped down the side of Wolves defence to present angled opportunities for Kalou and Florent Malouda but both dragged their finishes harmlessly wide.

Didier Drogba, given such little room to manoeuvre by the outstanding Christophe Berra and Stearman, rattled the outside of Hennessey's nearside post with a further effort, while Chelsea's last chance would see him play in substitute Nicolas Anelka at the start of added time with a through ball which, for the only time, caught Wolves too square.

Hennessey's attention was not disturbed, however, dashing from his line to make a sliding tackle to a huge cheer of relief from a riveted Molineux.

McCarthy had made changes for this game, resting Sylvan Ebanks-Blake and Stephen Ward to give the returning Kevin Doyle and Steven Fletcher a rare start in tandem.

This was a game, though, which often left the Wolves strikers cut off from midfield and foraging for whatever they could garner themselves.

As a result, Wolves had moments of counter-attacking promise which went unfulfilled while underlining McCarthy's point about a lack of quality - and perhaps composure - in those key moments when they have the opposition exposed.

Still no one was complaining.

Wolves have yet again dragged themselves back into contention with an unexpected conquest, although it would be unwise for their fan base to presume too much.

Already this season, they have seen the dramatic comeback against Sunderland begat Blackburn, the domination of Birmingham begat Wigan, the triumph over Liverpool begat West Ham.

The legacy of this performance is yet to come.

But somebody please take that shovel out of their hands so they can stop digging, for surely they can't keep climbing out of trouble like this.

Or can they?