Wolves 0 Peterborough 3 - match report
Sorry Wolves crashed to their heaviest Championship defeat of the season in a laboured performance against resurgent Peterborough at Molineux.
Sorry Wolves crashed to their heaviest Championship defeat of the season in a laboured performance against resurgent Peterborough at Molineux.
Lee Tomlin (17), Tommy Rowe (43) and Dwight Gayle (69) sentenced Stale Solbakken's side to their biggest Championship loss under the Norwegian.
Jamie O'Hara's return from the bench for the last 14 minutes after nine months out was welcome but there was little else to cheer as Wolves produced arguably their worst performance of the season.
But while O'Hara watched on, there was little to cheer for Wolves fans as their team looked sluggish right from the start.
Gayle served notice of Peterborough's intentions in the fourth minute with a rising shot that flew over after a strong run and pass from George Boyd.
Six minutes later Posh went even closer and it took a superb save from in-form keeper Carl Ikeme to prevent the visitors taking the lead after the busy Lee Tomlin left Gayle clean through for a clean-through chance.
And with Wolves looking well below par, it was hardly a shock when Peterborough took the lead.
Ikeme made a brilliant flying save to tip Tomlin's piledriver on to the bar after a fine unchallenged run and pass by Joe Newell, but the ball bounced down over the line.
Wolves recovered to force their best spell of the game until just before half time, sparked by Bakary Sako's free kick which was tipped away by keeper Robert Olejnik.
Kevin Foley had to produce a superb challenge on dangerman Newell deep inside the area to put him off as he shaped to shoot.
But Wolves quickly returned to the attack and Pennant curled a free kick disappointingly over the bar from 30 yards.
Sylvan Ebanks-Blake went much closer five minutes before the break when he crashed a rising drive inches over the bar after a driving run from Kevin Doyle.
Seconds later, Stephen Ward's shot on the turn was parried by Olejnik after the former Villa youth keeper pushed away a corner.
And Wolves' attacking spree reached its height in the 41st minute when Sako's fierce angled shot was turned around the post.
But just before the break, Posh doubled their lead against the run of play when left wing back Rowe cut inside a flimsy challenge from Pennant and rolled a right-foot shot into the far corner of the net from the edge of the area.
Solbakken tried to get Wolves moving when he gambled at the break by sending on fit-again Bjorn Sigurdarson for Stephen Ward, who failed to finish a league game for the first time since April 2011.
It left Wolves matching up Posh's 3-5-2 formation with Pennant switching to the left.
But instead of inspiring Wolves, things just got worse as the side failed to spark or display any spark of imagination.
Chances were thin on the ground, although Pennant drilled woefully wide after the ball sat up for him invitingly after Sako's cross was blocked.
So instead of a comeback, Wolves' fate in defeat was sealed – and after Adlene Guedioura and Mark Davies scored against them at Molineux, Mark Little became the latest old boy to haunt his former team when Gayle stabbed home from his cross to punish woeful defending.
Pennant was booked for hacking down Little in the 75th minute, and that proved to be his last action as he was substituted a minute later to ironic cheers as David Davis replaced him.
O'Hara joined Davis in a joint substitution, but the midfielder couldn't inspire Wolves to rescue this game.
And they will have to be a lot better than this if they are to get anything against Mick McCarthy's Ipswich on Saturday.
