Fan verdict on long-awaited Wolves home win over Bristol City

Russ Cockburn

What's your verdict on the match? Well that was a Christmas cracker to top off the turkey and booze nicely.

Overall, I think we just about edged it and the front four are starting to create the opportunities and attacking football we love to see down the Molineux.

And that's a top four that I think is at about 65 per cent. Costa and Cav are continuing their rich vein of form and tormenting full-backs on both sides of the pitch.

This has made a major difference as we now have threats down the flanks and prevents teams from doubling up on Costa as much as they did when Saville was wide left.

The second goal was Portuguese poetry and the finish was probably one only Costa could have executed with the poise and grace that he did. Being a Wolves fan we're used to seeing those opportunities hit Asda or Mr Tikka at the back of the South Bank.

This is going to be a little controversial, but I don't think we've seen anywhere near the real Bright yet. His touch and decision making let him down on a number of occasions yesterday, although the pleasing thing for me was he never hid and always wanted the ball...he'll be a star and we'll be even more exciting when he hits full speed.

Dicko is probably the biggest worry in an attacking sense. He seems to have lost that killer touch and his hold-up play wasn't the best yesterday. I think I'd take him out the firing line and give Bodvarsson some game time as the main focal point of the attack.

Now where do you start with the defence. I thought Doherty and Coady were pretty good, especially going forward and Stearman's trademark surges forward returned, to the glee of the South Bank.

However, collectively we look a shambles at the back and you almost feel like we need to score five to guarantee winning the game. The lad Abraham was a handful and it came as no surprise that one very good ball forward pretty much undone all our good work of the first thirty minutes.

As for the second. Well that was gross misconduct. How you can let someone 6ft 5in claim a free header in the six-yard box is beyond me and everyone has to take a bit of the blame.

Even when we scored late on you knew the defence would go into meltdown and provide them with another opportunity to draw level. So it transpired and only a fantastic double team clearance from the Doc and Stears kept us ahead...to be honest, I thought he'd blown for the goal and not the full-time whistle.

If nothing else it was great to see the little Umpa Lumpa Johnson with his fake outrage at the end. He might want to remind his centre back to be a bit more discreet and not pretty much 'hand' us the penalty with his reaction.

Price is getting better with every game and is revelling in the added responsibility Lambert seems to have given him. This could be the defining season for Jacko.

And finally Super Dave, if only his feet were as good as his head...he'd be some player.

Who played well - and who didn't impress? I'm going to break from tradition and go with Lambert. He seems to have decided attack is the best form of defence for now and it's working with some quality football and back-to-back wins.

He also seems to have realised that building a rapport with the fans (similar to how Zenga did) will probably give him the time he needs to adjust the squad and give it a real go.

Like I said after Preston, we need to give him the rest of the season to get us ready to attack next season.

Russ Evers (Hatherton Wolves)

What's your verdict on the match? There was a big crowd - and expectations were slightly raised against a team we normally beat at home. So a let-down, surely, going on the trends of recent years?

But no, we had a second successive home game that kept everyone on the edge of their seats and there were many similarities to our last goal-laden Molineux match.

For 30 minutes we were the only team in it and it started to look too easy - all emanating from simple, accurate, error-free passing epitomised by Jack Price.

Having taken the lead we then suffered again from a couple of defensive uncertainties to allow Bristol City to not only draw level but take the lead.

In the second half we got back into the game and then, courtesy of another brave attacking move, took the lead having switched to 4-4-2.

A penalty awarded for one of the most blatant handballs seen for years should have enabled us to see it comfortably home but this is Wolves.

We stood strong against ridiculously impressive throw-ins and threw bodies on the line to take the points.

That's 13 goals witnessed in the last two home games, added to two away wins in three games, and we're now starting to look up the table rather than down.

Who played well - and who didn't impress? Costa and Cavaleiro each had good moments and Price was calmness personified.

Heather Large

What's your verdict on the match? Oh what fun it is to see the Wanderers win at home!

I missed the Brentford game so it was the first time I had seen us win a league match since Reading on August 13. That seems a very long time ago after all that has happened since.

There is no doubt in my mind that we deserved the three points yesterday.

In the first half we were by far the better side as we controlled the game and repeatedly put Bristol City under pressure.

But we all knew as soon as we went 1-0 up that it wasn't going to last - this is Wolves after all and a comfortable 1-0 win was never going to be on the cards.

So, yet again, we struggled to keep hold of a lead and poor defending was our downfall. Their second goal was pretty embarrassing and seems even worse now I've watched it again.

But, reminiscent of Fulham a fortnight ago, we were treated to another spirited comeback. These players seem to be unwilling to go out without a fight and a fantastic volley from Costa gave us a chance of getting something from the game.

What followed after Cavaleiro's penalty was another nail-biting end (and probably not the last this season) as we fought even harder to keep those three points right up until the last kick.

I honestly thought, from where I was sitting, that Stearman hadn't quite got there in time and the ball crossed the line but having watched it again, I really don't know. Far too close to call but we won and that's all that matters.

Who played well - and who didn't impress? Price, Costa and Cavaleiro were the stand out players for me although it was a decent all-round performance.

I'm glad Price is back in the side because, as I've said before, I like the calming influence he has on our midfield.

Peter Abbott (London Wolves)

What's your verdict on the match? Delighted to see yet another rollercoaster home game, much better that than the 0-0 draws of last season.

We went one-up early on and had so much possession during the first 35 minutes. What worried me the most was that next pass - the final ball on the end of some promising play that might have put in Dicko, Costa or Cavaleiro - was missing.

Then we let in City's best striker, plus we failed to mark up at a simple corner and all our good work was wasted with us 2-1 down at half time.

Early in the second half I thought we started like a bag of nerves and took a while to settle. Then Coady's great ball was dramatically finished off by Costa and it was game on.

There were no doubts about the handball for Cavaleiro's penalty, plus plenty more promising interchange play between substitutes Bodvarrson and Mason.

Things were looking good but we shouldn't never be surprised with even more drama. From the Billy Wright upper Stearman's last ditch attempt to clear looked to have failed, but phew, not over the line (will watch it again later) and we had our first home win since September.

Who played well - and who didn't impress? For me Stears and Coady at the back played well, with Costa the best forward.

I don't think anyone played below my expectations however I'm starting to feel sorry for Nouha Dicko and am wondering whether he should switch to an impact substitute and allow Bodvarsson or Mason to start.

Chris Hughes

What's your verdict on the match? Well it seems we've shaken the dour, goalless home games off now!

After the 4-4 thriller against Fulham we were treated to another goal-filled extravaganza where we threw away a lead and had to battle back. We even tried hard to throw away the win in the final moments but managed to save our skins with a last ditch goal line clearance (or maybe behind the goal line, I've not seen a replay yet but it looked mighty close!).

From an attacking point we finally seem to be getting the best out of Cavaleiro now that he's been given a good run of games and his form has coincided with us looking a much more potent attacking unit.

The addition of Bright in the last two game looks like being the final piece that was needed to give us that creative spark behind the front three in the final third and he absolutely bossed the first half in particular, finding time and space galore to frequently find Cavaleiro and Costa.

It wouldn't be Wolves without a defensive howler or two thrown in to keep us on our toes though. So, having watched our attacking players run rings around Bristol for half an hour, to the point where they were starting to commit petty fouls and take bookings just to stop us playing, our centre halves decided to make a game of it by allowing Abraham to latch on to a long clearance, take a touch to turn and set himself, then plant a finish past Ikeme.

It's not the first time this season and I'm pretty sure it won't be the last that we allow a nothing situation to turn into a goal. That we then managed to completely forget how to mark opponents at a corner to somehow end up going into the half time break behind was just rubbing salt into the wounds.

Credit to the players for the second half performance because we'd again got a mountain to climb but, defensively, it was still a bit of a circus for most of the second half. That's one area we really need to address in January!

Who played well - and who didn't impress? A close run between Bright and Price for man of the match. Between them they controlled the midfield for pretty much the whole game.

Cavaleiro tormented his full back while Costa was his usual, tricky self. His finish for the equaliser wasn't bad either and was no less than Coady's sumptuous cross deserved.

As for poor performances, Batth will again need to hold his hands up and apologise to his team mates for goal-conceding mistakes. He gave Abraham too much time and space while turning like a tanker for the first and lost his man for the second. He was also bailed out several times by Stearman when caught out of position.

Rob Cartwright

What's your verdict on the match?It was like opening the layers of your advent calendar while waiting with anticipation to see what would happen at the end.

It was never going to be easy. Especially when getting to the ground late to realise my glasses were still in the car! As it turned out, the Christmas drinks made for a good balancing act as I watched blurred figures in the distance.

This was the game that had it all for Wolves fans; an early lead, a 'dangerous' header, a goal of the season contender, Danny Batth wrong-footed, the free header - how we've become to expect the free header, Costa and Cavaleiro at their best going forward, a late penalty and then high drama at the end.

Yet, after all that, we still had the Icelandic clap to come!

This was a well organised Wolves who kept their nerve when going behind. I sense we are turning a corner and the timing could be just right.

Who played well - and who didn't impress? We deserved to win this game, playing fast attacking football. it was a travesty that we went behind.

Costa and Cavaleiro were both on top form. These two could shoot us to the play-offs yet. I thought Bright had a very good game. Stearman was terrific, even before his heroics with the last kick of the game.

A mention for Lambert too. He picked the right team and made positive substitutions which helped change the game to our benefit.

I'm not being over critical but Batth just hasn't got it. I thought Ikeme had an off day too.

My man of the match was Cavaleiro, by a nose!