Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club

Sorry About The Wait

2008-11-25T11:48:00.000-08:00

Just a quick one to let all you followers of this blog know that i am very sorry for the lack of posts in the last week or so. I have been having real trouble with my internet and have therefore not been able to post. I will get back to posting straight away.

Murray Loaned Out To Hereford

2008-11-12T08:13:00.000-08:00

Wolves keeper Matt Murray has signed for League One strugglers Hereford United on a month's loan.

Former England Under-21 international Murray has been out of the game for 18 months with a cruciate ligament injury.

But Murray, 27, is looking to get back to match fitness following the latest long, frustrating chapter in his injury-ravaged career.

And he is expected to go straight into the United squad for Saturday's home basement battle with Cheltenham Town.

"He just needs some football," Wolves boss Mick McCarthy told BBC Sport. "It will be good for him to get a month's football. Then we'll see how he is."

Murray, who won promotion with Wolves in 2003 but only played one Premier League game due to injury, is still keen to challenge current number one Carl Ikeme and Wayne Hennessey for his old first-team place at Molineux.

But he will have to compete for a place this weekend with Hereford youngster Craig Samson, who stood in and kept a clean sheet against Dagenham and Redbridge when on-loan Darren Randolph refused to play.

Randolph dropped out of the Bulls' side for the home FA Cup first round tie two hours before kick-off after hearing reports that United were planning to bring in Murray.

Under the terms of his loan deal from Charlton Athletic, Randolph will remain at Edgar Street until January. But United boss Graham Turner says he is unlikely to play again in the first team.

Jarvis Could Be Back In 2 Weeks!

2008-11-12T08:09:00.000-08:00

Matt Jarvis could be back in full training for Wolves in a fortnight, according to boss Mick McCarthy.

Winger Jarvis, 22, is fighting his way back from a hamstring injury picked up against Reading in late September.

"He's great. He's doing far better than we would have hoped for or expected," McCarthy told the Wolves website.

"He might be back in training in a couple of weeks. But we don't want to get carried away as he's got to get right up to first-team pace."

When Jarvis pulled his hamstring in Wolves' 3-0 defeat to the Royals it was feared he would be missing for three months and a quicker-than-expected return to the side would give the Championship leaders a huge boost in their bid for promotion.

Meanwhile, McCarthy revealed defender Jody Craddock has had a scan to determine what is causing pain in his foot.

Craddock broke a metatarsal against Sheffield Wednesday in August and, although x-rays have shown the break has healed, he is still suffering some pain.

"Jody's had to ease off. He just felt something on the side of his foot when he was running," McCarthy explained.

"He's had a bone scan and we're waiting for the results to check what it is."

Wolves 2-0 Burnley

2008-11-08T09:19:00.000-08:00

Michael Kightly scored twice to secure victory for Championship leaders Wolves over high-flyers Burnley.

The England Under-21 international got his first when he followed up his own shot that rebounded back off a post.

Chris Iwelumo had two chances to further the home side's lead but was denied by saves from Brian Jensen.

Kightly scored again when he converted from close-range after good work by Sylvan Ebanks-Blake before Burnley's Clarke Carlisle was sent off.

Elsewhwere Reading won 3-0 against Derby and Birmingham drew 1-1 with Nottingham Forest so Wolves extend their lead at the top of the table.

Stick around as we hope to bring you highlights.

Wolves v Burnley- Match Preview

2008-11-07T12:47:00.000-08:00

Wolves take on Burnley at Molineux on saturday and Old Gold will be looking to extend there lead at the top of the table. So here's the team news.

Leaders Wolves have left-back Matt Hill fully fit for the first time since his summer move from Preston and Sam Vokes should be fit despite hobbling off during a reserve game in the week.

Burnley are again expected to be without left-back Christian Kalvenes with a leg injury. Clarke Carlisle, Remco van der Schaaf and Alex MacDonald are also doubtful, having been hit by a virus.

So can Wolves go further ahead at the top of the table or will Burnley get the better of them?

Craddock comeback delayed

2008-11-07T12:40:00.000-08:00

Wolves defender Jody Craddock's return to first-team contention following a foot injury has been delayed after suffering pain during training.

Craddock, 33, has been out of action since breaking a metatarsal against Sheffield Wednesday in August.

"I'm still at the last stage of my rehab," Craddock told the club website.
"I've trained a couple of times which has been good but my foot has started to ache at the end of it. The X-rays say it's healed so it's frustrating."

The problem has meant Craddock is reluctant to put an exact date on when he may be back in action.

"I'm still getting pain in it which is holding me back a little bit. "I'm almost there and so close but it's difficult to put a date on it. But I've seen another specialist just to check things out and all seems OK."

Jarvis Recovering Well

2008-11-03T11:40:00.000-08:00

Wolves boss Mick McCarthy says Matt Jarvis is recovering nicely from his hamstring injury, but is reluctant to put a date on the winger's return.

Jarvis, 22, has been out of action since Wolves' 3-0 defeat by Reading at the end of September.

"I wouldn't put a time on it," McCarthy told BBC WM. "We thought it would be three months at the time and we assume it will be that. "I speak to him everyday and he was really pleased with his rehab."

Jarvis had been a key player in Wolves' impressive start to the season, as the Molineux side won six of the first seven games Jarvis played in, and McCarthy is understandably looking forward to welcoming him back.

"He's just pushing it a bit further every day," he said. "He had a little setback recently but now he's fine and is back on the track."

Cardiff City 1-2 Wolves

2008-11-02T09:05:00.001-08:00

Wolves moved further ahead at the top of the table thanks to an opening scoring blitz against Cardiff City at Ninian Park.

Wolves striker Chris Iwelumo opened the scoring in the fourth minute after a double mistake by the Cardiff defence before Sylvain Ebanks-Blake doubled their lead on eight minutes after beating the off-side trap to finish in the corner.

Cardiff's Ross McCormack pulled one back on 19 minutes to score his 10th Championship goal of the season.

Iwelumo found his way in behind the Cardiff defence when centre-half Roger Johnson misjudged a header 35 yards out from goal. The Scotland forward ran in on goal, dodging a mistimed tackle by Joe Ledley, and slotted the ball past goalkeeper Tom Heaton.

Ebanks-Blake's strike came after some intricate passing saw him latch onto a through-ball to beat Darren Purse as the last man in defence. After a clear run into the box he slipped a left-foot shot past Heaton from the edge of the six-yard box for a 2-0 lead and a goal on his 100th appearance for the Midlands club.

The home side's luck worsened when Jay Bothroyd limped off after pulling up with a hamstring injury on 10 minutes but Cardiff pulled a goal back on 19 minutes after a Miguel Comminges overlap and cross from the left was brought down superbly by Ross McCormack, lurking on the penalty spot.

Cardiff's Ross McCormack scored his 10th Championship goal of the season. As the ball dropped, the Bluebirds' top scorer struck an unstoppable left-foot shot into the net for his 11th Championship goal of the season.

Wolves had the better of the half's remaining chances, hitting Cardiff on the break through Michael Kightly and Ebanks-Blake but both Wolves scorers failed to take advantage, with Iwelumo failing to convert Kightly's goalmouth cross while only two last-ditch tackles prevented Ebanks-Blake doubling his tally.

A goal-line clearance by Peter Whittingham prevented Wolves increasing their lead in first-half injury-time after Heaton overran an incoming cross from a corner.

McCormack provided the opening action of the second half after he latched onto a long ball from the Cardiff defence on 54 minutes. With just the keeper to beat he was clipped on the ankle by Wolves full-back Kevin Foley, but the grounded forward's plea for a penalty was turned down by referee Steve Tanner. Unfortunately, the trip resulted in Cardiff's second hamstring injury of the night as McCormack was replaced by Eddie Johnson a minute later.

Cardiff had another penalty appeal pushed away on 70 minutes after Eddie Johnson's weak cross was handled by defender Richard Stearman on the edge of the area and with two minutes to go Roger Johnson somehow managed to slot a Cardiff in-swinging corner past the far post from three yards out.

Eddie Johnson was then denied the final chance of the game when his right-foot volley was blocked by keeper Carl Ikeme deep into injury time.

Cardiff v Wolves

2008-11-01T07:27:00.000-07:00

Wolves travel to ninian park to face Cardiff at 5.15 tonight and the game is live on skysports. Wolves will be looking to stay top of the table whilst Cardiff will be looking to continue there playoff push. Here is the team news.

Cardiff captain Darren Purse, midfielders Stephen McPhail and Joe Ledley and striker Jay Bothroyd have all shaken off knocks.

Peter Whittingham is pushing for a recall, but Mark Kennedy, Riccardo Scimeca and Tony Capaldi are injured.

Wolves boss Mick McCarthy could recall defender Richard Stearman to the squad but has said that he might make him wait for a comeback after missing the last game because of been stuck in traffic.

Goalkeeper Carl Ikeme looks okay to start again after a back problem, but Jody Craddock, Matt Jarvis and George Elokobi remain sidelined.

Wolves 2-1 Swansea

2008-10-29T04:14:00.000-07:00

A brace from Sylvan Ebanks-Blake returned Wolves to the top of the table against battling Swansea.

The first came on the stroke of half-time as he twisted and turned under poor marking before firing in.

The Swans hit back as Leon Britton fed Fede Bessone, who chipped a delightful cross to allow Darren Pratley to fire a low shot from the edge of the area.

With half an hour to go Ebanks-Blake again found acres of space in the box and glanced in Carlos Edwards' cross.
WO
The defeat was Swansea's fourth in the league - each one away from home - and ended their seven-match unbeaten run.

2 more amazing Wolves moments

2008-10-28T04:02:00.000-07:00

Going further back in time for these 2 great moments in Wolves history. The league cup finals of 1974 and 1980!

Those videos really do bring back great memories don't they!

Mancienne Signs On Loan From Chelsea

2008-10-28T03:48:00.000-07:00

Wolves have signed Chelsea's England under-21 defender Michael Mancienne on a two-month loan. The 20-year-old centre back, who agreed the deal on Monday afternoon, will be with the club until 29 December. Mancienne has previously been on-loan with Wolves' Championship rivals Queens Park Rangers.

Wolves said they have been "unable to progress" a loan enquiry from MK Dons for Matt Murray as fellow goalkeeper Carl Ikeme has a slight back problem. Mick McCarthy told the club's official website: "He could be involved in the squad tomorrow (against Swansea). "But I wouldn't throw him in without having done some work as a unit beforehand. "I want us to stop leaking 14 goals in five games so maybe there has to be a shake-up or re-jig of affairs. Let's see if we can get a formula that works."

Mancienne could be set to feature or even start in tonights game against Swansea and all Wolves fans eyes will be on him to see if he is a future star of the game and whether he will be able to help Wolves in their promotion push this season.

Wolves v Swansea- Match Preview

2008-10-28T03:41:00.000-07:00

Wolves take on Swansea in the coca cola championship at molineux tonight and they are looking to go back to the top of the table. The last time the 2 sides met a couple of weeks ago Swansea got the better of Wolves but Wolves had a few players missing on that day and will be looking for revenge tonight. So here is the team news.

Michael Mancienne could make his Wolves debut after joining on loan, while defender Richard Stearman returns after his one-match suspension. Goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey is expected to replace Carl Ikeme, who has a slight back problem.

Swansea City will be without full-back Marcos Painter, who will be out for six months with ruptured knee ligaments. He was stretchered off during Swansea's win over Southampton, while goalkeeper Dorus De Vries (broken jaw) is out.

So can Wolves win and go back to the top of the table or will Swansea get the better of Wolves yet again this season?

Watford 2-3 Wolves

2008-10-26T03:47:00.000-07:00

Michael Gray's winner settled an enthralling clash at Watford and maintained Wolves' promotion push.

Chris Iwelumo put Wolves in front after 57 seconds but Grzegorz Rasiak bundled home an equaliser after 21 minutes.

David Jones curled in a superb free-kick to put Wolves ahead again before the break but John-Joe O'Toole restored equality after 47 minutes.

Tommy Smith fired over from the spot on the hour after Jones fouled O'Toole before Gray's 71st minute strike.

Liverpool Players Impressions!

2008-10-25T14:16:00.000-07:00

Not to do with Wolves but this is so so funny! So take your pick of the videos or check out both of them and be prepared to laugh!

Norwich 5-2 Wolves

2008-10-23T10:41:00.000-07:00

Leroy Lita hit a hat-trick as Norwich notched a win which knocked Wolves off the top of the Championship table.

Wolves keeper Carl Ikeme tipped Sammy Clingan's free-kick into his own net before Lita converted coolly, but Wolves' Neill Collins headed home.

Lita lobbed Ikeme from 20 yards and Wolves' Sylvan Ebanks-Blake converted a penalty after a foul by Wes Hoolahan.

The visitors' Richard Stearman was sent off before Lita headed in Clingan's free-kick and Lee Croft hit the fifth.

Norwich v Wolves Preview

2008-10-21T09:02:00.000-07:00

Wolves play Norwich in the Coca Cola championship at Carrow Road tonight hoping to stay at the top of the table. Here is the team news.

Norwich defender Dejan Stefanovic is back from suspension as City attempt to avoid a fourth straight defeat.

Adam Drury, John Kennedy and Antoine Sibierski are doubtful after suffering knocks during Saturday's 1-0 loss at Bristol City.

Wolves boss Mick McCarthy may keep faith with the same starting XI that beat Coventry, although on-loan winger Carlos Edwards is pushing for a place.

Defenders Jody Craddock and Matt Hill are not yet ready to return.

So how will the mighty Wolves get on tonight then?

How did everyone else get on today?

2008-10-18T10:25:00.001-07:00

Here are the other results in the Coca Cola Championship on the 18th October 2008.

Bristol City 1-0 Norwich

Burnley 1-1 Birmingham

Cardiff 2-0 Charlton

Derby 2-1 Plymouth

Doncaster 0-0 Blackpool

Ipswich 2-2 Swansea

Preston 2-1 Reading

QPR 2-1 Nottm Forest

Southampton 0-3 Watford

Wolves 2-1 Coventry City

2008-10-18T10:20:00.000-07:00

Wolves went top of the Championship as they came from behind to beat Coventry.

Michael Mifsud gave the visitors the lead after just six minutes, firing under Carl Ikeme from close range.

Leon Best should have made it 2-0 six minutes later when he was clean through but before the break Michael Kightly rounded Keiren Westwood to level.

Sylvan Ebanks-Blake then took advantage to bundle home what proved to be the winner as Westwood fumbled a Kightly shot which was straight at him.

Goals- Coventry- Misfud, Wolves- Kightly, Ebanks-Blake

Wolves v Coventry City Preview

2008-10-17T07:44:00.000-07:00

Here is all the team news ahead of Wolves' clash with Coventry City on saturay,

Wolves' attacking stars Michael Kightly, Sylvan Ebanks-Blake and Chris Iwelumo are all avaialble.
Kightly (hamstring) and Ebanks-Blake (knee) have been passed fit and Iwelumo has served a suspended. But Matt Jarvis is sidelined with a hamstring problem.
Coventry boss Chris Coleman is unlikely to make any changes to the side that thrashed Southampton 4-1.
Defender Ben Turner is set to miss out with an ankle injury with Marcus Hall ready to deputise.

Wolves could realy do with a win to get their season back on track after two defeats in as many games and will be looking to go back to the top of the table if other results go their way.

So will the mighty Wolves be able to win and win comfotably or will Coventry be too strong for us?

With Kights, Ebanks-Blake and Big Chris back we should be strong favourties but lets hope Big Chris can get over his bad miss for Scotland!

There will be a match report and video highlights after the game on saturday so come back to this blog to see them.

Steve Bull Tribute!

2008-10-09T13:23:00.001-07:00

A compilation of some of the legend that is Bully's greatest goals!

What a player!

Best Game Of This Season So Far

2008-10-08T09:13:00.000-07:00

Highlights of the home game against Forest this season.

A performance like that shows that we are deffinitely capable of promotion this season. Kightly is on fire at the moment!

A Classic Moment!

2008-10-08T09:01:00.000-07:00

If you're ever feeling down and need cheering up here is a video that will most certainly do that.

What a game! What a result! and what a performance from Matt Murray between the sticks!

The Ground- Molineux Stadium

2008-10-08T08:23:00.000-07:00

Its the stadium that the mighty Wolves turn out at every other week more or less but do you know everything about it? Well if not here is a guide to our great ground Molineux Stadium.

The stadium is located within a mile of Wolverhampton city centre, just outside of the city's ring road, and is a prominent building because of its size. It consists of four stands: the Steve Bull Stand (formerly the John Ireland stand), the Jack Harris Stand, the Stan Cullis Stand and the Billy Wright Stand. In front of the Billy Wright Stand is a statue of the player, who made 105 appearances for England, 90 of them as captain. In front of the Stan Cullis stand is a statue of the former player, captain and manager who led the team during their most successful era.

The total seated capacity of the ground is approximately 28,525. This was expanded in 2003 by the building of a temporary stand, known as the Graham Hughes Stand, providing capacity for another 900 fans. These temporary seats were removed before the beginning of the 2006/07 season. In the days before the Taylor Report, which required British football stadia to provide seating for all those attending, the ground had a capacity of over 60,000; the record attendance for a match at the ground is 61,315 for a game against Liverpool on 11 February 1939.

Molineux has hosted England internationals. The first was a 6-1 win over Ireland on March 7, 1891 (the same day England also beat Wales 4-1 at Sunderland's ground). England again beat Ireland, this time 4-0, on February 14, 1903 and lost to Wales 2-1 on February 5, 1936. The last was a 5-2 defeat of Denmark in a 1958 World Cup qualifier on December 5, 1956. In 2005, Molineux hosted some of the European Youth Championship qualifying matches, which featured Mark Davies.

On June 24, 2003, Molineux also became Wolverhampton's biggest live concert venue, with Bon Jovi performing in front of 34,000 people.

The Molineux name originates from Benjamin Molineux, a local merchant who purchased a plot of land in Wolverhampton in 1744, and built his home, Molineux House (later converted to the Molineux Hotel), within this. The estate was purchased in 1860 by O.E. McGregor, who converted the land into a pleasure park open to the public. Molineux Grounds, as it was titled, included a wide range of facilities including an ice rink, a cycling track, a boating lake and, most crucially, an area for football.

The grounds were sold to the Northampton Brewery in 1889, who rented its use to Wolverhampton Wanderers, who had previously lacked a permanent home. After renovating the site, the first ever league game was staged on September 7, 1889 in a 2-0 victory over Notts County before a crowd of 4,000.

Wolves bought the freehold in 1923 for £5,607 and soon set about constructing a major grandstand on the Waterloo Road side. In 1932, the club also built a new stand on the Molineux Street side and followed this with adding a roof to the South Bank two years later. The stadium finally now had four stands, which formed Molineux for the next half century.

In 1953, the club became one of the first to install floodlights, at a cost of around £10,000. The first ever floodlit game was held on September 30, 1953, as Wolves won 3-1 against South Africa. The addition of the floodlights opened the door for Molineux to host a series of midweek friendlies against teams from across the globe. In these days prior to the formation of the European Cup and international club competitions, these games were highly prestigious and gained huge crowds and interest, the BBC often televising such events. A new taller set was later installed in 1957, at a cost of £25,000, as the stadium prepared to host its first European Cup games.

The takeover of the club and stadium by Sir Jack Hayward in 1990 paved the way for redevelopment, which was further prompted by legislation following the Taylor Report that outlawed terraces which affected Premier League and Division One stadiums from the 1993-94 season.

The North Bank terrace was demolished in October 1991, and, the following summer, the new Stan Cullis Stand was completed in time for the 1992-93 season. Next came the demolition of the Waterloo Road Stand, with the new Billy Wright Stand taking its place several months later. The final phase of the redevelopment came in November 1993, when the new Jack Harris Stand was opened on the site of the South Bank terrace.

The newly-renovated stadium was officially opened on December 7, 1993, in a friendly with Honved, the Hungarian team who had been beaten in one of Molineux's most famous original floodlit friendlies. Molineux, with an all-seated capacity of 28,525, was then one of the largest stadiums in England, although this figure has since been exceeded by other new or revamped stadia.

In 2003, the John Ireland Stand was renamed the Steve Bull Stand (in honour of the club's highest goalscorer of all time), and at the same time the south-west corner of the ground was filled with 900 temporary seats, known as the Graham Hughes Stand, which, until their removal in the summer of 2006, raised the Molineux capacity to 29,396. This expansion occurred when Wolves were promoted to the Premier League, but they lasted just one season at this level.

In 2008, Chairman Steve Morgan revealed tentative plans to redevelop the stadium in order to bring the stands closer to the pitch. This would also increase the capacity to 40,000.

So there is pretty much everything you need to know about our beloved stadium.

Shall We Sing A Song For You!- Chants the Gold and Black Army Sing

2008-10-07T11:33:00.000-07:00

We have one of the greatest fan bases in English football and our fans deserve to be able to chant at premier league grounds. Here are some of the anthems the Wolves fans sing.

Hi Ho Wolverhampton

Went To War With Albion

We Are Wolves

Always S**t On The Tesco Carrier Bags

South Bank

Wanderers Scalf

When The Wolves Go Marching In

We Hate Albion

Those Were The Days

We'll Never Die

That Boy Kightly

Der Der Der Der Michael Kightly

We Love You Wanderers

Come On Wanderers

Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na KEOGH!

Stevie Bull Chant

Stevie Is King

One Jody Craddock

Super Mick

Keogh Keogh

When I Was Just A Little Boy

Glory Glory Wolverhampton

Im Forever Blowing Bubbles Remix

By Far The Greatest Team

Ebanks-Blake- The Dark Destroyer

White Pele- Matt Jarvis

Build A Bonfire

Even Worse Than The Albion

Are You Albion In Disguise?

Albion Slums

Super Micks Gold And Black Army

And now here are some of the chants for you to listen to.

Not as many chants to listen to as i would have liked but enough to see how great the Wolves fans are.