Ups and downs

Not Toon-related, but Saturday's trip to the Madejski to witness Reading at first hand occasioned this post assessing the starts made to the 2012-13 season by the Royals and the five other teams either promoted from or relegated to the Championship. It was a bit upsetting having to be complimentary about Fat Sam, but there was at least the consolation of getting to mention Kevin Nolan being the Mackems' bogeyman.

Terry's All Golds not to our taste

Newcastle Utd 2 - 2 Wolves


On an afternoon when some fans staged a pre-match mock-funeral for St James' Park, the team contrived to give an indication that our Champions League hopes may not be long for this world either. The first home game since Jabba's act of "corporate vandalism" was confirmed with the ripping down of the famous stadium name saw our lowly visitors, under the stewardship of Terry Connor for the first time, profit from a thoroughly disspiriting display to plunder what had seemed like an unlikely point.

That deflected Will Buckley goal down at Brighton had given us the luxury of a full fortnight to recover from being blown away at White Hart Lane, and certainly hopes were raised by the return of both Mr T and Dreamboat to central midfield. Danny Guthrie was one of those unlucky to miss out as a result, while the Silver Fox sprung a surprise by naming a fit-again Raylor on the right flank.

It all started promisingly enough too. Just six minutes had elapsed when Dreamboat picked Christophe Berra's pocket and crossed for Demba Ba, whose stylish backheel was pushed out by Wayne Hennessey. Wolves frantically tried to clear the danger but, when Mr T's shot was deflected, Papiss Cisse was on hand to mark his first home start with another goal, diverting the ball over the head of the defender on the line who had played him onside.

The lead established, we toyed with Wolves before deciding to be more proactive about doubling our advantage. Hennessey had not long tipped over a ferocious Danny Simpson drive when a defensive header fell to Spidermag in an inviting amount of space 25 yards out, the winger taking a touch before lashing it into the net. For someone who isn't as regular a goalscorer as he should be, that's now three in three successive fixtures against our West Midlands opponents - and all of them beauties.

Might a mauling be on the cards? Doyle came perilously close to reducing the arrears with a header that Tim Krul was grateful to see bounce just past his far post, but otherwise Wolves looked incapable of mustering much in reply. At half-time we could reflect on having not played well but certainly well enough.

With nothing to lose, Connor roused his beleaguered troops and the second half was a different prospect entirely. Wolves played like a team with belief and determination, while we were complacent, careless and - at times - simply atrocious.

Admittedly it was a stroke of cruel fortune that handed the relegation-threatened visitors a foothold in the game, Matt Jarvis' shot deflecting off Simpson and arcing painfully over Krul's dive. We had unforgivably ceded control, though, and worse was to follow. Guilty of the cardinal sin of making changes when defending a free-kick, the Silver Fox had to watch as Mike Williamson made a hash of a clearance (not for the first time) and Doyle bundled in an equaliser from point-blank range.

The tiring Mr T had been replaced by Guthrie, but it was to HBA - on for Cisse, ineffective other than for that instinctive early finish - that we were now looking for salvation. There was to be no repeat of the Frenchman's solo heroics against Blackburn, though, as he prompted a near-full-house crowd to groans of frustration time and again by squandering possession cheaply and shooting weakly when working an opportunity.

With Ba out of sorts (though also coming in for some rough treatment from the Wolves defence) and Dreamboat still feeling his way into the game, arguably our most incisive attacker was Davide Santon. On at least a couple of occasions, though, our left-back fatally delayed or elected to pass when a shot looked a better option.

Neither was third substitute Big Lad able to make any impression, and when the final whistle came it was greeted by a chorus of boos - faintly ridiculous in the wider context of our league position, but not entirely surprising at the conclusion of as poor a performance as we've put in all season.

If the shellacking by Spurs was hard to take, then at least we had the consolation of knowing we'd come up against a very good side in electrifying form. The only real crumb of comfort to take from Saturday afternoon - especially given the eye-catching wins for Chelsea and Arsenal - was the fact that the Mackems' preparations for this weekend's derby went even worse, as they suffered a 4-0 stuffing at Wolves' Black Country rivals West Brom...

A Wolves fan's perspective: Wolves Blog

Other reports: BBC, Guardian

Who's the wanker thoroughly bloody nice bloke in the black?

Wolves 1 - 2 Newcastle Utd

ASBO may not have been present to irritate Wolves - something Alan Pardew lamented after the game, claiming he "might have stopped or slowed down the game" - but we still managed to upset them with a combination of clinical finishing, breathtaking goalkeeping, committed defending and, perhaps most crucially, the not inconsiderable assistance of the officials.

Following last weekend's fluent victory over Blackburn, Pardew understandably named an unchanged starting XI, with Hatem Ben Arfa and Davide Santon both still awaiting their first Premier League starts of the season. Wolves came into the game off the back of three straight defeats, the 3-0 capitulation at home to ASBO's new side QPR abject to say the least, but they proved to be far tougher opponents than that match would have suggested. Their tally of 25 efforts on goal tells its own story - but, after Tuesday's paintballing trip, our players must be getting used to coming under heavy enemy fire.

Tim Krul had already been called into action to deny Jamie O'Hara and Kevin Doyle by the time Demba Ba's clever flicked header from Yohan Cabaye's corner beat Wayne Hennessey at his near post. Now Ramadan's over, clearly it's a case of feed the Ba and he will score...

Having fallen behind, Wolves continued to threaten, though we were determined to trade blows, having efforts of our own from Spidermag and Mr T. While Obertan Kenobe was busy banishing all memories of his scintillating display against Blackburn, on the other flank Spidermag's performance seemed an acknowledgement that our offer of a contract extension (which he accepted) was indeed conditional on greater involvement in the decisive action. The Argentine tried his luck on several occasions, doing so to best effect in the 38th minute when he nipped in to mesmerise dithering Wolves defenders, burst into the box and slide a left-footed shot across Hennessey into the bottom corner. There was then the added pleasure of seeing Karl Henry go into the book, ASBO's assailant later hauled off by Mick McCarthy before even an hour had been played.

Steven Taylor was for once outshining Sideshow Bob, tackling and blocking with relish, but was extremely fortuitous not to concede a penalty shortly before the break when referee Mark Halsey conveniently ignored the fact that our defender's clumsy challenge on O'Hara had taken place well inside the area.

In the second period Krul really earned himself the match ball, pulling off a string of sensational stops to prevent a resurgent Wolves from getting a foothold in the game. There were opportunities to add to our lead, but we seemed relatively comfortable with the two strikes we'd already registered - something we could have come to regret.

With Ba replaced by Peter Lovenkrands and us flagging in the heat just as Wolves were working up a late head of steam, Krul was finally beaten by a header from the unmarked Steven Fletcher and, but for a dubious decision in the 94th minute from the assistant referee, we might have snatched an inglorious draw from the jaws of victory. Matt Jarvis headed Adam Hammill's ball back to Kevin Doyle, who forced the ball in at the second attempt - but the officials adjudged the initial cross to have drifted behind the by-line. We might currently be playing well, but we certainly can't deny we got the rub of the green in this one.

The win kept us in fourth, though it had temporarily pushed us up to the even headier heights of third before Chelsea's tonking of Bolton yesterday afternoon. It means we've now gone ten games unbeaten stretching back to the Liverpool defeat at the start of May, and also confirms us as having the best defensive record of any team in the top four divisions - a bewildering statistic for a club hardly noted for the ability to protect its goal.

We're used to regarding international breaks as a welcome respite and opportunity to recharge, regroup and refocus, but this one's an intrusion to be cursed. That said, our next opponents, the equally in-form Spurs, will feel much the same way, and they're likely to have more players in action for their countries than we are - so perhaps it might yet work in our favour?

A Wolves fan's verdict: Wolves Blog

Other reports: BBC, Observer

Peter and the Wolves

Newcastle Utd 4 - 1 Wolverhampton Wanderers

A first home win in five games, a first Saturday 3pm Premier League win since August 2008, and three precious points added to the total saw Newcastle increase the gap between the relegation zone to seven points following a 4-1 victory over Wolves.

After the chance to recoup and re-gather presented by the international break, following our stuffing by Stoke, this was a massive result in the state of our season - one that, certainly pre-match, represented a huge must-win game.

The marked difference from this time two years ago was there for all to see, with a spirited team performance in which several players enjoyed excellent games enough to see off Wolves and leave Mick McCarthy's team ensconced in the relegation scrap.

Starting brightly, it was Kevin Nolan who nudged the ball home to give us the advantage, as he raced on to Big Lad's knock-down. Big Lad himself added a second just before half-time, when poor defensive work by Wolves saw the ball threaded out left to Peter Lovenkrands, and the Dane's hanging ball to the back post allowed our masked striker to leap and power a header in to give us a two goal cushion.

By that stage, Nolan had found his way into the referee's book for the tenth time this season, with a trip on Adam Hammill - Danny Simpson's presence as a covering player the difference between a yellow card and a red for our captain.

Five minutes after the break, it was the Dane who made it three. Soon after hitting the post, he swept an ASBO cross home from close range after excellent build-up play from Sideshow Bob, saw our number seven put free down the right.

At 3-0 the game ought to have been safe, but Sylvain Ebanks-Blake pulled one back shortly afterwards after his run into the box wasn't properly tracked.

That left Wolves pressing for a second which would have seen them come right back into the match, with pre-match nerves starting to show both in the stands and on the pitch. Thankfully though, the second never came, with Steven Fletcher's header bouncing off the post and wide and James Perch's clearing off the line the closest the visitors came.

Then, in the final seconds of the match, the ball fell to Steven Taylor in our box, and the defender surged up field. Finding Spidermag in support, his pass found the Argentinean, who eschewed the chance to waste some time by the corner flag and instead cut infield before curling the ball perfectly round Wayne Hennessey and inside the far post to give us a 4-1 victory.

The win, coupled with our significantly better goal difference, moves us a long way from the relegation zone, and with the teams around us dropping points (most notably 5under1and - battered by Man City on Sunday) we can try and press on for a top half finish.

Individually, ASBO, Big Lad and Shane Ferguson (making his first Premier League start) all enjoyed fine games, with our striker's performance drawing praise from Pardew, who hailed him as "as good a striker as I've ever worked with". Praise indeed from a man who's worked with Carlos Tevez, Teddy Sheringham and, um, Homer Simpson.

A Wolves' fan's perspective: Wolves Blog

Other reports: BBC, Guardian