Rics Championship game-A New Hope[Established Clan]

[Bottster]

Wolves vs Wigan (A) JJB Stadium

Saturday 27.3.07

Wolves were made 4-6 favs against a strong Wigan side who had new manager David Platt in charge for his 1st game, The first half was all Wolves as we dominated down the wings exploiting the space left by Wigan playing a back 3, with 6 attempts on goal for Wolves compared to 1 for Wigan it looked promising but we couldnt find the net, HT 0-0. A few changes saw Ben Sahar come on for the injured Adil Chihi and we went slightly more attacking and started pushing our fullbacks forward too, Wigan went ultra defensive and started to have slightly more chances and possession, they sucker puched us when they scored from a corner and held on for a 1-0 win!

Wigan 1 Sidwell

Wolves 0

Man of the Match: Steve Sidwell (Wigan)

Adil Chihi ruled out for 2 weeks - 2 months is going to be a big blow for Wolves! Newcastle and Everton lost which keeps Wolves above Newcastle and level with Everton, Fulham are still 2 points behind Wolves but now have a game in hand, Chelsea visit Molineux next!

[Bottster]

Wolves still sit in 17th prior to this game due to Fulham losing there game in hand.

Wolves vs Chelsea (H) Molineux

Saturday 3.4.07

Heavy underdogs against a world class Chelsea team fighting for the title. We had home advantage and decided to play it the same as we did against Liverpool by defending hard and trying to hit them on the break using the pace and strength of our forwards. Key players Miguel and Adil Chihi missing from Wolves squad because of injury, Veierinha and Sahar take places in first 11.

An explosive first half saw openings for both teams but Chelsea were first to capatalise when Robben whipped in a lovely cross for Zarate to head home in the 8th minute but Wolves pegged back almost immediately after Johsnon finished a great team move for Wolves, Petr Cech in the Chelsea goal is having a great game otherwise could be 3-1 up easily. Wolves continued to attack and Johnson in particular is causing Chelsea big problems but Chelsea score and go 2-1 up via a big scramble in the penalty area and a rebounded ball falls to Zarate to tap home. 2-1 HT.

Second half saw Wolves again come out strong and and use Kohler on the left wing to whip crosses in, domination from Wolves looked as though it was not going to pay off with Cech in such greatf orm but in the 92nd minute Vilikazi headed home a Ratinho freekick to send the Wolves fans home happy, a great point!

Wolves 2 Johnson, Vilikazi

Chelsea 2 Zarate 2

Man of the Match: Eddie Johnson (Wolves)

Wolves stay in 17th, Fulham move above us on GD after beating bottom team West Brom 2-0, Everton drop into the relegation spot vacated by Fulham and Newcastle beat Charlton to close the gap to 1 point!

[Bottster]

Liverpool, Chelsea and then.... ARSENAL!!

Wolves vs Arsenal (A) Emirates Stadium

Monday 5.4.07

So great, we get Arsenal TWO days after we played Chelsea!

Arsenal had a full strength squad which was a bit daunting and sat top of the Premiership, we were stuck with the same squad that drew with Chelsea, Szetela back fron injury but not 100% so on the bench. We will go with a fairly defensive 4-4-2 and play a deep defensive line to hopefully stop there quick counter attacks.

Arsenal started out really strong in this game and went 1-0 up when Reyes got on the end of a Hleb freekick in the 14th minute, Wolves came back and battled really well and almost equalised through Johnson but it was disallowed, and Reyes doubled Arsenals lead to make it 2-0 in the 35th minute, we were 2nd best all over the pitch and really struggling. 2-0 HT.

Second half we changed formation and went a little more attacking and moved Vilikazi to an attacking midfielder position to try and cause a little more problems and see what happens. Leon Andreasen was sent off in the 54th minute which effectively ended our game, Reyes finished his hatrick in the 57th minute when he pounced n a rebound to make it 3-0 and Rosciky made it 4-0 from a freekick soon after and Djordic rounded off an immense Arsenal performance to make it 5-0.

Arsenal 5 Reyes 3, Rosicky, Djordic

Wolves

Man of the Match: Reyes (Arsenal)

Newcastle and West brom both drew which puts Newcastle above us on goal difference and puts us back into the relegation spots in 18th.

[Bottster]

Wolves face difficult Man City challenge!

Wolves vs Man City (H) Molineux

Saturday 10.4.07

Man City had a full line up and Wolves still missing key players also had to dealw ith the suspension of Andreasen after his sending off against Arsenal. Newcastle had already played and beat West Ham 4-1 which made this a must win game!

Shell shocked from the Arsenal game Wolves went 1-0 down early on when Sturrdige finished off a good team move by Man City, Wolves didn't create much and changed formation slightly for the second half. 1-0 HT.

In the second half we started to create a bit more and Lima came on for Vilikazi, it took us until the 81st minute before we found the goal we had searched for when Vieirinha sneaked in at the back post to score. Still going for the win we continued to attack and were hit on the break from our corner when SWP got on the end of a big hoof and ran half the length of the pitch unchallenged to score there winning goal. Gutted.

Wolves 1 Vieirinha

Man City 2 Sturridge, Wright-Phillips

Man of the Match: Schmeichel

We are now in deep trouble and have to really pull something out the gab in our final four games. On a positive note we have secured the signatures of Jose Goncalves and Nicolas Burdisso for next season.

[Bottster]

Wolves vs Charlton (A) The Valley

Saturday 17.04.07

A strong performance from Wolves saw us dominate the first half but not manage to hit the back of the net. Johnson and Sahar had good chances but Stephen Anderson in goal for Charlton was outstanding. 0-0 HT

Second half we went a lot more attacking and brought Lima on to replace Vilikazi and we dominated from start to finish, Anderson was again outstanding and altho we had 10 shots on target he saved 9 of them. It took us until the 51st minute to find a goal when Eddie Johnson slipped the ball home, we kept dominating the whole of the second half and were amazed to only win 1-0. But 3 very valuable points that take us above Fulham who now have 2 games in hand

Charlton 0

Wolves 1 Johnson

Man of the Match: Eddie Johnson (Wolves)

3 games left and i believe 2 wins out of 3 will keep us up. An incredibly tough task ahead!

[Bottster]

3 Games to go.....

Wolves vs West Ham (H) Molineux

Saturday 24.04.07

A very tough game against a very impressive West ham side who beat Portsmouth 5-1 in there last game. Wolves fielded an unchanged side and welcomed Chihi and Miguel back as they took a place on the bench.

Wolves started very brightly and Green made a couple of saves early on to stop Wolves going ahead but in the 22nd minute Wolves broke and after good work from Sahar and Johnson the ball was played wide to Kohler on the left who beat his man and put a cross into the box which Vilikazi met with full conviction to put us one up. We continued to press but got punished by a controversial goal from Ashton to send us in 1-1 at HT.

Second half was a tight affair with neither side creating many chances, in the 80th minute Wolves made 3 subs and brought on Miguel, Lima and Chihi for Vieirinha, Vilikazi and Sahar respectively but it never made a difference as West ham clung on for a draw! The commentators were heard to say "West Ham will take this!" at the final whistle.

Wolves 1 Vilikazi

West Ham 1 Ashton

Man of the Match: Konchesky (West Ham)

With Newcastle and Everton both drawing we stay in 17th place and have it all to play for in our final 2 games.

[Bottster]

2 Games to go..... 1 win needed!

Wolves vs Portsmouth (A) Fratton Park

Saturday 1.5.07

4 points clear of Fulham and Everton in 18th and 19th respectively, we just need 1 win or results to go our way. Portsmouth are a good side currently sitting in 6th place and this was never going to be an easy game away from home.

Miguel and Chihi replaced Vieirinha and Sahar in the starting line up.

The choice to put Chihi and Miguel back in the starting 11 paid off in the 4th minute when Miguel played a long ball for Chihi to chase, Chihi beat his man dribbled into the penalty area and slotted home 1-0 Wolves! All we had to do was hold on and we were staying up! 10 min later Chihi was involved in the action again when he played the ball into Johnson in the box who finished to put Wolves 2-0 up! 9 mins later Wolves had a corner and Sychev turned the ball into his own net, Wolves 3-0 up and rampaging!! A few more chances came but the score stayed 3-0 at HT.

Second half saw Wolves came out and traded a few attacks before i introduced Pedretti to the match replacing Vilikazi in midfield, Pedretti had simple instructions, man mark dangerman Fernandes which he did well, very few highlights in the second half saw Wolves do a very professional job! Wolves stay up!!!!

Portsmouth 0

Wolves 3 Chihi, Johnson, Sychev O.G

Man of the Match: Eddie Johnson

It didn't matter what any of the other results were, WOLVES STAY UP!!!!!!!!!

[Old Git]

Shrewsbury Fight to the Death Required

So read the newspaper headlines after the teams collapse in recent weeks. From a relative position of safety Shrewsbury slipped to the edges of relegationand for once the bookies looked to be odds on. Only a remarkable change of fortune would see them survive, confidence was low and the manager was under pressure. (Wasn't realy cos lifes too short)

Doncaster - Home After 3 straight defeats moral was at an all time low with sections of the fans asking for a change in tactics and fortune. The board however had every confidence, and the team set about this match as if their lives depended upon it. Fernandes was brought in on loan from Everton and started. A breathtaking first half display with goals form Stern John, Spencer Weir-Daley and John Spicer saw Shrewsbury cruise to a 3-0 HT scoreline. Donny were up for it second half, however there was no sign of the recent panic and 3 points were secured.

Just when you think things are OK.

Gillingham Away After the stunning performance of the previous week, the travelling fans were a little more expectant, however the bad habits of recent weeks returned and the Shrews found themselves struggling against a far superior Gills team. Fernandes was out for this one, and would remain out until the last match of the season, and the only highlight from the Shrews perspective was a nice finish by Weir-Davis. A final score of 3-1 did not flatter the Gills!

Leyton Orient - Home Another away match which brought disappointment and doom and gloom to the faithfull. Despite taking an early lead, the Orient bounced straight back and two defensive errors by Karl Henry (Cheers Bottster) allowed them to go in at half-time 2-1 up. An early second half goal made it 3-1, and whilst Henry attempted to make amends by scoring a scorcher, the performance was very poor and the Shres finally succumbed to a 4-2 defeat. Post match analysis reveaed that despite the scorline, the Shrews had more of the ball, more shots, better stats, however..... (Stats don't lie then NIck)

Oldham - Away With the season now moving into the death throws, a very tricky trip to Oldham was up next. And true to form, Shrewsbury forgot to get off the team bus for this one. By now the fans are becoming extremely worried that the prospect of a return to the 3rd Div is a reality. Oldham score after 5, and whilst Weir-Daley pulled one back after 7, the Shrews never really looked up for it. Two second half blunders completed a 3-1 scoreline and now the Shrews were right in the mire.

Hope Springs Eternal

Hartlepool at Home 3 straight defeats is unacceptable was the team talk pre-match in an effort to gee the lads on for the visit of 4th placed Hartlepool. Despite the fact that Ryan Lych did not extend his loan deal, for some bizarre quirk of fate, the Brazilian Shrewsbury turned up for this one. Shresbury took the game to the more fancied team, and despite an injury to Michael Ricketts in the 15th minute, went in at HAlf-time thanks to Wei-DAley penalty. Having battered Hartlepool for most of the match, it was a tad unfair when they equalised, and at that moment, the manger began to wonder whether the heads would go down. But no, a rally ensued with Weir0-Daley grabbing his first hat-trick for the club and a deserved 3-1 win was achieved. Sighs of relief all round, however the club remained firmaly in the dogfight at the bottom.

I'm Frozen!!!

The next two matches would confirm whether the team had what it took to survive, both against relegation strugglers and six points would go a long way to securing safety.

Brentford at Home Right on match day, the quirk of fate that is FM online, saw the Shrewsbury manager stuck in an alternative timeline on match day, on one of the most importnat matches of the season. A nervy period awaited him as awaited the results to appear in his alternative dimension, and it was not good. His beloved Shrews had lost at home to Brentford to drop into the relegation places. The fight for survival was not going to be easy now!

Blackpool Away This match was now vital, as was every other to the end of the season. With 4 matches left and only a point separatin half a dozen teams it was all getting rather nervy. Blackpool sat one place below and one point below. defeat here would almost certainly end it with the games ahead looking much tougher and more difficult. After a very nervy opening period, the Brazilians came off the bus and absolutley hammered the opposition.. As a result, Weir-Daley nets another 2 goals, Langmead gets his first in weeks, and we go in at half-time 3-0 up very, very confident. The confidence bubble burst in the first 20 mins of the second half as the defence decided to make the game interesting and gift Blackpool 2 goals. Desperatley hanging on in the second half, young Rothery, back on loan from Leeds, gets into the game, however even his class could not stop the suicidal defending that occurred. Blackpool equalise and a nervy wait to see how other results panned out was on.

Three Games From Oblivion Bristol Rovers, Notts Forest and Bradford. The task facing the Shres is daunting. All are near the top of the divsion, whilst the Shrews are in 21st.

Bristol Rover at Home The word vital is so often over used but I'll use it again. Vital, that was how the Shropshire Star descibed this game. The team played this game as if they had already decided to throw in the towel and Bristol Rovers dominated from start to finish. Things got worse when left-back Tierney got himself sent off. Against the odds, Carl Motteram popped in for a quick visit and manged to get on the end of a Hurst cross and put the Shrews 1-0 up. Couldn't be could it? Well no, shortly after HT, Bristol Rovers got what they eserved and equalised. For the next half-hour, the Shrews were battered from pillar to post, however Kelvin Langmead managed to get on the end of a long clearance and slide one in to the back of the net. 2-1. The crowd went wild, could it be. The final whistle went, Shrewsbury had just nicked three vital points and moved back up to 19th poaition.

Notts Forest Away A trip to the Forest is never an easy game, andwhen they are on a run of form, and you are fighting for your life, probably the last place you want to go. We didn't want to but the FA forced us! Harry Worley ended his loan and now the Shrews were left without their Man of the Season for their two final vital games. Much like the previous week, the Shrews were batterd from minute one, however went in a HT hanging on to what could be a vital point. In the last 20 ins, forest began to tire and the Shrews started to make headway, however it was not to be as Forset nicked a goal in the 80th minute to get what they deserved. The Shrews dropped to 21st again, however other results kepy hope alive.

All or Nuthin

The business end of the season, last day dramas, nail biting finishes, much better than the Premiership! The situation is this, Shrewsbury in 21st, must win and one of Carlisle, Brentford and/or Blackpool must lose/draw as the Shrews goal difference was better.

Bradford City at Home This was it, one last hurrah. All or nuthin, Monte Carlo or bust. Fernandes back from injury and a change of tactic to go for it. The Shrews start like s..t off the proverbial and after 10 mins Kelvin Langmead bangs one in. Could it happen. Despite Gavin Rothery, John Spicer and karl Henry in the middle dominating the game, 1-0 at half-tme was always nervy. Five minutes into the second half, Langmead gets his second, and the crowd went quiet as all ears turned to the radios for confirmation of other scorelines and results. Unfortuantely the rebroadcast transmitter in Shrewsbury went down and no-one could get a signal. The crowd were as in the dark as the manager and team to what was happening. Despite absolutely Brazilianising Bradfor, the final score was 2-0. At this point the transmitter began operating again. The first result through was a defeat for Carlisle, the Shres had done it, they survived. In the mayhem that followed, to this day no-one knows the results of the other games and no-one cared. It was one hell of a party down the Boat House that night.

(Langmeads price just went through the roof Paul)

[Bottster]

Awesome write-up Ferg, well done on securing you D1 status!!

Kutgw!

[Polo]

You can tell the end of season awards are near. Bottser & Old Git are fighting it out the the best post on thread award!!

Harrogate set for play off push.

[chopra_hill]

Well done Nick on surviving.

And well done Fergus, i'm really happy you survived as it should be 6 easy points for the bluebirds next season!

[richard thomson]

Great season finsihes with a on evryones face

Player By Player report

Nick Bott-Wolves FC

Nick has Kept Wolves up in his first season on top flight will look to build on that lying in 16th with 1 game left

Andy Price- Bolton

Andy quit Loftus Rd to take over at the Reebok Stadium he turned round there fortunes and quickly pulled them away from the drop with a summer behind him and the abillity to bring in his own players surly he will be looking to challange for a spot in Europe

Me-Leeds United

Early seasoned 50/1 odds and Thomson having a 5 year plan to take Leeds back to Europe has been made a lot easier i had hoped for a mid table postion this year before pushing for promotion next season followed by a season or 2 in premiership before the push for Europe a 3 way tie at the top saw Leeds needing to match Sunderlands score as Leeds had a 4 goal advantage a win For Leeds and a Norwich defeat or draw would give them the Tittle the tittle was not to be as Luton defeated Leeds but Sunderland lost and Leeds were Back amongst the Big boys

Mark - Crystal palace

Mark Had a poor season but must be glad after a win in the last game confirmed Palace would be in the Championship next season

Paul Carey- Cardiff City

Cardiff started of was poor to say the least and back to back relgation was a possability till Cardiff hit a bit of form and climed up the table if they had shown that form they could have been back in the Championship which must be a good possability next season

Fergus-Shrewsbury Town

Sliped down the table in freefall till last day of season results saved them from division 2 a stronger challange will come from them next season but will they have the class to make playoffs ???

Ad-Tranmere Rovers

A dull season of mid tableness with a bit of luck they might have made playoff's managers absence proably cost them there chance

Polo_Harrogate

Impresive run sees the Harrows make the playoffs which dint look likely when Polo took over hopfully promotion will come through the playoffs if not i would be 99.9%sure they will be up Next season

[Old Git]

Many thanks for the nice words on the write-up. Its actually great when you have the time to sit down at home, ostensibly working, with three machines and do it. Well done to all, now can I have my fingernails and hair back!

[richard thomson]

The short list for the Awards to be voted on the next sesion

Best Manager

1.Nick

2 Richard

Best Newcomer

1 Fergus

2 Paul c

Best result vs Ai

1 paul c's 3-3 draw with West ham in Facup (A)

2Nick's 3-1 win over liverpool (H)

3 Polo's 8-0 demolition of Vauxhall (H)

Best result vs Human

1 Fergus 1-0 victory vs Cardiff

2 paul C 2-0 victory over Shrewsbury

Best Post

1 Paul c

2 Nick

3 Fergus

Best Patter

1 Paul c

2 Andy

3 Fergus

Player of the season

1 Eddie Johnson-Wolves 17 app 9 goals 2 ass 6 mom avr 7.47

2 Jeremie Aliadiere-Leeds 32(7) app 26 goals 10 ass 7 mom avr 7.36

3 Martin Reeves-Harrogate 43 app 6 goals 17 ass 3 mom avr 7.28

[richard thomson]

one thing i missed in my last post is that Mark failed to send in his nominations possibly missing a sure fire winner with Palace's 4-1 win over my Leeds

[richard thomson]

Leeds are Back

Leeds were promoted back to the top divison after several Years in the Championship with Gates improving and the extra cash the Premiership brings there is hope that they can climb out the red and start the climb to the top where they belong

[chopra_hill]

Mid table obscurity for Cardiff elite.

After struggling in early parts of the season having to become accustomed to play at grounds not suited for Cardiff and District regulations, the bluebirds settled down half way through the season and got down to work.

With 10 games left we were 4 points infront of the relegation spots and 10 points off the play offs, which I felt were not completely out of reach but we would have to win 8/10 games - which with our run in which we had to play the top 6 teams (at the time, soon finished when i had played and beat half of them )

Bradford v Cardiff - Valley Parade - Another ********

Win here and we may be 7 points off the playoffs was my thinking before the game. I weren't even in my dugout when i was reduced to ten men (still wishing the guys luck in mirc!)

56 seconds in and we're down to ten men. I had the choice of going 4-4-1 and holding out for draw or going for the win and playing 4-3-2.

Decided on the latter and went for it. Had to feel sorry for Danny Guthrie who started the game centre midfield but beat me to sitting on the bench! (Wp Danny lad!)

Bradford had a few chances early on and with 15 minutes gone i was thinking of how to protect my Gd with the amount of chances they were having. However Mike Pollit stood strong and by pushing the defesnive line to deep and counter attacking i felt we had the better of the rest of the game and could have won it easily. Media agreed but it finished 0-0 against a team who were 3rd at the time. Would have took that result at start of game with 11 men never mind 10 men.

Final score 0-0

M.o.M - Danny Guthrie

Cardiff V Swindon

Identified as a must win game, Cardiff started strongly and created a good few chances, however Bothroyd was back to his usual early season form which couldn't see him hit a cow's arse with a banjo. Never have I seen a player miss so many shots in one half. Second half Bothroyd was consistent as ever and missed every chance that came onto his right or left foot. Upon checking his stats I was surprised to see "favoured foot" listed as left as I presumed it would be "neither" but ah well, life's full of surprises (as fergus can vouch for with Shrewsbury staying up! )

Finsihed 0-0 - 0 goals in 3 games for Cardiff, fans getting worried!

Cardiff v Huddersfield

Striker Crisis - What crisis? - Daily Mirror.

Cardiff romped home 3-0 against a good Huddersfield side to get there first 3 points of the session. Kevin Mcnaughton got the first of the game but I missed it due to ridiculing Fergus in Micr for going 1-0 down!

Our next goal was so good that I decided to record it. I changed some of the crowd noises etc but you still get the gist of how good the goal was. A carbon copy of it.

Purse stepped up from the penalty spot to make it 3 and Cardiff fans went home singing the name of Paul Carey2!

Final score 3-0

Sheff Wed v Cardiff

Next up for the bluebirds was a game at Hillsbrough. We took the lead early on when oyung canadian winger Jamie Peters fired home but they equalised straight away. They then nicked it with 20 too go and we never once looked like getting back into it. Sheff Wed were top before the game, and remained at the top of the pile.

Final score 2-1

Carlisle v Cardiff

A win and a trip to the beach was the promise by Cardiff manager to his squad before this vital game by the seaside. A recall for Albert Luque for his first start in over 2 months and he repayed his manager with 2 goals before half time which had the players blowing up their rubber rings at half time. The second half petered out and Cardiff won again.

Final score 0-2

Cardiff v Walsall

13th v 14th. We could pull away here if we won but we turned in an absolute shocking performance. Dominating the first half the strikers couldn't tell the back of the net from the corner flag which was tested more often in the first half than the Walsall keeper. Second half Walsall were reduced to 10 men early on but we failed to take advantage and they scored a break away goal. We then had to go all out attack and were once again caught out on the counter attack in the 89th minute. A dissapointing defeat.

Final score - 0-2

Colchester v Cardiff

I was starting to get a bit nervy about the relgation zones despite sitting pretty in 14th. Anything could happen so I noted this as a must win game against a side who were 5th at the time. 13 minutes in and Rafaelle DeVita bundles the ball home and we are on are way! The half fizzles out and we were comfortably 1-0 up. Second half Colchester went for it which resulted in us nearly scoring a 2nd several times with the pace of DeVita on the break but it wasn't to be. We got the 3 points which was the most important thing and we lay 14th in the table 4 points ahead of 15th and iirc 7 points clear of relegation zone.

Final Score 0-1

With mid table secured, I left early, the assts manager took over with instructions burning in his ears to use my tactics. He didnt dissapoint.

Huddersfield 2-4 Cardiff

Cardiff 3-1 Preston

Brissle City 3-2 Cardiff

We finished the season in 14th place, which was less than what I expected at the start of the season but what I would have taken at the christmas stage of the season. Bluebirds!

[Bottster]

Last game of the season..

Wolves vs Newcastle (H) Molineux

Sunday 9.5.07

A fixture that until only very recently looked like a game that would decide the fate of either teams status in the Premiership turned into a game that would just decide if Wolves or Newcastle would finish in 16th or 17th.

Wolves fielded a fairly strong side and looked every bit a premiership side when they went 1-0 up early on through Johsnon, a quick second from Chihi saw us take a 2-0 lead in to half time, the second half was started brightly by Newcastle and they clawed a goal back to make it 2-1 through an own goal by Pedretti, but we kept the pressure on Newcastle and grabbed a third to put the game beyond doubt via Vilikazi. A good day at the office saw us finish the season with 3 wins and a draw out of our final 4 games.

Wolves 3 Johnson, Chihi, Vilikazi

Newcastle 1 O.G Pedretti

Man of the Match: Eddie Johnson (Wolves)

[chopra_hill]

May be on late tonight lads.

Have e-mailed Ric my selections for awards incase i'm still offline when you count them up.

[Polo]

Best Manager

Nick of Wolves

[Bottster]

Congratulations

Paul C - Cardiff!!

[richard thomson]

Well Done to Polo

Harrogate 8 Vauxhall motors 0

[Bottster]

Congratulations on Best Result vs Human player.

Paul C - Cardiff! Cardiff 2 v Shrewsbury 0

[defoesbigtoe]

Congratulations to Nick Bott

[richard thomson]

Best Patter aka Banter aka Crack

well done Andy!

[chopra_hill]

Crongratz to Ric!

Player of Season

Jermey Aliadere - Richard Thomson - Leeds

[chopra_hill]

Calvert staying put!

Jimmy Calvert today commited his future to Cardiff City. At a press conference called by manager Paul Carey behind chairman Paul Moore's back, Carey issued a statement with the following news.

"Jimmy Calvert has signed a new 5 year contract, turning down bids from Plymouth and one unnamed premiership side. Despite the chairman accepting to sell Jimmy had no desire to leave and we are delighted to announce he will be playing a major part in this football clubs future."

Carey then had to leave the conference to try and find the chairman who wanted the money for himself from the transfer and was so peed off that he cut all electiricity in the club. Carey went to hunt him down leaving Calvert to deal with the press.

Q. (Daily Mirror) - What made you turn down Plymouth to stay at Cardiff?

The manager was the key to my decision to stay. I feel he is the right guy to take me forward in my career and I hope to repay him as soon as possible. He is one of the best manager I have worked with.

Q. (The Sun) - Where do you see Cardiff in 5 years time?

I think it is more than possible to be in the premiership by this time. We have the fans, the ground, the team but most importantly the manager The one thing we don't have is a decent chairman but with any luck the fans will do their part in getting him out this place.

Q. (News of the world) - What is your best position and have you set yourself any targets for the season?

Well, last year my manager continually played me left back, which made me consider my future, but i realised when the manager brought in a young player at left back and sold Michael Tonge who plays left midfield that I would be playing there this season. My targets for the season is too hit 10 goals and 10 assists as well as Cardiff getting promoted.

Q. (The Daily Mail) - What has been the highlight of your career so far?

Without doubt meeting my current manager Paul Carey, my idol when I was a young lad.

Q. (The Guardian) Finally, we are a very posh newspaper so have to ask posh questions, we hear your very religous? Care to shed any light on this.

Yes, every saturday at 3 pm. Ninian Park's my church, Cardiff's my religion!

[OMGitsDrTran]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Great post Paul if slightly self indulgent....

[OMGitsDrTran]

Transfer Window Update

Having been given an estimate £4m when taking over Bolton late last year Price knew that Bolton was not in the Sugar Daddy league. To add to his woes top scorer and prolific whinger Anelka refused to resign instead opting to take a Bosman to Lazio. When asked Price ( A self admitted Arsenal fan) simply said 'We don't need that cry baby, the team will do better without his tantrums'.

So two young promising forwards are brought into the affray to help replace Anelka -

Sebastian Zuniga

Zuniga had recently been released on a free from Chilean side Cobreola. He is a goal scoring machine for the Chile U21 side and Price hopes he can become the bane of the Premierships defences.

Sasha Iakovenko

A young Ukranian who had previously plied his trade at Barcelona and also on Loan and AC Milan. He undoubtedly has class and he knows it claiming to press 'Price should rebuild Bolton around me cos I'm so great'. When asked to comment Price laughed and implied that some sort of oral motioning would be required for that to happen. 5 Goals from 6 games pre season shows the sort of class he is capbable of though.

So two young new bloods into the foray, but some older more experienced heads were needed.

Igor Tudor

The journeyman defender's contract was up in Juventus and decided he wanted to try the pace of the English Prem. Price eagerly snapped him up.

Pablo Aimar

Yes..... Pablo freaking Aimar! The Argentinian captain! GET IN! Nuff said, about 50% of the Bolton shirt sales were for the new 'Aimar' shirt.

Bruno Cheyrou

The experienced Auxerre DM was a great replacement for Teymourian who following a bout of Anelkaesque whinging left on a free. Price didn't play him for one game so he wont be missed. That and the impending invasion of Iran meant perhaps that he no longer felt safe in the North West.

Lastly Price looked north of the border for a skillful left winger.

Charlie Adams

Young scottish starlet right from under Thomsons nose who is known for being a bit of a scottish talent spotter. Leed's offer of 'yorkshire puds and summer cricket' wasn't sufficient however so Charlie made the clever choice and opted to play for the trotters.

Lastly a new left winger was needed following the end of the loan of Sevilla WBL (i wont even try to spell it). Suffice to say it he was 34 and a rip off.

Fabio

This is the only player Price spent money on, the ex Man Utd player was at Plymouth and looking for top flight football. Price snapped him up for the 2.2m asking price and been impressed with his form in pre season friendlies.

So where from here? The media predict 18th.... I predict Europe.... I mean cmon... PABLO FREAKING AIMAR!

[OMGitsDrTran]

No doubts Nick has been up all night detailing his transfers... as usuaul I believe he's signed around 200 youngsters... reports of a new candy shop going up outside Molineux

[Bottster]

Great post Andy! And for the record, i purchased 9 players, TWO more than you!! lol

[chopra_hill]

Summer Round up

In what was a fairly quiet summer for bluebirds boss Paul Carey there were no big money signings, Carey deciding to hold onto the squad from last season and hope to perform miracles with them.

A few expired players were snapped up at the end of last season and played a few games for the club. These were Mike Pollit, signed for his experience but has forced his way into the 1st team. Kevin Amankwaah was signed to play rb enabling me to play Mcnaughton Cb for when Vincent went back to Chelsea. Also beat off competition from Fergus to sign Jamie Carole, a right winger who is showing plenty of potential.

They were the signings made at the tail end of last season, these are the ones made pre season.

Players In

Souleymane Bamba- A big commanding centre half who was a started in the Hibs team the last two seasons. With an average rating of 7.64 for them last season to say I was shocked he agreed to join would be an understatement!

Steven Miller- Another centre half signed on a bosman free from Aberdeen. Was a regular in their first team last season aswell and at 19 looks a good prospect. Haven't played him yet but looks a good one for the future.

David Liz - Free transfer and looks absolute class. Alerted to him by a special "scout" and his stats are truly world class. Still young and will be ready to take over from Pollit once he hangs up his boots. Regarded as a definite purchase and delighted to get him.

Gustavo - A loan signing from Wolves and a truly classy player. This lad has everything. Tackling, passing, dribbling, fitness. Already showed what a class act he is in first few games. Will be sad too see him go but hopefully he can do job for us now and maybe even want to stay!!

Mikkel Jensen - Another loanee who got a place in the first team straight away. Best left back at the club by miles. Tackline, crossing, free kicks and passing are awseome. Got him for the season so with any luck he should stay injury free!

Ben Alnwick - On a free, another one for the future! Great goalkeeper.

Players Out

Glombard - - 30k to league leaders colchester, he's crap anyway.

Michael Tonge - 600k was too good to turn down as I'd have bit of money to spend...or so I thought, chairman decided to withdraw half of it and leave me with 100k of the 600k from the transfer!! Bastard!

Carl Dickinson- Left for 85k to Luton. Good luck to him! Quality player.

Jimmy Calvert also commited his future to the club when he could have gone to Plymouth so pleased with that! The board keep denying me money to spend on wages as at the moment i'm allowwed to offer a "key player" £180 a week. Can see the incentive for them to join there! Despite selling over 700k and spending nothing, they still wont increase it. *****!

Overall an ok pre season for the bluebirds.

[Bottster]

Taking the club forward...

Last year saw us survive a tough season and hopefully set some foundations to secure us as a Premiership side for the future. Some notable signings were added to the quality of youth already at Molineux and the future looks Gold and Black. In Ryan Bertrand and Miguel we have tenacious, young and enthusiastic players who last year added an extra position to there repertoir during training, Ryan has developed into a LB/ML and Miguel is now able to cover at RB as well as his normal position of RM. Some of the signings made last year have also shown there worth and none more so than Eddie Johnson, a player the team will be built around for the next 3 years. Ratinho, Andreasen and Chihi also came good for us although Pedretti was very dissapointing.

The reserves and U18s had good seasons and a number of our players went out on loan and impressed, this year we are hoping to see Ian McPhee enjoying some first team football out on loan to aid his development, at 16 years old Ian is a real gem of a player.

A summer in the transfer market saw Wolves as busy as always as our scouts informed us of prospects far and wide.

Nicolas Burdisso and Jose Goncalves

Nicolas and Jose were the first signings we made and i was overjoyed to get them, defence was the main area i had highlighted for improvement last season and both of these are class acts. Nicolas came from Chelsea for a fee of 275K and is a seasoned Argentinian International, he is 29 years old and able to play at CB or RB. Jose was transfer listed at Man Utd and cost us 650K which i felt was a bargain, still young and able to play at both CB and LB.

Next through the door was the Belgium contingent.

Silvio Proto and Lucas Biglia

Silvio and Lucas are seasoned pro's that had plied there trade at Anderlecht and both signed for Wolves on free transfers, Lucas was the captain of both club and country and rumour has it he will take he skippers armband at Wolves also. Lucas is a defensive midfielder who has an incredible engine and will run the Wolves midfield. Silvio is the number 1 keeper for both club and country and will add consistency between the posts once he settles.

Moussa Dembele

This young striker came extremely highly reccomended, i still had some reservations but i my scouts have rarely let me down. Upon signing the crowds gathered outside Molineux after hearing about him and gave him an extremely warm welcome, before he had kicked a ball the fans had took him to there hearts! Will get some first team action this year but not expected to be a first team regular just yet.

Eli Zizov

Eli was the player i have the most hope for and the one i will be keeping a close eye on. He has everything a quick strker needs, pace and acceleration in abundance, good intelligence on the pitch to allow him space and above all he has incredible first touch,finishing and composure. A definite star of the future surely. Eli will also get a few games under his belt this year.

We then welcomed the usual Brazilian talent to Molineux, they have a lot to live up to after following in the steps and joining fellow country men Ratinho, Miguel and Gustavo at Molineux.

Sandro

This guy is going to be a star, 18 years old and bags and bags of technical ability, a left midfielder who we will train as a left back also. He has a pinpoint cross and a first touch to die for. If thats not enough he can take freekicks like Beckham, an exciting find, especially as he only cost us 675K. Will hopefully look to make the left midfield position in the team his own this season. Possibly spells the end of Halmosi and Kohler.

Magno

Another boy from Brazil, a host of clubs were negotiating contracts with him after taking advantage of his minimum release clause of 1.2M but he chose us. No work permit means this powerful centreback will go to our feeder club for 3 years until he is eligible to play.

Two more youngsters through the door saw us bring our transfer spend to just under £3M and add to the clubs youth policy.

Andrea Marcozzi

Andrea came to us from Inter Milan and played in the Italy U19s and U21's squad with our own Miguel. An attacking midfielder / Striker who will terrorise defences in the future, i was delighted he chose us to continue his development at. Unlikely to see much action this year apart from in the odd cup game.

Soren Wagner

A young German left winger with a lot of passion for the game, also competent at playing as a wing back i believ Soren will spend a year or two in the reserves and out on loan while he develops and then will add great cover for the exciting Sandro, cost us £110K from Bielefield.

The youth and reserve team development..

I have been very pleased with the development of most of the squad in general, special mentions for Ian McPhee and Gustavo who have continued to develop in the way i had hoped and shine brightly.

This year i plan to keep most of my youngsters at Molineux so they can train alongside our experienced players and i will partner them up so they get extra help and hopefully pick upa few prefered moves. Then towards the end of the season i will send most out on loan to gain some more first team experience.

After some heated debates with the Cardiff manager we came to an agreement and he was allowed to take 2 of our most promising players on loan in Mikkel Jensen (LB) and midfield maestro Gustavo who will hopefully help take Cardiff back to the championship, ongoing talks mean one of our strikers could also be on his way to Ninian Park for a loan spell.

The only real dissapointments have been Benoit Pedretti and Moussa Sissoko, Pedretti never delivered what i had hoped he would and Sissoko never developed how i had hoped, they will both be offered out to other clubs this season.

Expectations..

We are labelled as 1000-1 for the title and the media feel we will be placed firmly at the bottom of the table come the end of the season, but they said that last year and i know we have a much stronger squad this time round. As a professional manager i have to be sensible and look to avoid the drop first and foremost but i have a sneaky suspicion we will be the ones smiling at the end of the year, a midtable finish would not surprise me with the team we have.

Key Players

Miguel and Eddie Johnson will undoubtedly be the two players to watch this season, the tricky winger just keeps getting better and better and will provide plenty of quality balls in to Eddie Johnson who will hopefully terrorise defences across the country like he did last season.

Ones for the future...

I think three players should be highlighted here, Ian McPhee is still only 16 and i can't wait to give him his first run in the senior side, a true talent. Sandro is 18 and could possibly end up as a first team regular if he adapts to English life quickly. Eli Zizov is the 3rd name to watch for as i believe he could get a number of games under his belt this season and flourish in the limelight.

[chopra_hill]

Awseome report Nick, and remember, Eddie J is always welcome at Ninian!

[Bottster]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by chopra_hill:

Awseome report Nick, and remember, Eddie J is always welcome at Ninian! </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Then i shall make sure i wish for a cup draw vs Cardiff then, cos thats the only way Eddie J will be visiting Ninian Park any time soon

[richard thomson]

Leeds signed a total of 12 players although 9 players left including the selling of donovan stijgard to Chelsea for 7.5m but the chance with add ons of the cost being nearer than 14.5m this is brings Leeds in to the Black

Ruud Gossens

A young Midfielder sign on a Bosman from just before his 21st Birthday

Shao Jiayi

Another Bosman from Holland the Chinnese NAC Breda Attacking Midfielder could be seen as a Marketing ploy for Leeds in the Far East

David Burns

The Young striker Was Signed on Abosman from the West ham youth Programe as one for the Future

Luke Welsh

A young goalkeeper sign from boyhood hero's West Ham as Back up to Alexander

David Smart

The Right back was the last of the 3 Youth's captured from West Ham with much hope for the Future

Sherman Cardenas

Thomson finnaly got the player he chased while at Plymouth for a over the top fee but with Sherman still only 21 Leeds will be looking for him to show his value to the team

Craig Bellamy

A shock buy For Leeds as Bellamy Left a £54,000 Salery behind him in the hope of First team football after being shunted out to the Reserves at Liverpool Bellamy was greated with mixed reactions but if Thomson can keep him on the straight and Narrow Leeeds will have a Quality Player Bellamy has settled in to the Leeds Area quickly and has joined the local Golf Club

Jim Wood

a Moved that saw wood snatched under stokes nose the young striker will be one for the Future he's hoping a good season in the reserves will help him push for top team football but with a stack of strikers in the reserves he will maybe look to go on loan to get first team football and push for a place in the leeds first team that way

Steve Bushell

the Left Midfielder was Given a life line Back in to the game by the trial offered by Former boss Thomson who had signed him for Plymouth from Macclesfield the 20 year old was offered a full time contract after a sucessfull trial along side Ben Brown

Ben Brown

Ben Brown was like Steve Bushell was offered a trial and also grabed his chance with both hands and rejoined former manager Thomson the 20 year old striker will fight it out for a place upfront with the reserves

Lee Naylor

Bought from Hearts as a quick buy in case other buys dint come of as a replacement for the departing Donovan stijngard while Leeds were in talks with Spurs over the signing of Pocgnoti Naylor who had Turned down Leeds and Hearts to sign a new contract with Celtic before Joining Hearts for a small transfer fee in 20009-10 season

Sebastien Pocognoli

Signed from Spurs for £2.5m as a replacement for the Chelsea departing Stijngard the 23 year old from Belgium will have a lot to live up to

[richard thomson]

Tittle odds

Premiership

Leeds -150/1

Wolves -1000/1

Bolton - 1000/1

Championship

Crystal Palace-200/1

Division 1

Shrewsbury-50/1

Cardiiff- 25/1

Conference

Harrogate- 40/1

we still have 2 playes Unemployed although DM has been missing for some time and Ben is Studying for exams we have a new member Tony who has taken over Stoke City

[richard thomson]

I would just like to take this chance to wish Leeds all the best in real life in there battle with regation

Marching on together were going to see you win

[stabwest]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by richard thomson:

I would just like to take this chance to wish Leeds all the best in real life in there battle with regation

Marching on together were going to see you win </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Cheerio Cheerio Cheerio

[chopra_hill]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by stabwest:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by richard thomson:

I would just like to take this chance to wish Leeds all the best in real life in there battle with regation

Marching on together were going to see you win </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Cheerio Cheerio Cheerio </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I'd like to pass on my best wishes to Alan Lee

Cardiff legend.

I say we re-sign him in the summer!

[chopra_hill]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by richard thomson:

I would just like to take this chance to wish Leeds all the best in real life in there battle with regation

Marching down together were going to see you win </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

[Bottster]

PREDICTION TIME AGAIN!

Premiership Teams

Andy Price - Bolton Predicted Finish 11th

Andy has an eye for talent and was the Jimmy White of the Championship, always showing lots of promise but falling just short of achieving what everyone thought he could. Last year Andy moved to Bolton and had a mixed bag of results. Andy had a great team at Bolton and has added to that with the quality signings of Aimar and Iakovenko, Andy will be looking at european qualification this year but i think he will find that tough, i think Andy will finish comfortably outside the relegation spots in midtable.

Ric Thomson - Leeds Utd Predicted Finish 17th

The new boys, with a bigger reputation and more money than any of the existing human premiership managers, the pressure is on. If Leeds do not deliver something this year they will be seen to have seriously underachieved. Leeds showed there intentions when they splashed out £7 Million on Cardenas from QPR. The Media gave them a better chance than Bolton or Wolves to win the Premiership with odds of 150/1 and a predicted finish of 13th

Ric tells me he has a 5 year plan for Leeds to get into the Champions League, my prediction is that Ric will underachieve with Leeds and leave the club similiar to his time with Plymouth

Piling the pressure on i believe Ric will "just" do enough to stay up this year.

Nick Bott - Wolves Predicted Finish 14th

My beloved club, after resignig from Man Utd last year to return to the Black Country it was a tough year, this year the Media believe i will finish rock bottom and be relegated by Christmas, i think otherwise

A few good signings have helped bolster the squad and i believe we have real strength in depth atm, lacking any pure quality we do have a great team ethic which is lacking in some of the bigger clubs. I think it will be very exciting to see how the lesser known youngsters in my team compare to the big name signings of Cardenas and Aimar at the end of the year.

Building those foundations will i believe see us finish mid table.

Championship

Mark Griffiths - Crystal Palace Predicted Finish 5th

Mark has been quietly building a very young and competent squad at Palace and finally got some bi bucks out of Simon Jordan. Some key players in Ismael, Cerrajero etc will see him push for a play off place at the very least, notorious for his cup runs he will once again be looking at taking a scalp when he faces fellow human manager Nick Bott's Wolves in the league cup!!

Tony Dunne - Stoke Predicted Finish 12th

Tony is new to the clan and in his one session with us showed good knowledge and scouting skills when he snapped up Johnnie Jackson. Tony will need some settling in time but i think he has shown glimpses of his ability. Mid table this year and challenging next year would be my thoughts.

League One

Paul Carey - Cardiff City Predicted Finish - 5th

For those of you unaware, Cardiff are a little club from the valleys in Wales, basically the guys who were no good at Rugby ended up having to join Cardiff City.

However Cardiff have made some good moves in the Transfer Market and secured some good players to add to some of the quality players already at Ninian Park like Ledley and Flood. Key loan signings will see Cardiff reach a play off spot if they can sort out the consistency factor.

Fergus Martin - Shrewsbury Predicted Finish - 9th

Fergus stepped up to the plate and chose Shrewsbury last season, knowing it was a tough task ahead. He has rebuilt the side and moulded the team around some key signings and has a very structured tactical style of play. Again Fergus has shown moments of brilliance with Shrewsbury but unfortunately like so many others he can't find the consistency he needs to sustain a push for promotion. I think this year will be a top 10 finish and he will get to the play offs next year.

Conference

Paul Brownley - Harrogate Predicted Finish 8th

Paul had a great season last year winning the play offs to get promoted to the conference, this year will be a tough task but one i think he is up for. A predicted finish of top 8 will see him have a great year and build for the future.

[Bottster]

Opening day of the season!!

Premiership Match 1 Sunday 21.08.10

Wolves vs Blackburn (H) Molineux29,377

Wolves 442: Proto, Ratinho, Bertrand, Burdisso, Goncalves, Miguel, Sandro, Biglia ©, Davies, Johnson, Chihi

Subs: Dalei, Andreasen, Szetela, Lima, Dembele

We gave debuts to 5 players in the starting 11 and 1 on the subs bench and as expected Biglia got the skippers armband. Blackburn were a team we had very much been the equal of when we played last year and i was optimistic about getting something out of this fixture.

We started the game well and were sucker punched when Blackburn took the lead in the 12th minute through Xisco, we piled on the pressure and kept seeing our attacks broke down by some great defending by Blackburn, Nelsen especially. In the 26th minute Wolves found an

, Eddie Johnson was off the field having treatment and the impressive Biglia had moved in to the space where Johnson would have been and buried a first time shot from Chihi's cross.

HT 1-1

Second half saw Wolves start sprightly and Biglia continued to control the game from midfield with his tenacious tackling and silky passing. Wolves pressed hard and had a couple of good chances but just couldn't beat Friedel and the match came to a close with the points shared.

Wolves 1

Blackburn 1 Xisco

Man of the Match: Eddie Johnson (Wolves)

[Bottster]

Video Highlights?????!!!!??????

Wow!!!

A new era is born!

[Bottster]

All Hail Zizov!!B]

Premiership Match 2 Tuesday 24.08.10

Wolves vs Portsmouth (A) Fratton Park23,091

Wolves 442: Dalei, Ratinho, Bertrand, Burdisso, Andreasen, Miguel, Sandro, Biglia ©, Davies, Johnson, Zizov

Subs: Proto, Goncalves, Szetela, Lima, Dembele

Dalei and Andreasen were recalled to the starting line up with Proto and Goncalves dropping to the bench, Zizov got his first taste of action for Wolves replacing the injured Chihi.

Portsmouth started off really well and pinned Wolves back into there own half early on in the first half for long periods. As the game went on Wolves started to take a bit more control and Eli Zizov looked very lievly on his debut having a goal dissalowed for offside after some

.

HT 0-0

Second half saw Eddie Johnson injured and replaced my Moussa Dembele. Wolves came out and totally dominated, Biglia's hard work in midfield, Miguels skill and Zizov's pace were too much for Portsmouth to handle and we were unlucky not to go 1-0 up earlier than we did. The more we pressed the more Blackburn started to get desperate and commit silly fouls on the edge of there own area, with Miguel and Sandro lining up the freekicks you had a feeling one would hit the back of the net soon enough and it did in the 78th minute when Dembele was brought down and

Wolves thought they had done enough and relaxed straight away allowing Lualua to grab an equaliser straight from the resulting kick off, shambolic! The game ended 1-1 and it was a genuine travesty as we completely battered Portsmouth in the second half and were unlucky not to win 3-1 at least!

Portsmouth 1 Lualua

Wolves 1

Man of the Match: Miguel (Wolves)

Premiership Match 3 Sunday 29.08.10

Wolves vs Derby (H) Molineux 29,360

Wolves 442: Dalei, Ratinho, Bertrand, Burdisso, Andreasen, Miguel, Sandro, Biglia ©, Davies, Johnson, Zizov

Subs: Proto, Goncalves, Szetela, Lima, Dembele

Wolves fielded an unchanged side against an extremely strong Derby County team including big names such as Scott Sinclair, Zigic, Sivok, Hangeland, Mate, Custodio and Pogatetz.

Wolves came out with the proverbial bit between there teeth and this match was indeed Wolves against Sheep (oh its a ram?), right from the off Wolves harried and pushed Derby all over the field with Biglia and Zizov again looking like great signings. We opened the scoring in the 13th minute when Sandro scored his first ever goal for Wolves with a

HT 1-0

Second half saw Wolves carry on where they left off and dominate the game, Biglia yet again ran the show from midfield and made

setting up Zizov for his first ever goal to make it 2-0. Derby then changed formation and started to create more chances but Wang Dalei was in supreme form and looked like he was never going to get beaten, that was until Derby sub Junuzovic grabbed a late consolation goal.

Wolves 2

Derby 1 Junuzovic

Man of the Match: Miguel (Wolves)

So far so good for Wolves, 3 games played and we are sitting unbeaten in 5th and Biglia and Zizov look like they will be awesome signings. However in the next 3 games we have to play Liverpool, Villa and Arsenal so the morale and our position in the table could change drastically!

We still have a substantial amount of money left in our transfer kitty so don't be surprised if Bott brings in a big name player or two!

[Bottster]

TEST POST

Any mods stumbling across this - please feel free to delete it

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[richard thomson]

Leeds have started the season on a poor run but have been missing several of there players injured including one game when the first choice back 4 were all missing along side 3 first choice midfielders with the injured players starting to come back to a level of fitness a win vs Man city showed there is a bit of fighting spirit in the Leeds team

[richard thomson]

i posted the League final tables from last Season on the clan website

[richard thomson]

i will post my predictions tomorrow

[Old Git]

Predictions

Premiership

Wolves Nick (10th)

Having survived by the skin of his teeth last season, Nick has made some shrewd acquisitions and has started brightly. Howevr I believe that a mid-table position is more than the likely outcome for the Brummie!

Bolton - Andy(8th)

Andy jumped ship late in the season to a struggling Bolton side. The team has struggled so far and could go one of two ways, the big Sam way to European competition or into freefall. I believe that with a few additions Andy should finish comfortably in the top ten.

Leeds - Ric(15th)

At 150/1, the odds are good for Leeds, much better than either Wolves or Bolton, but I don't believe that these are reliable. With a little bit of luck, Ric should avoid relegation but it will be a struggle. A poor start has not helped and Ric needs to start turning it around. I don't believe relegation is likely but any better than 10th is unlikely,

Championship

Crytal Palace - Mark(6th)

Long odds on Palace, but I would not be surprised if Palace were pushing for the payoffs at the end of the season. Don't think promotion is likley though.

Stoke - Tony(13th)

New boy Tony is in for a bit of a challenge. A poor run of results has upset the applecart however I fully expect him to bounce back and achieve mid-tabe status.

League One

Cardiff - Paul(1st/2nd)

The Wolves reserve squad have the talent and the bucks to walk all over this Division, and on current form look good for automatic promotion.

Shrewsbury - Moi/Ich(8th)

Overachieving Shrewsbury have started brightly and find themselves neatly in the top ten. However, recent injuries have been a bit of a setback. Some nice signings came in, and a full and fit Shrews team should be able to achieve top ten this year. Media prediction 21st, so anything above the drop zone is fine! 34 points to go!

Conference

Harrogate - Polo (9th)

Did brilliantly well to get Harrogate promoted, however will have to improve the quality of the squad in order to challenge in the Conference. Mid-table would be a result.