Chorley '86 And Some Snippets We Would Rather Have Forgotten

As a way of building up to tomorrow's scarcely believable FA Cup fourth-round pairing, here are 15 memories of by far the blackest night in Wolverhampton Wanderers history, interspersed with some associated thoughts.....

Illuminating Memories From The Beeb

Midlands TV viewers said goodbye to a highly familiar face last month when Ian Winter called time on his 35-year service to the BBC. The Blackburn-born sports presenter arrived on the patch in the mid-1980s to head up Radio WM's sports team and, after a stint with the corporation at BBC Look East in Norwich, returned to Birmingham to work in TV.

Goalscorer's Amazement At Chorley Repeat

Who would have guessed there would ever be another pairing between Wolves and Chorley in the FA Cup? Certainly not Matt Forman, who contacted us soon after those two names came out of the hat together this week. For the clubs to meet once in the competition is one thing - to be drawn again in opposition now in round four is something else completely, especially as the sixth-tier minnows have never progressed this far before.

And Not Of Just ANYONE

In the Molineux press box memoir I wrote and published in 2018, I told how Graham Taylor once spectacularly tried to bring Elton John to his senses by plonking some booze in front of him at a dinner party at which other guests were served the finest food. My decision to use the anecdote was a bit of a punt, based on the insight of a highly respected former Watford Observer reporter called Oliver Phillips.

Food For Thought From Long Ago

Wolves have a four against their name in the area of the record books reserved for showing FA Cup final triumphs. But that doesn't tell the whole story. There is a school of thought that those clubs who lifted the Wartime League Cup achieved something very close. And, as we embark on third-round weekend, we look in more detail at how Wolves won that trophy almost 80 years ago.

'Sid' Adds To The Sad News

Tuesday, December 1: Caught up on a moving feature with Gordon Cowans in which he spoke of his diagnosis of early Alzheimer's, aged only 61. He said he no longer worked but was determined to make the most of his good times and was enjoying his Dogs For Good charity work.

RIP Tommy Docherty

True as it is that Wolves saw nothing like the best of him, we should not allow the passing-away of Tommy Docherty to slip by without due mention. Football has lost one of its most colourful characters with his death this week at the age of 92.

Stand By For A Happy Announcement

Are Wolves destined for something special to celebrate at the very start of the year, irrespective of their result at Brighton on Saturday? Is another major award on the way to Molineux....one that even points or victories can not directly bring about?

'Everybody Liked Him' - Striker Andy

Mike Bailey has been in the thoughts of all Wolves fans recently - but not for what happened almost 40 years ago. The one return he made to Molineux in charge of another club was a winning one that seriously damaged the prospects of the squad John Barnwell was struggling to keep out of danger.

Another Reminder Of What We're Missing

In wishing all of our readers a happy and very SAFE festive period, we can hardly help but look back on what normally makes football at this time of year so special. Boxing Day, December 27 or December 28 is probably the most eagerly anticipated date on the calendar after the opening day of a season and, with Wolves at home to Tottenham on Sunday, we can only wonder what a full and vibrant Molineux would have felt like as a way of releasing us from the Yuletide excesses.