Pressure Off….. Rob Lapping It Up While He Can

Sunday, April 13: Delighted to bump into Rob Edwards outside Molineux at the high-scoring home victory over Tottenham this afternoon and see him looking so relaxed. He put much of his sun tan down to a recent trip to Antigua and explained that he was choosing his games carefully, mindful that out-of-work managers should not be so indiscreet as to turn up at grounds where incumbents might be under considerable pressure. There’s every chance, though, that he will resurface somewhere this summer and the madness will start all over again for him.

Sunday, April 20: Had a rare away day with Wolves today thanks to a school-friend who is a member at Old Trafford. Enjoyed the result, if not a tedious game as a whole, a brilliant late strike from Pablo Sarabia bringing down Manchester United and making it good viewing from my seat among home supporters in the corner between the East Stand and Sir Alex Ferguson Stand.  

Monday April 21: So Mark Venus is out of work again after the surprise sacking of his boss, Tony Mowbray, by Albion tonight. Although results have been poor, culminating in a desperate Easter for the club at the hands of Midlands rivals Coventry and Derby and the collapse of a once solid challenge for a play-off place, this decision has come only three months after the duo were seen as very much the right men for the job.  

Wednesday, April 23: Loved making an appearance at Cannock Library this afternoon and giving a talk there on life as a sports-writer and author to an audience of about 25. Brilliant to see several familiar faces present, including home and away season ticket holder Geoff Bagnall, to whom I apologised for being able to have only the briefest of greetings on Sunday. Well, it was only a few minutes after the final whistle and we were surrounded by hundreds of unhappy Man United fans near the Best-Charlton-Law statue at the time! It was very much a Wolves-dominated gathering today but I suspect it will be a more even Wolves-Albion split when I go to Tipton Library for the same reason on Saturday morning.

Friday, April 25: Can’t believe it’s two years today since Wolves fan John Madsen went down on bended knee at half-time during the victory over Crystal Palace and proposed to his sweetheart, Merete, on the Molineux pitch. Well, the couple are now married, still very much together and are back over from Denmark and at the stadium tomorrow with their friends Morag and Gwilym Machin for the visit of Leicester. A meet-up with them outside is a ‘must’ before they depart to Birmingham ready for a Peaky Blinders studio tour on Sunday.

Saturday, April 26: What a class act Conor Coady is. Even amid the despair of Leicester’s relegation and their outclassing at Molineux this afternoon, he conducted himself beautifully, discreetly mindful of the warm welcome he received and then prepared to wait for Wolves’ players and staff to do most of their post-match celebrating before indulging in his main wave to the ‘home’ stands. Will the imminent departure of Jamie Vardy, whose penalty today was well saved by Jose Sa, open the door to him becoming Leicester’s captain?

Saturday, May 3: Gutted for Rob Edwards and Paul Simpson (and their CVs, in particular) that Luton and Carlisle were relegated this afternoon from the Championship and League Two respectively. Plenty of water has flowed under the bridge since they exited the two clubs but some degree of culpability will be laid at their door because that’s how football works. They will also inevitably have good friends still in situ or among the fanbase, so they will be hurting. The other side of the last-day coin was provided by Keith Downing – relieved and delighted at Derby’s survival in the Championship – and Paul Cook, whose Chesterfield side just kept winning and secured a play-off place. 

Monday, May 5: Poor Sam Vokes…..a broken arm has ruled him out of Wycombe’s League One play-off programme and cast a massive shadow over what may have been his last appearance for the club. The former Wolves and Wales striker, now 35, has played only seven first-team games this season, the latest of them an 84th minute appearance as substitute at home to Stockport on Saturday. Now, Wycombe’s former player of the year faces an uncertain future as they prepare to take on Charlton in search of a Wembley place.