THE SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE
Old warhorses have led Wolves from the minefield
THE old soldiers at Wolves have been hailed for helping to steady the ship when their title bid was rocking.
The Molineux men head into today’s clash against Middlesbrough buoyed by back-to-back wins – the ideal response to a 4-1 thrashing by Aston Villa.
And defender Ryan Bennett says the likes of club skipper Danny Batth showed true leadership when a blip threatened to turn into a full-blown crisis.
“There are some young lads in the squad and some experienced boys who’ve been in this position before,” Bennett said.
“We’ve had meetings collectively and individually in the changing room, Danny’s held meetings, we’ve all done it at times throughout the season when we’ve needed it.
“Our players are strong characters and it’s showing through now at this stage of the season.
“The young lads are getting a little bit of advice and everyone’s staying on their toes.
“The lads who have been in these sort of positions before, whether that’s in League One or the Championship, are making sure we keep our discipline.
“The standards throughout the club have enabled us to keep it going.”
Four wins from their last eight matches will ensure a Premier League slot for the Midlanders. And Bennett says the aim is now simple for leaders Wolves.
He said: “We’ve got an important eight games left and we’ve got one goal – to win the league. After the two big results (3-0 v Reading and 3-1 v Burton) we’ve just had it would be nice to keep the momentum going. That’s what we’ve done at other stages of the season.
“It was massive to bounce back after the Villa defeat. You look at the gap – what it went to and what it is now – and it shows other teams have faltered and we’ve kicked on again.”
Wolves go into the Boro clash with a six-point lead at the top of the Championship, although secondplaced Cardiff have a game in hand, and Bennett went on: “We’ve got a bit of a cushion but that means nothing unless we go and win the games.
“Ultimately it’s in our hands.”