It’s time to dust down those Senegalese flags and head for the bitter sweet final Premiership game of the season on Sunday.
Bitter – because it’s the last bit of action we’ll see at Molineux till August and sweet – because we get to applaud our conquering team, manager and boardroom for a job well done this season.
When the Premiership fixture list came out for this campaign, I looked at this last game against Sunderland thinking we’d probably need a win to avoid relegation.
But instead we are a win away from a possible 14th place and in the end we’ve avoided the drop relatively comfortably.
At the end of season bash the other night, I was pleased to hear that sportingbet.com have extended their shirt sponsorship to the 2012/2013 season and we also saw the unveiling of the new Wolves away strip from our new kit manufacturer, (Christophe) Burrda.
I don’t know about you, but the Burrda decision caught me slightly by surprise. I’d never heard-a Burrda and I do think Jez Moxey has been a little short-sighted with his choice of kit manufacturer.
I’m sure the £3 million deal is fantastic business for the club and at the end of the day this is what Jez is employed for. But having seen a string of third-rate kit makers come and go in Nutmeg, Admiral, Spall and the mighty Bukta, I was hoping for a brand that would finally reflect our Premiership status.
Even the Saddlers once danced with Nike, albeit briefly and I don’t know whether the club would sell a shed load more shirts if they were blazoned with an Nike, Adidas, or Umbro, who made more Premiership team shirts than anyone this season.
But the clothing in the club shop has always been a bit naff and apart from a club shirt, I’ve only ever bought the odd mug and DVD from there. Surely there are others, who like me would probably spend a few quid if there were some decent clothing?
I’m sure Jez has done the maths and taken the route that gives him the most cash up front, but in the long-term this may have been a fool-hardy decision. Let’s hope the kit is of decent quality – it blummin’ Burrda be.
Also at the end of season dinner, the artist still known as Jody Craddock was crowned fan’s player of the season, something I predicted in my last blog. I was scoffed by some when I said Jody has been our best player of the last decade for what he has contributed to the club.
And although Kevin Doyle may have been our most effective and exciting player this season, no one should begrudge the great effort of our head-bandaged artist.
This campaign has been a massive team effort though, something that was reflected in the chase for the player of the season gong with the spine of the team all getting decent votes; Marcus Hahnemann, Jody, Karl Henry and Kevin Doyle.
And as this is my final blog of the season, I wanted to chuck in a few of my own light-hearted awards, but before I do, I have a quick confession.
For those of you that read the blog every week, you may have noticed that I chuck in the odd elongated word such as soporiferous, Brobdingnagian or my particular favourite, valetudinarians.
Why do I do it? I haven’t quite worked that out yet – probably just for a bit of selfish fun. But I’ll cut it out next season, I promise!
Anyway, on to the blogging awards, called the erm, the Merlin’s – my attempt at building bridges with the man himself!
Merlin 1 – The “Missing Jigsaw Piece” award – he may be the tallest player in the Premiership, but I’ve seen milk turn quicker than the Hoff – Stefan Maierhofer. I understand the arguments that we haven’t seen much from him, but I’ve seen enough to know he’s a dud and no amount of bellyaching from Stefan will convince me otherwise.
Merlin 2 – The “Stealth” award – goes to Adlene Guedioura. A few of you probably got a bit carried away with the YouTube antics of Geoffrey Mujangi Bia and perhaps paid little attention to his Algerian counterpart when he first joined. I know which one I’d rather keep for next season and so does my missus, but for differing reasons!
Merlin 3 – The “Dave Challinor” award – I’ve opened the envelope, but the player in question has gone missing and not for the first time this season. Let’s hope he’s soon chucking his bombs in at another club.
Merlin 4 – The “Hurt Locker” award – goes to the surprise package of Marcus Hahnemann. He was my nomination for player of the season for the massive difference he made when he came into the team, not just in goal but in giving the back four that added confidence.
Merlin 5 – The “Toyah Wilcox” award – it’s a mystery what happened to Sylvan Ebanks Blake after we all had such massive hopes of him cutting at this level. His vital goal against Blackburn should mean he will get a reprieve and another stab at top flight football next season.
Merlin 6 – The “Anti-Nugget award” – An accolade reserved for Mick McCarthy. Earlier in the season, I’d won a competition with sportingbet.com to meet the man himself. But once he got wind of my identity he refused to see me. It wasn’t all bad though; I had a good chat with Bully and have since built up a decent relationship with Sportingbet.com. One day I will get that photo of me and the Merlin, I’ll then reveal my identity and run for the hills!
Merlin 7 – The “Marmite” award – This goes to Ashmore Park’s very own Karl Henry. Some of us understand the important role he has played in the team this season, others just think he’s always looking for the easy pass.
Merlin 8 – The “Robbie Savage” award – This season’s biggest pantomime villain must surely go to the visit of John Terry. The way the South Bank mocked him with “you should have had relations with Cheryl Cole” was priceless.
Merlin 9 – The “Brian Law’s bus” award – This has to be the Premiership for their ill-thought out punishment of Wolves over the Old Trafford affair. It seems its one rule for the big clubs from London and the North West and another for everybody else.
Merlin 10 – The “She has a nice personality” award – goes to Jody Craddock who told me that he takes it as an asterism (back handed compliment) when the stadium chant that little ditty we all know so well.
Thank you to everybody who has contributed with their comments on the blogs this season. Some have been thought provoking; others funny and some have simply made my mum ring and say, “Have you seen what they are calling you?”
Still, I’d still rather get 100 replies calling me an idiot, than just 10 that agree with what I’ve written.
I’ll see you in the Posada pub after the game if you’re in there and anybody who wants to contact me outside the blog can do so on twitter at wolvesblogger.
And don’t forget to wear your Wolves colours to gain free entry into the “Only Wolves and Horses” day at the Dunstall Race Course on Monday. The races are all Wolves themed and the players will be around on the day. I’ll be there, hiding from Mick and the Hoff! Details can be found at http://www.wolverhampton-racecourse.co.uk/
I’ll be blogging on the World Cup over the summer and then its back next season for the thrills and spills of another Premiership campaign.
I hope you all have a great summer and thanks again for reading my blogs this season.
Enjoy the game and I’ll see you soon.
UTW!
@Wolvesblogger 