"A trip to the Galpharm is always one to treasure, if for nothing more than a plethora of real ale pubs that you can whet your whistle pre-game and, bearing in mind our fortunes at your place, drown your sorrows afterwards.
It's been over ten years since our last visit (a 3-0 loss) and only once have I seen us grab three points…right back in 96/97 when flying winger Steve Froggatt and goal-scoring legend Steve Bull netted.
Looking at the positive starts to the season from both teams and I think we're all expecting another close game and one that will either be drawn or settled by the odd goal. Wolves are coming off the back of a great run of form, with the only blip being a 2-1 loss to Wilfried Zaha, or as they are more commonly known Crystal Palace.
If it wasn't for the teenage wonder-kid and Kevin Doyle's wastefulness in front of goal we could be arriving in Huddersfield with six wins out of six, three of those being consecutive away wins without conceding a goal.
This tells you a lot about the difference Stale Solbakken is making. If we're being honest, not many Wolves fans knew what to expect from this managerial appointment other than what they could glean from twitter or Wikipedia. It was different and after Super Mick's attritional style I think we welcomed that. And I still think it's very much a work in progress. Our Norwegian manager has made us more organised at the back, with pretty much the same back four and encouragingly has tried to instill a desire from the players to retain possession.
It's not blood and guts, thrills and spills by any means. However, it is proving effective, as the 1-0 win against Blackburn with half a team proved.
Roger Johnson has been reincarnated at the back and the introduction of Doumbia has added a different dimension to our central midfield pairing. We've also welcomed back Kevin Foley in recent weeks, who is arguably the best full-back in the division.
Going forward, Ebanks-Blake has had a decent start to the season and it remains to be seen whether his strike partner Kevin Doyle will be fit or indeed chosen. The latter has become the world's best striker when it comes to running the channels, but unfortunately can't hit a cow's arse with a banjo.
The one player who will catch the eye will be Bakary Sako, our flying left -winger from St Etienne. He's already notched 4 goals in eight games, including a beautiful strike against Blackburn. In all honesty, he's the one player who can do something different for Wolves and could be our match-winner on Saturday.
Karl Henry, our midfield custodian, is suspended, so that's one less yellow card the ref will have to dish out. And finally, we've pulled off a bit of a coup by signing Pennant on loan from Stoke City. Not everyone's cup of tea, but he'll certainly provide us with a decent line of supply in the Championship.
I'm going for a 1-1 draw as my prediction and plenty of ale in the Slubbers Arms and Head of Steam!"
Thanks to Russ Cockburn for giving us an insight into the Wolves squad as well as giving us a heads up on what to expect from his side when they visit us on Saturday.
Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone
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