Manchester City were left celebrating promotion to the FA Barclaycard
Premiership as Wolves went down by a single goal to Millwall at the New Den.
Dave Jones' side needed three points to delay City's return to the top flight
but they were made to pay for an alarming lack of appetite as Steve Claridge's
73rd-minute penalty condemned them to defeat.
While it is fair to say the blue half of Manchester were raising a glass to
Claridge, it should not go unnoticed that West Brom's followers would be equally
delighted.
Wolves' slip-up leaves the Baggies as favourites to secure the second
automatic promotion spot, sitting as they do level on points with their Midlands
rivals with a game in hand.
Victory boosted Millwall's own play-off hopes and it was the least they
deserved for a performance of great heart.
The game started and ended at a frenetic pace, and Millwall needed the post to
keep out Dean Sturridge's volley four minutes from time.
Millwall had much the better of the opening exchanges, and Wolves were
thankful for Joleon Lescott's alertness and Steven Reid's wayward heading as the
hosts created two chances in the opening three minutes.
Dion Dublin, on loan from Aston Villa, needed just 12 minutes to open his
Millwall account against Stockport last Saturday, but he failed to show the same
predatory instinct on the quarter-hour when slicing high and wide following
Matthew Lawrence's cross.
Kenny Miller's mis-hit shot from the edge of the area was the sum total of
Wolves' efforts in the first half-hour, and that did not arrive until after
Dublin had headed Ronnie Bull's centre wide.
Colin Cameron and Sturridge also failed to hit the target as Wolves came into
the game more, but it was their own goalkeeper, Michael Oakes, who had to make
the first meaningful save in keeping out Reid's powerful drive on the stroke of
half-time.
With Jones' harsh words no doubt ringing in their ears, Wolves emerged after
the interval a different side.
Shaun Newton's perfectly-weighted through-ball set Colin Cameron free two
minutes after the restart only for Tony Warner to race off his line and beat his
shot away.
The Millwall goalkeeper needed two attempts to gather an effort from Newton in
the 58th minute but Paul Ifill twice went close for Millwall as play switched
from end to end.
Ifill looked to have been rewarded for his industriousness when referee Tony
Leake blew for a foul by Mohammed Camara, only for his assistant to indicate,
wrongly, that the offence had taken place outside the penalty area.
Wolves' relief did not last long, however, as Newton's trailing leg ended
Claridge's jinking run into the box .
This time the referee made no mistake, and neither did Claridge, who dusted
himself down before sending Oakes the wrong way from the spot.
Nathan Blake, on a second-half substitute, then crossed for Sturridge to hit
the woodwork, and was denied himself deep in stoppage time when prodding a shot
straight at Warner from little more than three yards.
Teams
Millwall: Warner, Lawrence, Nethercott, Ward, Bull, Ifill,
Cahill, Livermore, Reid, Dublin, Claridge.
Subs Not Used: Gueret, Sadlier, Tuttle, Kinet, Bircham.
Booked: Nethercott, Cahill, Livermore.
Goals: Claridge 73 pen.
Wolverhampton: Oakes, Halle, Butler, Lescott, Camara, Newton,
Cameron, Rae (Andrews 76), Cooper (Blake 86), Sturridge,
Miller (Ndah 70).
Subs Not Used: Laursen, Murray.
Booked: Sturridge, Cooper, Camara, Andrews.
Att: 17,058
Ref: A Leake (Darwen).
E-mail Article 
Print-Friendly
Subscribe to RSS Feed 
Post to del.icio.us
Facebook