The ex-Wolf - Kenny Hibbitt

I was an apprentice at Bradford Park Avenue aged 17, I'd done two years of my three years as an apprentice.

Joe Garner was the chief scout at Wolves and I didn't realise he'd been watching me for 12 months.

In that period my father had died and it was a big decision to leave home. It was always something my dad wanted to see, me and my brother Terry play in the First Division.

I'd seen Wolves on TV years before against Honved and Spartak, but I didn't really know what I was heading for.

On the way down to Wolverhampton, which I didn't really know geographically where it was, every time the train stopped at a station I wanted to get off and go home.

Tell us a bit about your Wolves manager(s).

I'd been under seven manager at Bradford Park Avenue in two and a half years and then within three days of joining Wolves Ronnie Allen got the sack!

So I never had the pleasure to work with him, unfortunately. That was sad as he'd backed me and bought me.

He told Derek Clarke that he'd made one of his best signings when he bought me.

Bill McGarry came in. I don't think anybody had a good relationship with Bill!

He only said 'well done' to me once in seven years. We played Exeter and the fans were going berserk, it was only 0-0.

I scored and he walked down and said 'well done son'. I nearly fainted.

But that needed to be done with kids and I respected him for that. The older players fell out with him constantly.

And then later Sammy Chung took over and took us back up to the First Division as champions. Then he went and John Barnwell came in.

Again, he was a great player and loved ball players, midfield players who could pass, and that's what me and Willie Carr used to do.

He brought some quality players into the club, Andy Gray in particular, and Dave Thomas and Emlyn Hughes.

Best memory at the club?

The UEFA Cup final against Tottenham was massive and I don't think we got the recognition we deserved in that run, beating Juventus and Ferencvaros.

For me personally, people don't look upon the Europa League as very exciting but it was absolutely massive for us, playing in all these countries and not losing a game until the final.

And in Juventus we were looked after by John Charles, we went in shops and they were bowing to him. That whole period was fantastic.

The League Cup is still a very good trophy, at that time it got us into Europe and was a major trophy.

They're all on a par, the finals in the League Cup and UEFA Cup, they're the highlights of my career.

Worst memory at the club?

The two relegations and then leaving the club in the way the club was, after 16 years.

I couldn't believe the club had deteriorated so quickly. They were at their lowest ebb when I left, having 3,000 people watching them soon after.

It takes a long time to build anything up and I thought the management never looked to the future. It was a very sad day to leave.

But the highs certainly outweigh the lows, I was very lucky.

Most talented player you played with at Wolves?

You can talk about so many, without them I woudn't be a first team player. In my eyes they're all great.

John Richards, Mike Bailey was a fan skipper, Willie Carr, Steve Daley, Alan Sunderland, Geoff Palmer, I could go on and on.

John McAlle was the most underrated player that Wolves had, he was a great centre back alongside Frank Munro. They were all great players.

Favourite goal in a Wolves shirt?

The one at Wembley (against Manchester City in the 1974 League Cup final, which Wolves won 2-1) stands out.

My mum cried her eyes because she saw her name up in lights.

She never expected to see that, she was thinking about my dad as well, and that for me was worth millions.

In fact there's no price on that. It's a great memory and that would probably stick out.

Did you get on well with the fans?

I always got on very well with the supporters. They can't all like you of course, but I was very fortunate that I got a lot of support - they were superb and inspired me.

Derek Dougan wished me all the best when I joined and said, 'just work hard'.

I've always said that to all my players, I just expect 100 per cent effort, the fans aren't stupid and if they see you not trying they will come down on you like a ton of bricks.

How did you end up leaving Wolves? Any regets?

Tommy Docherty came in as manager and he knew I didn't want to be around to see the club in such dire straits.

I went for an interview for player-manager at Swindon, was told I'd got the job, but when I got home I got a phonecall from Coventry manager Bobby Gould.

I rang the Swindon chairman to say I've got an opportunity to stay in the First Division for two years at Coventry, which I couldn't turn down.

Thoughts on the current Wolves team?

I went to the Gillingham game after Dave Wagstaffe's funeral and they cruised that comfortably.

I've since seen them on TV and they've looked good They've set themselves up for next year.

What they achieved last season was fantastic, now expectation levels go up and they expect the same again.

With the addition of two or three players they'll look pretty strong. There's a lot of teams at a similar standard in the Championship so im hoping that Kenny will make some good signings. It's about keeping your top players fit as well.

What are you up to now?

I've been working as a Premier League referees' assessor now for 11 years.

I love it, we just had a conference in London last weekend and things have progressed really well there.

The stress I had in eight years in management took its toll in many ways.

It's hard enough working with assistants, coaches, scouts, etc - I had to do that all myself.

The four years at both Walsall and Cardiff City felt like 15.

I've never really wanted to get back into management unless I had a first team coach and an assistant.

I'm living down in Bristol, my grandchildren are here, I'm very happy.

* Kenny Hibbitt played for Wolves from 1968 to 1984. He made 574 appearances (the second highest in Wolves history behind Derek Parkin) and scored 114 goals.