Steve Bull: Time for Wolves to step up for the derby
The Black Country derby is upon us once again, so let’s make sure we put that dismal performance against Burnley behind us.
I don’t know if half the team, or all the team, were on holiday and thought everything had finished.
Either way, it certainly wasn’t one of the best Wolves displays I’ve seen.
In football, though, you always have the chance to put things right, so hopefully we see a big response tomorrow.
This is a massive game and it won’t be an easy one for us.
Unfortunately, we haven’t won at The Hawthorns since 1996 when Iwan Roberts got his hat-trick and I really enjoyed my goal.
Sam Allardyce has got Albion playing well, too.
He has been able to stamp his mark on the team, although it will probably end up being too late for them in terms of staying up.
The most important thing for Wolves is making sure they roll their sleeves up and are ready for a battle.
It is about stepping up to the occasion, giving it absolutely everything you have and, fingers crossed, giving the fans something to shout about.
The alarming thing last weekend was the work-rate, with Burnley running 6km more than us. And that cannot be repeated.
I’m hoping it was a one-off because these players still have a point to prove.
There are five games to go, and you have got to put performances in to say to Nuno ‘I want to be here next year’.
We saw it with Sean Dyche’s team, coming out of the blocks – all guns blazing.
Albion are going to be exactly the same, too, so Wolves have to be on it from the first whistle right until the last.
With these games, it’s vital to make sure you stay in it because even if you’re not firing on all cylinders, you can grind out a result. They always tend to be tight matches.
The lads need to go out there full of courage and determination, and show what happened last weekend was just a bad day at the office.
Chase every ball, commit to every tackle and track your runners. It’s all about passion.
I’d like to say a huge thank you to Suresh Bawa, Neil Taylor and Jason Guy for joining me in the week on a charity walk from Birmingham to Wolverhampton, and helping to raise £10,000 for Promise Dreams, Birmingham Children’s Hospital and the Neonatal Ward at New Cross Hospital.
It was a brilliant day and hopefully tomorrow will be too.
