Final game draw means it's Reading in the play-offs

The sun was shining, the pitch was lush and there wasn’t a great deal at stake and that was the tempo the final game of the regular season was played at – like a pre-season friendly.

So Leicester are guaranteed Premiership football, but playing like that, with players at the end of their careers, they won’t last more than one season unless there is some serious investment.

Once Wolves got the grips with Leicester, they were for me, the better team with more creativity. Ok, Leicester had rested some of their ‘better’ players but too often they hit hopeful balls into open spaces behind the Wolves defence.

Wolves however, tried to probe. Blake was making direct runs as Taggart, Elliott and co. backed off him. Kennedy wasn’t being double teamed, but his crossing was generally off the mark.

Cameron was once again tiggerish in the midfield, competing well and using the ball well.

Miller had the best chance of the half put through one-on-one with the keeper he fired tamely straight at Walker.

However, in the second half Miller made amends with a fine run, holding off two defenders before cutting back inside and then curling the ball inside Walker’s far post.

Unfortunately for Ludo, playing his last game for Wolves in place of the injured Lescott and Clyde, when he partially intercepted a Leicester attack he fell with his arm outstretched onto the ball – clear penalty.

Good to see that Wolves old-boy, Tim Flowers got a final 10 minute hurrah against the team where he made his bow in league football. A deserved standing ovation from all sides of the ground for the player who won a Premiership title with Blackburn in 1995.

With the game finishing 1-1 the extra point means a play-off draw with Division 1 newcomers Reading.

You could see that the players were generally only playing at 75% capacity so not a great deal can be read into the performance.

In fact Reading and Sheffield United also lost their final games indicating a similar approach.

Fingers crossed that player of the season Lescott will be back next Saturday as Ludo is far too slow now for the task.

So 5^th place at the end of the season.

Considering the poor month’s we had a the start of the season it was the best we could expect. However, for once we are the form team in the play-off positions able to score goals and also prevent them from being conceded.

It remains to be seen whether the experience of Ince and Irwin can give us the edge to handle the pressure better than we have in previous attempts at the semi-final stage.

Fingers crossed..

Email me with any feedback etc. at: dave@wolves-mad.co.uk