When the Tigers were bottom of the league, a raft of clubs above us in the table, Leeds, Sunderland (sort of), QPR and Wednesday, dispensed with their manages, increasing the pressure on Phil Parkinson.

City did make a managerial change, but it wasn’t Parkinson who departed, it was assistant manager Frank Barlow collecting his P45, a move that baffled many and raised questions about just how much influence assistant managers have over what happens on the pitch. City’s record with Barlow in charge of first team training was P15 W2 D3 L9.

Parkinson’s new right hand man is Phil Brown, once boss of Derby County. Since he has taken over on the training ground the Tigers have been much improved and have picked up four points from two tricky away games. The next test was Wolves at home, and it was passed with flying colours.

After overseeing Brown’s work at Millhouse Woods Lane in midweek, Parkinson chose a starting XI of: Myhill; Ricketts, Turner, Cole (capt.), Mills; Elliott, Marney, Delaney, Jarrett, Fagan; Parkin – the boss sticking with 4-5-1 as we endeavour to climb out of the bottom three.

After a minute’s silence was observed in memory of servicemen lost in both world wars and more recent conflicts overseas, City got the game underway attacking the North Stand goal on a blustery afternoon. The Bonus clock showed a temperature of 12, but wind chill made it feel considerably colder than that.

The game started slowly, the ball being spannered about in a somewhat half-arse manner but City soon showed some initiative. Collecting the ball from a throw on the right touchline, Danny Mills hit a low diagonal ball into the box where it was controlled by The Beast, who turned to strike a superb dipping shot that was net-bound until the all-red clad Murray in the Wolves goal made a spectacular intervention to tip the ball over.

It was Parkin’s last meaningful contribution as the man who had so far scored fifty percent of City’s goals this term fell slowly to the turf and covered his eyes with his hands in agony. Not a man to feign injury, Jon Parkin. It was clear this was a serious injury and after inspecting the bearded forward’s left ankle physio Simon Maltby signalled for a stretcher. As several yellow jackets struggled to carry the big man’s weight, Nicky Forster came on as sub to carry the burden of being the lone front man.

The heavens opened and a slow-paced game got slower still. Dean Marney hit a diagonal ball to Craig Fagan, but off-balance he couldn’t get his shot on target and struck wide. The rain intensified and so did the Tigers’ advances deep into Wolves’ territory. Delaney was fouled in the centre circle and from the resulting free kick Danny Mills chipped the ball into the box where Delaney flicked it on to Craig Fagan who struck it beyond Murray’s left paw and in. Fourteen minutes gone, 1-0 City!

Fagan was having a great game and he delivered a lovely cross from the right but a Wolves man rose first to head it away. Delaney controlled the clearance and scampered towards the left edge of the box where he centred for Fagan at the far post, but Forster leapt ahead of him and headed over.

Wolves looked incredibly lethargic for a side with promotion aspirations, whereas City had stepped up several gears and were totally in charge. Looking dangerous going forward and really harassing Wolves when they had the ball, quickly closing players down and giving them no space, no chance to establish any rhythm and no choice but to retreat into their own half. The Tiger Nation voiced their approval.

The biggest threat to City’s dominance of this game was not the opposition but the man in the middle, Uriah Rennie, an official with the same superstar referee mentality as Graham Poll, seeing himself as the main attraction and keen to remind players and fans that he is there and in control. He saw fit to wave away Dean Marney’s pain-filled protests after a Wolves type raked studs down his thighs but then saw an infringement noticed by no-one but he as Marney delivered a dangerous cross into the box.

Wolves forced a corner and though those in the south-east corner felt the ball was not correctly placed it was on the line rather than within the cheese-wedge shaped corner “box”, there is nothing wrong with that. Still, Rennie sensed a chance to make his presence felt and insisted the ball be moved. The Wolves corner taker moved it fractionally, and outraged that his authority may not be being taken seriously, he marched purposefully towards the player looking ready to brandish a yellow card but then noticing there was nothing wrong with where the ball was position (and there never was), he turned and walked away. What a tit this man is, referees have a hard job, come under ludicrous scrutiny and take a lot of unfair criticism but their cause is not helped by blokes like Uriah, the only Rennie to give people heartburn.

He then failed to see a foul when Michael Turner was hauled to the ground, allowing Wolves to create a rare and unwarranted chance on goal. Myhill was rounded and beaten but the passed ball was hit into the side netting. Not long after, Turner had a freekick given against him as Coles headed the ball back to Myhill. Thankfully that kick was feebly driven at our netman.

At the other end Wolves were being put under the cosh by City’s high-up-the-pitch pressing game, not even being allowed to wallop the ball out of the box and when a backpass was ignored by Rennie the Tiger Nation once again raged at the ref. He wanted to be seen as in control of this game, but had frankly lost it long ago as the crowd correctly told him that he didn’t know what he was doing.

Mills swept a beautiful through ball into the path of Forster, but he’d not started his run in time to get it and Murray collected. Delaney saw yellow for imitating a basketball ref throwing the ball up for a tip-off as Wolves tried to take a free kick and this ref was unamused and brandished a card for time-wasting. No need, as the ball held up for time added on signalled only two extra minutes. Odd, as the assessment and removal of Jon Parkin took at least six minutes.

The half time whistle duly sounded 120 seconds later and the Tiger Nation spent half-time drinking beverages and eating pies that tasted sweeter than they did at the Sunderland game, feeling more relief than usual while expelling urine and discussed the first half in an unexpectedly buoyant mood, it had been a good first forty-five. After the initial arm wrestle, City had gotten Wolverhampton in a firm headlock and powerfully punched them in the temple.

Would City loosen the grip, or punch Wolves unconscious in the second half? The latter, my friend! There was a scare early on though, when Michael Turner, routinely stewarding the ball back to Boaz Myhill, made a dreadful error and surrendered possession, but our keeper’s alertness spared his blushes, Myhill coming off his line and diving at the forward’s feet to push the ball away.

The Tigers’ midfield five were all playing well, Elliott, Delaney, Marnet and Jarrett continued their interdiction role to good effect, simply not allowing Wolves to compete, and Craig Fagan, having arguably his finest game in a City shirt, caused the Wanderers’ rearguard no end of discomfort. Fagan can often play well but produce no end result, but today he did both.

Jarrett, a no-frills but effective ballwinner, saw yellow for a mistimed challenge but was undeterred by the caution and showed good strength to win the ball in the middle before feeding Ricketts on the left, the Welshman went on an enterprising run that took him from the halfway line to the 18 yard box, where he had a shot charged down.

Mick McCarthy’s men had a lengthy spell of possession but found themselves continually repulsed by City’s defence who, though having dropped ten yards deeper, still granted those in white shirts little opportunity to do anything with the ball.

Fagan controlled a long Myhill punt superbly and passed to Marney, who hit a diagonal cross-shot that Murray pounced upon with Forster skulking about nearby. Stuart Elliott’s delicious touch provided Marney with the chance to release Forster, who raced goalwards and was tripped, but clear fouls carry no weight with Uriah Rennie, who dismissed claims for a free-kick.

No matter, as City soon delivered the knock-out blow we craved. Marney flicked a lovely ball forward for Craig Fagan, who confidently took his man to the bye-line, skilfully beat him and drilled the ball into the box where Stuart Elliott finished from point blank range. 75 minutes, 2-0 City, and game over.

Still time for Uriah Rennie to antagonise the crowd some more, Forster released Delaney before being fouled and rather than let City play on to their clear advantage, the pistachio-green shirted official brought play back to the left wing.

It was pleasing to see that City continued to attack rather than hold onto what they had, and Fagan nearly got a deserved second goal when he raced onto Marney’s smartly threaded ball and shot at the right time as Murray advanced, but sadly wide and the ball hit the outside of the net rather than the inside. Still, Fagan was brilliant today, irresistible even.

Wolves had one last chance to make a mark on the game from a clearly offside breakaway, but the ball was crossed in behind their strikers and Myhill gathered. Coles was hurt in the move, or was simply wasting time, as the clock ticked towards ninety minutes. He was down a minute or two. Four minutes were added to the regulation forty-five, but the Tigers remained resolute to claim an impressive and much-needed win. The three points take us up a place in the table and out of the bottom three.

It’s hard to quantify how much effect an assistant manager has on a team, maybe it is unfair on Phil Parkinson to even suggest Phil Brown’s arrival has had an impact, but it’s irrefutable to say that City have improved since the new assistant arrived to take over first team training and that Parkinson and Brown are a better managerial double act than Parkinson and Barlow. Maybe Brown has been Parkinson’s best recruit so far, and since bringing in Brown was his idea, then ultimately it’s him that takes the credit for the recent renaissance that sees us lie just two points behind Crystal Palace. One City fan mischievously screamed Taylor Out – no-one is verbally calling for our own manager’s head any more and if we can consistently replicate this form then Parkinson can match Taylor’s achievement of comfortable Championship survival with City and probably outlast him as an employed manager. (LM)