Wolves get ahead of chasing pack

Wolverhampton Wanderers 3 Burnley

When a manager, pulling fiercely on his first cigarette, makes an unforced substitution after 20 minutes, all is not well. Given Burnley were already two down and close to total collapse, Stan Ternent's reaction was remarkably temperate.

It was half-time before the visitors pulled themselves together, by which time the match was over and Wolves, as Molineux took great delight in reminding the Burnley fans, were top of the league.

In an average First Division, Dave Jones has added enough steel and purpose to the youthful talent already in place to give them a chance of staying there. The bite, guile and experience of Alex Rae and Colin Cameron in midfield, the pace and delivery of Mark Kennedy and Shaun Newton out wide, and the power of Nathan Blake up front were decisive yesterday. All were signed by Jones.

Kennedy had already put in one useful cross when he lined up a free-kick from the right on eight minutes. The cross invited a header, Joleon Lescott jumped with his marker Gareth Taylor, and the ball skimmed off the Burnley player's head and into the far corner. Two minutes later Paul Cook almost repeated the feat, heading another Kennedy free-kick over his own bar. Shortly afterwards Blake headed a cross high into the air, and five defenders just watched as Rae, on the six-yard line, waited for it to drop before hooking a volley over his shoulder and in.

Ternent switched to four at the back, but the tide was running too strongly against them. His goalkeeper Nick Michopoulus had Cameron's free-kick covered when Cook, again in the wrong place at the wrong time, deflected it past him.

In the second half, though Burnley finally began to present an organised front, it was a non-event after Jones instructed his team to 'shut up shop'.

"It would have been nice to put a show on but I wanted a professional job. Blame me," said the manager. Ternent didn't make excuses, though he promised his team would "be there or thereabouts at the end of the season".

Goals: Taylor (og, 8) 1-0; Rae (19) 2-0; Cook (og, 38) 3-0.

Wolverhampton Wanderers (4-4-2): Oakes; Muscat, Lescott, Butler, Naylor; Newton, Cameron (Robinson, 80), Rae, Kennedy (Proudlock, 32); Branch, Blake. Substitues not used: Murray, Connelly, Roussel.

Burnley (4-4-2): Michopoulos; Cox (Little, 23), Gnohere, Davis, Briscoe; Cook (West, h-t), Ball, Grant (Armstrong, 76), Weller; Moore, Taylor. Substitues not used: Cennamo, Payton.

Referee: P Joslin (Nottinghamshire).

Man of the match: Rae.

Attendance: 24,893.