Connor challenged to stake claim on full-time Wolves job

Wolves owner Steve Morgan has challenged caretaker boss Terry Connor to stake a claim for the job on a permanent basis after being appointed for the remainder of the season.

Connor will be in charge for the final 13 matches – starting with today’s encounter at Newcastle – and given the task of keeping second from bottom Wolves in the Premier League.

The midlands club have come in for criticism after failing to land an established manager as the sacked Mick McCarthy’s replacement. But Morgan has faith in Connor, who has been at Molineux for 13 years, to plug the gap left by McCarthy after his contract was terminated 11 days ago. He said: “We believe we have made the right decision. Certainly the players’ reaction has been incredibly good and we look forward to Terry taking the club from now until the end of the season.

“We have seen a number of people, we have narrowed it down and it became clear with the way the players were responding to Terry that he was the right person. At the moment it’s an interim appointment but he’s got a chance to stake a claim. We’ve got 13 cup finals left. We’re actually fed up of relegation battles but that’s what we’ve got on our hands now.”

Wolves were linked with Alan Curbishley, Steve Bruce, Brian McDermott, Dave Jones, Gus Poyet and Walter Smith before turning to Connor.

Meanwhile, Connor has promised a positive response from the “hurting” Wolves players at Newcastle as they look to bounce back from the hammering by local rivals West Brom. The Baggies’ 5-1 win at Molineux 12 days ago signalled the end of McCarthy’s reign.

He admits it was a difficult time initially to pick the players up after McCarthy’s departure but is adamant they will be in the right frame in the battle for Barclays Premier League survival.

Connor said: “I saw a downturn amongst the lads when Mick initially left for two or three days. I’m sure some of the players will have regrets about results and Mick losing his job.

“But they are the most honest bunch of lads you would wish to meet. If they’ve made mistakes, they’ve made honest mistakes. By the end of last week I saw signs of an upturn. They then had a few days off to reflect, came back in on Monday and were more like their usual selves.”