Black Country derby, flares, packed pubs and a roaring Molineux as Wolves edge West Brom | OneFootball

Flares, packed pubs and a ferocious soundtrack framed a long-awaited Black Country derby at Molineux, where Wolves edged West Brom thanks to Fer Lopez’s second-half finish. A heavy but orderly policing plan underpinned a day that rarely strayed beyond good-natured rivalry.

According to ExpressAndStar.com, the day began early, with Wolverhampton already busy by 9am, three hours before kick-off. Pubs opened from 7am, while The Sandwell in West Bromwich welcomed away fans from 6am.

A new Molineux Subway mural, unveiled less than 24 hours earlier, had already been daubed in blue by a Baggies supporter before the paint was removed. The Masala Express van obscured the artwork, and reports of retaliatory graffiti surfaced across Sandwell, including at The Vine and Massey’s Café.

Police and stewards were out in force around the city and at the station by about 10am. Trains from Smethwick brought organised arrivals, with Albion guided one way and other travellers another, and some rivals even shook hands before parting.

At PACK, a matchday haunt opened less than a year ago, nerves gave way to chants as noon neared. Outside North Street Social, the first flares went up and Wolves fans belted out songs for Steve Bull.

Inside, the South Bank and the away end traded volleys of noise. Hi Ho Wolverhampton boomed before kick-off, The Liquidator did not make a one-off return.

Albion’s 2,549 in the Steve Bull Stand were dwarfed by around 28,000 home fans. Wolves dominated, Lopez settled it after the break, and goalkeeper Max O’Leary spared the visitors from an embarrassment akin to the 5-1 they dished out in WV1 last time.

At full-time the release was thunderous, with home supporters hailing a win they felt had been worth the wait. West Midlands Police and British Transport Police kept the routes segregated afterwards, a welcome shift after crowd trouble marred the fixture in 2024. Attention already turns to the reverse meeting in February.

Source: ExpressAndStar.com

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”