Bobby Smith relives Wolverhampton Wanderers’ hidden history as we look back at the signings most fans forgot. From brief cameos to letdowns, these Wolves players wore the shirt but failed to make their mark.
They Also Wore The Shirt, Just Not Very Well…
Wolves fans are united in frustration this close season, with new signings signed, sealed but not yet delivered, despite huge sums of money coming in via player sales.
However, it could be worse, as our history is littered with players who promised much yet gave so little in return. Thankfully many of their names have faded from memory, with fans tending to concentrate on their favourites. In my case this would be players such as: Danny Crainie, Robbie Dennison, Steve Bull, Andy Thompson, John de Wolf, Ludovic Pollet and Ruben Neves.
However, I am not concerned with them today. Nope, I want to delve into those signings that most fans have forgotten about; the players who were average on a good day but downright terrible on their bad. In truth, some of them were half-decent, but they stayed for only a fleeting period, which is why I have included them here. Therefore, in no particular order, I give you the following:
Jens Dowe.
A real odd one this. He played eight games for us in season 96/97, of which I saw seven live in the flesh. However, apart from one shot over the bar against Southend, I do not recall anything of note he did. He was an attacking German midfielder who had a decent career elsewhere (Hamburg, Sturm Graz, Rapid Vienna) but left no legacy at the Wolves. I will be amazed if anyone reading this recalls his name.
Steve Claridge.
Oh dear. I was tempted to leave it at the ‘oh dear’ but it must be mentioned that our misguided manager at the time, Mark McGhee, played him up front during our FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal (1998), alongside Don Goodman. Fair enough, you might think, as he generally put a shift in with his shin pads nowhere to be seen. Our bench that day, though, included a couple of decent players; Steve Bull and Robbie Keane. Claridge played five games for Wolves and managed zero goals.
Tomasz Frankowski.
A full Polish international (10 goals in 22 games), Frankowski arrived for a decent transfer fee of 1.4 million pounds, signed by Glenn Hoddle in 2006. He was going to be the missing link in our total football jigsaw (total boring football as it was known by the fans) style of play under Hoddle, whereby square pass was followed by another square pass. Sadly, Frankowski was a square peg in a round hole as he did not score a single goal in 16 games. Amazingly, he did have great success both before and after leaving Wolves. Overall, he managed 211 career goals in 450 appearances. I guess it was just the Wolverhampton air that did not agree with him.
Andy King.
A bit of a misfit on this list, to be fair, as he was quite good. I only include him as many have forgotten he played for Wolves, with most remembering him as a skilful and determined midfielder for the likes of Everton, QPR and even West Bromwich. He signed for Wolves towards the end of the 84/85 season and made eight appearances that term. However, he really came into his own the next campaign, 85/86, in the old 3rd Division, as he scored ten goals in only twenty games, a very good strike rate for a midfielder. Sadly, given that we were skint, we sold him for 20k in December 1985, to Luton Town, as our team collapsed into eventual relegation. For younger readers I should explain that the transfer window lasted nearly all season, in the ‘old days’, and only ended in March. Despite his mid-term departure King was still our top scorer that season, with Dean Edwards the next best on the list with 8 (all competitions).
Rafael Villazan.
Years before Santi Bueno arrived at Molineux, we had the very first Uruguayan player in England, the muscular Rafael Villazan, signed in 1980 from Spanish club Recreativo de Huelva. South Americans were all the rage for a few years at the end of the 1970s, with Tottenham hitting the jackpot with Ardiles and Ricky Villa. Fans of Wolves were thus excited at the prospect of our own bags of tricks defender. Poor Rafael, the sexy South American vibe was not for him, as he instead perfected the ponderous centre half role, alongside the equally ponderous, albeit home-grown, Joe Gallagher (350k signing from Birmingham). After 27 games in defence and defensive midfield he was out of the club, with only a handful of yellow cards to show for his career in England.
Scott McGarvey.
Erstwhile wonderkid from Manchester United, Scott burst onto the scene* in the 80/81 season, playing for the Reds. His career then stalled, which led to him joining our doomed Division 1 season in 83/84. Overall, he was known more for his shock of blond hair, which was shocking, than his goals output, which was average. However, he did manage two goals in thirteen games for Wolves, which made him a comparative success that season.
* Copyright Micah Richards.
Robin van der Laan.
Robin always struck me as being a class player when he turned out for Port Vale, with consistent midfield performances and an eye for goal (24 in 176 games for Vale). Sadly, his eyes produced no goals for Wolves, when he joined on loan for seven matches in the 96/97 campaign.
Oleh Luzhnyi.
Right-back signed from Arsenal in 2003. Was nicknamed ‘the horse’ before he donned the old Gold and Black. By the end of his solitary season at Wolves (10 games) he had a new nickname – the donkey.
Neil Masters.
Top notch left-back who had it all; pace, power, height and a shot that rivalled that of Bullys. However, he also had a shocking injury record that ensured he only played eighteen games (1 goal) for us during the period 1993-97. As a result of constant injury problems, he only played 90 games in his whole career. To continue the animal theme, he was nicknamed Rhino, for reasons I could never fathom.
Roger Eli.
Signed from Leeds, for our ill-fated 85/86 season, Roger was a hard-working, speedy centre forward who had all the attributes to succeed but for one missing ingredient; goals. In modern terms, a more erratic Adama Traore would be the best way to describe him. Played 21 games (zero goals) and then left for pastures new at Cambridge. However, to be fair to the lad, he did achieve much success for Burnley, for whom he scored twenty league goals in ninety-nine appearances.
Roger Hansbury.
A loan goalkeeper during our successful 88/89 season. Mark Kendall was injured so we had to make an emergency loan signing, towards the end of the campaign. Step forward ‘safe Hans,’ signed on loan from Birmingham City. Only played three games for us but unfortunately one of them was the second leg of the Sherpa Van semi-final second leg. Leading Torquay 2-1 from the away fixture, it should have been a formality for us to qualify for our second Wembley final in two seasons. Oh dear. Hansbury flapped at a free kick, and we lost 2-0. One of the goals was scored by Dean Edwards, once of our own parish. The thing I remember about this game was the absolute silence at the end, apart from thirty-four Torquay fans.
To be continued…
article by bobby smith
Ex-A Load of Bull writer who loves punk and Oi! music, Chris Woakes, Test Match cricket, Wolverhampton Wanderers, military history. Author of One Love Two Colours and The Armageddon Pact.