Recently by Brian Halford

MOLINEUX was swept by sunshine and filled with smiles as Forest were torn apart by magnificent Wolves.

Mick McCarthy's men climbed to the top of the Championship on the back of a breathtaking first half-display which brought four goals.

Forest were unpicked by wave after wave of fast, confident, stylish football. It was a carnival and amongst all the acclaim and joy perhaps one smile said it all.

WOLVES will tread unusual new ground in the Carling Cup second round after being drawn away to League Two side Rotherham.

The Millers, who dumped Sheffield Wednesday, Wolves opponents in the Championship on Saturday, out of the cup on Tuesday, are this season playing their home games at Sheffield's Don Valley Athletics Stadium following a dispute with the owner of their historic Milllmoor home.

So inside the famous Don Valley running track Wolves will attempt to extend their cup run in the week beginning August 25.

ANY long march to League Cup glory always starts with an unglamorous first step - Wolves can vouch for that.

Tonight they begin their Carling Cup trail at home to League Two strugglers Accrington Stanley. It is not a contest to tingle the taste-buds or fill the Molineux stands.

But it was a similarly low-key assignment against struggling northern oppositon that triggered each of their trails towards lifting the trophy itself in 1974 and 1980.

DAVID Jones has outlined Wolves' players determination to reward their loyal away following in Devon with a winning start to the season on Saturday.

Wolves will be watched by 2,700 travelling fans, their full allocation of tickets for the game at Plymouth - a repeat of the opening-day fixture that launched Mick McCarthy's reign as manager two years ago.

And midfielder Jones and his team-mates would love those supporters to be making the long trip back to the Black Country in the best of spirits.

WOLVES have lengthened their pitch in a move which manager Mick McCarthy believes will allow his squad to exploit their "athleticism and pace".

The Molineux surface, which formerly measured 110 by 75 yards has been extended to 115 yards long, supplying an extra 375 square yards of pitch.

The change is designed to give Wolves' youthful team, and their wingers in particular, more scope to stretch opponents. A bigger surface will certainly not do entertainment levels any harm and and McCarthy reckons it will suit his attacking players, not least Michael Kightly whose vibrant pre-season form has given huge cause for optimism.