ALL of a sudden the bigger picture doesn’t seem so bad.

A clean sheet, a victory against the rivals, a Peter Odemwingie strike and individual performances of 8s and 9s.

As Black Country derbies went, Albion got the result they sought and needed. The opponents were incidental - the Baggies needed a reaction.

The fact it was Wolves made it all the more sweeter.

For Mick McCarthy, the troubles continue. Five straight League defeats is the kind of run that keeps managers up at night and prompts an outpouring of anger from the stands.

Albion were worthy of their win, claimed thanks to goals from Chris Brunt and Peter Odemwinige.

Yet credit to Roy Hodgson.

It takes a bold manager to make four changes for a derby. He drew on his 36 years of experience and took the gamble. Making his Premier League debut was Billy Jones, in for Nicky Shorey, who was joined on the bench by James Morrison, Graham Dorrans and Peter Odemwingie. Paul Scharner, Jerome Thomas and Somen Tchoyi came into the team. By 2pm, Hodgson was smelling like a rosebed.

Wolves, meanwhile, made two changes - Adam Hammill and Nenad Milijas in for Stephen Hunt and the injured Steven Fletcher.

It was high energy from the first whistle. Wolves threatened down the flanks early on with Jones allowing a bouncing ball to be intercepted by Hammill. The Wolves midfielder’s low shot was tipped away by Ben Foster.

But Wolves’ early intensity was swiftly cut short in the eighth minute. Somen Tchoyi’s persistence in trying to claim the ball on the edge of the Wolves’ area paid off when Youssouf Mulumbu collected possession, picked out Jones’ left-wing run with the defender cutting a low ball into Brunt’s path. The Albion skipper slammed a strong shot past Wayne Hennessey.

It could have been two four minutes later when Shane Long tried his luck with a long-range shot. Wayne Hennessey was quick to react.

The same could be said for Foster at the other end when Wolves broke in the 14th minute. Milijas’ shot was kept out by the Albion keeper’s legs. The loose ball rolled to Kevin Doyle, who was denied a goal by Jonas Olsson’s last-ditch lunge.

Wolves were struggling with Long’s movement, Tchoyi’s unpredictability and Thomas’ pace. This was exposed in the 27th minute when the Albion winger skipped past Wolves’ backline and picked out Long. Stephen Ward was back quickly to deny the opportunity. It was a well-timed challenge by the Republic of Ireland defender on his international team-mate.