FA Cup exit piles pressure on Mick McCarthy

Feb 18 2008 By Paul Berry, Birmingham Mail

MICK McCarthy was in no mood to discuss any threat to his Wolves future after Saturday’s dismal FA Cup exit at the hands of Cardiff.

The Fifth Round departure continued a poor run of results since early December in which Wolves have won just four out of 16 games, two of those victories in the cup.

McCarthy however still maintains strong support from Wolves’ chief executive Jez Moxey, and on Saturday, openly at least, it was the players who bore the brunt of fans’ displeasure.

Asked whether he felt the spotlight would fall on him after the defeat McCarthy replied: “I think it’s a bit unfair to be asked that question because you know there’ll be a stock answer about being under pressure – it’s not an issue for me.

“It was an awful day and I’ve been honest and brutal about that and don’t appreciate talking about whether that should reflect on my job.”

Attention now turns to tomorrow night’s visit to Molineux of bottom placed Scunthorpe, a game which could prove a pivotal one of McCarthy’s reign.

Wolves are now seven points adrift of the play-off pace, and anything other than three points is pretty much unthinkable.

“This result hurts and we should take that hurt into tomorrow – it’s a vital game for us now,” he added.

Meanwhile Albion's progress to the quarter finals means the scheduled Black Country derby for March 9 will now be re-arranged.