Its games under the belt that count, says Mick McCarthy

Jun 10 2008 By Paul Berry

WOLVES boss Mick McCarthy has insisted his summer search for experience may well centre on games played rather than years accrued - citing midfielder Karl Henry as his prime example.

Wolves’ chief executive Jez Moxey has already highlighted the quest to bring in Paul Ince and Denis Irwin type figures to add experience to a largely developing squad, revealing the Molineux men were pretty much priced out of challenging Blues for Lee Carsley due to the player’s wages.

That could prove a continuing problem with other such players, leaving McCarthy considering a hunt for younger players already boasting plenty of miles in the Championship tank.

“It’s experience but not necessarily in terms of age but experience in games,” he confirmed.

“You can get someone who’s 22 or 23 who’s played 250 games - he might only be a fairly young lad but he’s a very experienced player.

“Look at someone like Karl Henry, who’s only young but is now a very experienced player.

“We’ve got a few of those – Neill Collins has played a lot of games, Kevin Foley, and Jody Craddock’s still here as well.

“Playing games gives you experience, not necessarily age, and there are some 30-year-olds who might not do any good for me.

“When I signed for Manchester City I was 23 or 24 and I’d already played 272 games for Barnsley.

“People thought they were signing a young centre half but I’d played more games than some of the 27, 28 year-olds.

“It’s football really, how many games you’ve played.

“I don’t go out and think we definitely need a 30-year-old, it’s about how many games they have played.”