Stoke City draw with Wolves in tame 1-1 affair

Stoke 1 Wolves 1 31/7/21 1pm

A tame 1-1 friendly made it look like both sides were saving themselves for the start of the season. Amazed there were even two goals! Here’s how the game unfolded in real time:
The last friendly before the season starts, and I’ve got two sweaters, two pairs of socks on and a woolly hat on! More importantly is that Josh Tymon replaces Alfie Doughty in the starting lineup from the Villa 2-0 win last Saturday. (I’m ignoring the 1-2 defeat to Wigan in the week as Michael O’Neill started a 2nd eleven side!) Also, Joe Bursik gets another start over Adam Davies. Curious. Joe Allen is captain again. Another huge crowd…of away supporters, and several more Stoke fans than last week
0.45 Tommy Cracker Smith caught continuously grabbing the Wolves winger as if he fancies that mustard shirt!
7.04 Marcal heads away for a corner when there were no players around him at all! Shambolic. Thankfully for Wolves, Stoke waste the subsequent corner.
20.09 Marcal runs into MON on the touchline. He’s all over the place!
22.55 Wolves fans offer to sing a song for Stoke fans, who launch into the MON song about alcohol. It’s the most exciting thing that’s happening currently.
26.35 1-0 !!! Goal scramble from a Vrancic corner, and eventually Batth pokes home.
28.55 1-1 !!  Jimenez nips in to equalise.
38.18 Batth’s header almost gets him his second goal from another Vrancic corner, but just wide. However, the Tile Mountain Stand think it’s gone in, and are duly mocked by the away crowd. Chilly in the shade (which is everywhere).
45.00 No time added, thankfully. HT 1-1
55.15 Ben Wilmot gets caught on the ball, but rushes back, tackles, and plays the ball out of defence. Class.
59.01 Morgan Fox’s challenge leaves Morgan Gibbs-White sliding into the hoarding. Gibbs turns down a hand-up from Fox, and the Wolves fans chant the most unlikely song “Morgan Gibbs-White, he’s one of our own!”
61.33 Breaking Gibbs-White is thwarted by a great Bursik save. Maybe he really IS one of their own (whatever that means).
65.05 Batth somehow avoids a card, nudging a player over who could have been through to score. He won’t be so lucky next week when the proper league starts.
70.50 Fletcher, Wilmot and Tymon replaced by Clucas, Chester, Doughty. Not sure how that helps. Nobody shining in the Stoke side, except perhaps Batth…?
79.55 A real love-in between Nick Powell and Max Kilman as Max appears to cuddle Nick to the ground!
82.12 A flash of brilliance from Mario, an extraordinary long ball to Nick Powell.
88.08 Norton and Thompson on for Vrancic and Powell.
90.00 FT 1-1… thank goodness!
Dave Lee
Dave Lee
Sports Reporter - Stoke City

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