When Wolves stunned West Brom at Hawthorns to end 19-match winless run in 1983

There has been no league win since for the Molineux men since the final game of that sequence: a 3-0 victory over Leicester City on April 26. 

Wolves are destined for relegation this time around, just as they were 42 years ago, although they did put up a fight back then. 

There are some uncanny similarities to that horrific 1983-84 campaign under Graham Hawkins though. A decent man, Hawkins was not supported by the board and there started the slide in successive seasons all the way to Division Four. 

The only comfort was the manner in which Wolves broke their duck in 1983 on a visit to the Hawthorns. With no wins and just four points from 14 league games, they took on Ron Wylie's Albion, a team deprived of the services of Cyrille Regis due to injuries. 

BBC 'Match of the Day' introduced it: 'Bradshaw, Humphrey, Rudge, Blair, Pender, Dodd, Hibbitt, Clarke, Cartwright, Mardenborough, Crainie. That's the Wolves' line-up trying to prove that at least one statistic is a damned lie. That which says they are the worst side  in club's history. The record books show 19 matches without a victory, but there can be few better places to end that run than on the ground of your nearest opponents". 

Keith Hackett set the game under way on a mild late-November afternoon with rain in the air that would become torrential before the match was over. 

A thoroughly disappointing first 45 minutes ended goalless, but the only team in Britain without a victory that season, and the only team in all four English divisions without an away point, set off the second half attacking the Brummie Road End. 

A terrible error on 52 minutes by Albion midfielder Martin Jol was seized upon by Kenny Hibbitt. He put in a cross from the right hand side that Albion defender and captain, Clive Whithead, headed straight up into the air. 

Wayne Clarke challenged three Albion players and the ball dropped invitingly for Danny Cranie, who fired left-footed from eight years unto the top corner. 

Davies quoted Graham Hawkins' pre-match comments: "I don't mind how we play when we get our first victory, but left it come soon." 

The commentator, then went on to enjoy the celebrations of visiting Wolves' fans: "Rare delight for the Molineux faithful. Well, it's a fairly hackneyed comments, 'one nil, one nil', but the Wolves supporters haven't been able to say it too often this season." 

Just three minutes later, Albion came forward in search of an equaliser when Andy Blair dispossessed Barry Cowdrill just outside the Wolves box. 

He burst forward to the half-way line before feeding Crainie, whose loan from Celtic expired on that day, on the right. The Scotsman cut inside on to his left foot and unleashed a stunning shot into the far corner from just outside the penalty area. 

A figure of £20,000 was now being discussed to make the move from Celtic permanent. Micky Perry was replaced by Derek Monaghan, but on 73 minutes, Wolves pretty much wrapped things up. 

Cranie, for whom nothing could go wrong, pickpocketed Owen in the left-back position to break-up an Albion attack. Steve Mardenborough latched on to his subsequent pass, which took a bizarre ricochet to set him free. 

An extravagant body swerve took him further forward to find Wayne Clarke completely unmarked on the right. Clarke advanced towards the box before driving an unstoppable low shot into the bottom corner. 

The unhappy sequence of 19 games without a victory dating back to the end of the 1982-83 season was now at an end, in spite of a nervous closing period. 

Garry Thompson headed a consolation goal for Albion, as the away fans began a period of frantic whistles. Davies summed up: "At long last, the depressing run has come to an end, and few will begrudge them that." 

Even Jimmy Hill chipped in: "Well I certainly don't and let's hope that that win encourages all those who have the best interests of Wolves at heart in this most difficult time for them." 

"I remember my first game on loan for Wolves was away at Nottingham Forest and we lost 5-0," Cranie later reflected. 

"I think we had another couple of games afterwards where we didn't score and then it was West Brom away in the big derby. 

"Having joined Wolves from Celtic, I'd been involved in games with Rangers (scoring after 86 seconds of one Old Firm clash), so obviously the derby atmosphere didn't faze me at all. 

"Needless to say though, it had been drummed into me even in a few short weeks that it didn't matter how we did for the rest of the season, provided we stuffed the Albion. 

"And that's just what we did, right on their home patch. We won 3-1 and I managed to score two, one of which was an absolute screamer.

"When we got back to Wolverhampton that night, I didn't have to put my hand in my pocket once, that was for sure." 

Cranie secured the Man of the Match award, but Hawkins was well aware of the need to temper optimism with realism. 

"At least we have broken the ice. The victory against the Albion was greeted as much with relief as it was with celebration, but the satisfaction has to be tempered with a note of caution," Hawkins warned afterwards. 

"Just because we have won one match, we cannot run away with the idea that we have achieved anything yet. We are still on the bottom of the First Division and there is still a long haul ahead of us if we are to climb the table. 

"My message to the players has been, let's not get carried away with one win. We have to ensure that there are many more to follow." 

However, Sammy Chapman knew that the writing was on the wall. 

"The redevelopment of the ground has been agreed, but for whatever reason it didn't happen, it was a huge disappointment," he said. 

"Who the Bhatti's were, I don't know. They certainly had money, but of course they didn't spend it. After the thing with Asda fell through and the redevelopment of the ground, the Bhatti brothers were no longer interested in the club. 

"No more money, and we were pretty much relegated by Christmas." 

Chapman was right, as the victory over the Baggies was one of only six league wins that season. The other memorable success was a first win at Anfield since 1950, courtesy of Steve Mardenborough's shoulder. 

In fact, perversely, Wolves got four points from the title-winning Reds. This offered no consolation though, as we meekly slid into Division Two in bottom-place, with only 29 points and 21 from safety.

The bottom line now, as it was in 1983-84, is that if you don't support your manager with funds to buy the players to stay up, especially after you have sold your best ones, the only way is down. 

Surely madness on my part, but match day 13 is Aston Villa away, and surely there will not be a repeat of the shock outcome in November 1983?