Rodgers claims Wolves lack respect for McCarthy

Wolves 2 Swansea 2

The disgruntled Wolves fans made their turning point and might very well have missed their club's turning point. Mick McCarthy, however, was not about to claim anything after a day in which he appeared as comically terse as ever but actually enjoyed the last laugh.

As Swansea strode clear to what seemed to be Wolves' sixth straight league defeat, a sizeable section of Molineux swivelled on their feet to show their side their backs. Meanwhile, the chants assured McCarthy he would be "sacked in the morning", before two goals in the last six minutes for the unlikeliest point turned the jeers to cheers. All of which stunned Brendan Rodgers.

"Mick McCarthy has given the club so much. I couldn't believe the way they were standing and singing out there," said the Swansea manager. "I felt for Mick. We were playing well and dominating, but he has made decisions to take this club out of the Championship and make them an established Premier League club. So to show that disrespect, I thought was sad."

Added Rodgers: "Wolves is a club with a wonderful tradition and the supporters are passionate but in the last five years Mick McCarthy has given this club everything. He works hard and puts out competitive teams to keep them in the league, which he has done in the last few of years. I find it astonishing that he gets that amount of stick."

As Rodgers noted, resurrections have been launched on flimsier foundations than this. But McCarthy isn't daft. Just as he didn't, as some newspapers reported, challenge any or all of his critics to a fight – it was a joke directed at the assembled media – neither did he make any grand claims to revival. There were two very good reasons for that.

"We have Manchester City twice in the next few days and they are arguably playing like champions-elect," said McCarthy. "We have them at home on Wednesday [in the Carling Cup] and up there on Saturday [in the League] – we will see how we go. We can only judge whether today was a turning point in the weeks to come."

Roberto Mancini was one of the many in the stands who left early and what he saw would not have got his scarf into a twist. The character to come back was commendable, but the play was lamentable. How long Steve Morgan will be able to bare afternoons such as this, as the fans urge him to swing the axe, isn't known. But McCarthy won't admit defeat. "Giving up hope is not what I'm about," he said.

Booked: Wolves Stearman, O'Hara.

Man of the match: Allen.

Referee: M Oliver (Northumberland)

Attendance: 25, 216.