Liam Keen comment: Wolves bosses must earn back trust from women's team

After a season of scrapping Nottingham Forest at the summit and losing out on the National League Northern Premier Division title and promotion on the final day to their East Midlands rivals, Dan McNamara's side should be proud of what they achieved.

Despite having a much smaller budget than Forest, they pushed them all the way and once again came close to reaching the Championship.

Instead of celebrating their achievements, the team were instead informed that Wolves had not done the application needed for a 'Tier 2 licence', essentially meaning the club would have been denied promotion even if they had won the league. Players then understandably aired their frustrations on social media.

Alongside a commitment to a substantial financial contribution, Wolves would have to commit to meeting specific promotion requirements around infrastructure, staffing, the stadium and training times - among others.

The club did the application for the last two years and this year chose not to before the February deadline due to new minimum requirements from those in charge of the league. Those changes informed the club's decision not to apply this year and bosses will meet with the team this week to explain their stance.

Without a doubt, the players and staff for the women's team deserved better than to be playing for months thinking they could go up, but the truth around the situation is more nuanced than that.

Due to the gap in revenue and the cost to get promoted, Wolves would lose several hundred thousand pounds on going up. That was accepted when the application was done in the previous two years, but this year the club were told that the cost had increased.

At a time when the men's first team were still battling Premier League relegation, that became a sticking point for the club.

Putting the money to one side, Wolves bosses also fundamentally disagree with the process of getting promoted.

An independent company, Women’s Professional Leagues Ltd (WPLL), run the top two tiers of women's football after the FA relinquished ownership last year.

Unlike other leagues where club's improve facilities and meet requirements after securing promotion, to get into the Championship they require a commitment to the finances and the requirements before the season is over.

They do this to drive standards in a growing game, but it is understood Wolves are unhappy with this process and do not understand why they cannot commit to make the necessary changes after promotion is secured.

The Express & Star also understands that Wolves were prepared to fight the decision to deny them a place in the Championship had they won the league, despite not doing the application.

Although that is admirable, it is certainly taking a risk that some may deem unnecessary. The team were fighting with Forest and had a chance to go up, but the paperwork was not in place to make it a reality without a fight. It is a fight that can be avoided by simply following the rules.

Perhaps one of the biggest concerns here is regarding communication. For the players to find out, according to Beth Merrick's statement, after the final game of the season is unacceptable.

Wolves, it is understood, admit that the communication was poor and should have been handled better and they now have a job on their hands to restore some of the trust that will surely have eroded.

Equally, it is unfair for a team to be in a promotion battle thinking they can go up. In a world that is trying to grow the women's game, it is a terrible look for a historic football club.

The good news is that Wolves are adamant that they want the women's team to grow every year and have now tasked Matt Jackson - who is moving into a slightly different role around player development with the academy, women's team and loan players - to put together a structure for the women's side that will encourage greater success.

On top of that, Wolves are keen to adapt their current set-up to take better advantage of commercial opportunities and increase revenue.

But in the short term, Wolves need to get a squad of players back on side that will be devastated by this week's developments.

Sporting director Matt Hobbs, alongside Jackson, will both be meeting the players and staff this week in an attempt to rectify the issue internally and reassure them of the future.

They will need to earn back that trust and also reassure fans that the women's team are being taken seriously.