Pressure mounts on Jones as Hayward grows restless

Wolverhampton Wanderers 1 Derby County 1

If David Jones, Wolves beleaguered manager, didn't know his job was on the line already following the club's nosedive as a promotion force, he does now. The club's multi-millionaire owner, Sir Jack Hayward, shortly to return to his business interest in the Bahamas, chose the dawn of 2003 to spell out that Jones has to turn their season round quickly.

Sir Jack has fired similar warning shots in the past, at Mark McGhee in particular, but none can have been any clearer than the one before this unsatisfactory draw at home to crisis-ridden Derby County.

"The manager promised us automatic promotion if we gave him Denis Irwin, Paul Ince, Ivar Ingimarsson and Marc Edworthy,'' Sir Jack said. "Then we signed Carlton Cole as well and he promised us we would be in the top six by Christmas, so, good God, I'm not happy.''

Sir Jack insisted Jones, like other managers, was being judged match-by-match, day-by-day and added: "We have told him we are worried. We have got to start winning and he knows what he's got to do.'' Jones diplomatically declined to be drawn into the row last night, other than to grant Sir Jack his right to be disappointed.

He has asked for time to do his job, a commodity Jones will need judging by this latest hotch-potch of a performance from a team which has now taken two points from the last 15.

Derby, beset by financial worries and with three consecutive defeats putting the skids under their own season, looked there for the taking for a side with any promotion aspirations.

But they survived an early diving header from George Ndah to snatch a 14th-minute lead. Paul Ince's misplaced header opened up the way to goal for the lively Izale McLeod and, although his shot was miscued, Malcolm Christie followed up to touch home.

After the Derby keeper, Lee Grant, had blocked with his legs from Ndah from another opening set up by the recalled Shaun Newton, Wolves lost their way and were booed off at the interval – something they again experienced at full time.

They might have fallen further behind when Christie failed to capitalise on an appalling back-pass from Mark Kennedy, but Derby were belatedly forced onto the back foot after that.

The attacking did not carry any great finesse or cutting edge, so it was fitting that the 66th-minute equaliser from Ince should come from out of the blue when Colin Cameron's shot rebounded off Ndah and into his path 20 yards out.

All the huffing and puffing in the world did not blow the Derby house down from then on and the only other half-chance came deep in injury time when Cameron pulled a shot wide.

Wolverhampton Wanderers (4-4-2): Murray; Irwin, Butler, Lescott, Naylor; Newton, Ince, Cameron, Kennedy; Miller, Ndah (Cole, 78). Substitutes not used: Oakes (gk), Rae, Cooper, Clyde.

Derby County (4-4-2): Grant; Mills, Elliott, Riggott, Barton; Murray, Bolder, Evatt, Morris (Holmes, 76); Christie, McLeod. Substitutes not used: Boertien, Oakes (gk), Tudgay, Jackson.

Referee: N Barry (Scunthorpe).