Premier League strugglers Wolves overcame resolute Grimsby Town in challenging conditions at Blundell Park to reach the FA Cup fifth round.
Santiago Bueno scored from Wolves’ only shot on target with an hour played, diverting Joao Gomes’ cross past goalkeeper Jackson Smith with his thigh to end the League Two club’s resistance.
Unrelenting rainfall caused heavy ground underfoot and one penalty area in particular- that of Grimsby’s Smith in the first half – was already a quagmire before kick-off.
Charles Vernam shot narrowly wide from the edge of the box with just 43 seconds on the clock as Grimsby sought to catch their top-flight visitors cold.
Wolves had to wait until the 17th minute for their first opportunity of note, forward Tolu Arokodare firing over with a first-time attempt.
The white paint of the pitch markings soon blended and blurred with the mud as the surface rapidly deteriorated, and both sides struggled to stitch together cohesive attacks as passes travelled unpredictably across the sodden ground.
The visitors were incensed when Cameron McJannet was shown only a yellow card after bringing down Adam Armstrong as the forward threatened to burst into the penalty area, but they went closer still to breaking the deadlock as Gomes crashed the resulting free-kick off the crossbar.
Grimsby’s Tyrell Warren headed off target after timing his back-post run to meet a corner shortly before half-time, while Armstrong blazed over when presented with an opportunity after Smith mis-hit a clearance following the restart.
Grimsby responded to Bueno’s opener with greater urgency but Andy Cook could not beat Sam Johnstone with his late header when the hosts registered their first attempt on target in the 90th minute, before Bueno produced a superb late block to avoid extra-time.
While rarely threatening to extend their lead, Wolves held out to ensure they will be in Monday’s draw for the fifth round.
