AN indication of how Wanderers are now respected came at a function to mark the retirement of former Chelsea chairman Ken Bates last week.
Chairman Phil Gartside added: "Five years ago, we wouldn't have even got the crumbs off the top table -- or the bottom table for that matter.
"But the other night I sat with Ken Bates, Martin Edwards (former Manchester United supremo), Doug Ellis (Aston Villa chairman), Sir Philip Carter (Everton), Robert Coar (Blackburn) and Dave Richards (Football Association) which is effectively the team that formed the Premier League. That was a great honour for the club.
"That's the measure of how far the club has come. We are looked on now as a model club -- not just for what we do on the field but how we run the club."
"We've had a fantastic year and really established ourselves as a Premier League club. It would be nice to finish half way up the table just to prove that point."
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