Club skipper Bergsson today hailed Hendry's capture as a masterstroke.

Bergsson, who will embark on a career in law when he quits soccer, has seen enough evidence already to suggest his fellow 35-year-old centre half will be a key figure in Wanderers' promotion campaign.

Despite spending months out of the first team picture at Coventry, Hendry has gone straight into the heart of a First Division promotion campaign and produced five straight man-of-the-match performances.

No-one is better placed than Bergsson to evaluate the impact 49-times capped Scottish international Hendry has made in his first five games in a Wanderers shirt. The pair have blended instantly to form a rock solid partnership in a defence which is rightly proud of the fact it has conceded just one goal in that time - and a freak one at that.

Bergsson says Hendry, on a three-month loan from Highfield Road, is a formidable figure both on the field and off it. "He is as tough as they come," he says.

"He wears shorts even in snow and minus five degrees temperatures.

"He is an extremely experienced and tough defender who is very committed and a proven leader of men.

"He has come and done a tremendous job by bringing all his talent and experience to the team.

"You could say we are at the higher end of the age scale and that fact he has got through so many games in such a short space of time after not playing for a long time is testament to his professionalism and natural fitness.

"He has played brilliantly. It is nice to see someone so tough and committed and it is a pleasure playing alongside him.

"But the fact we have do so well defensively is not down to one or two men. It is not just the back two or the back four who deserve the credit. We defend as a team and keep clean sheets as a team and concede as a team."

Bergsson is conscious that one area the team must improve upon is in the number of back passes they play to keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen.

Their confidence in the super keeper has seen the number of passes played to him gradually increase during the season. It has cost them a couple of goals recently and boss Sam Allardyce highlighted the problem after Saturday's home defeat to West Brom in which Robbie Elliott's poor pass set up the decisive goal.

"There is no criticism of Robbie because these things happen in football and the manager has pointed out that we have tended to over pass it to Jussi.

"The situation is that you are looking for options up front and sometimes you take the easy option and give it to Jussi. The manager says we have been doing it too much and we have to rectify it."