Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, England. The team currently competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Formed as an offshoot of The Wednesday Cricket Club in 1867, they went by the name of The Wednesday Football Club until changing to their current name in 1929. Wednesday is one of the oldest football clubs in the world of any code, and the third-oldest professional association football club in England, excluding clubs with informal or disputed foundation dates. In 1868 its team won the Cromwell Cup, only the second tournament of its kind, and in 1877 they won the inaugural Sheffield Challenge Cup, the oldest county cup in England. They were founding members and inaugural champions of the Football Alliance in 1889, before joining The Football League three years later. In 1992 they became founder members of the Premier League. The team has spent most of its league history in English football's top flight, but they have not played at that level since being relegated in 2000. The Owls, as they are nicknamed, have won four league titles, three FA Cups, one League Cup and one FA Community Shield. Wednesday have also competed in UEFA cup competitions on four occasions, reaching the quarter-finals of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup in 1963. Since 1899 the club has played its home matches at Hillsborough stadium, a near-40,000 capacity stadium in the north-west Sheffield suburb of Owlerton. Real football returns after the enforced International break and with eight games to go everything is still to play for although by Monday afternoon things may be a whole lot different. First up a visit across the border to the Yorkshire village of Sheffield to take on the Wednesday. A season to forget for the home side who presently lie 17th eight points from the danger zone although that gap will probably be enough to keep them up. To be fair they had a shed load of injuries this season and have changed managers mid stream with Carlos departing and a Dutch dude by the name Jos Luhukay taking over although results have improved the season as a whole has been disappointing considering the investment they have made over the past couple of seasons. Forestieri made a return to playing in an Under 23 game on Monday whilst Hutchinson could also get a return. They seem to be playing a slightly more direct game with two big lads up front Nuhiu and Joao they seemed also have tightened up at the back although saying that they have conceded 16 in the last seven. We won the earlier meeting 1-0 with a penalty which Wednesday still dispute to this day. Don't have the greatest record at Hillsborough which brings me on to our last visit the red card fiasco, Wednesday down to 10 hanging on to a 2-1 lead when we self destructed in spectacular style as both Beckford and Doyle went for fighting each other, a never to be forgotten moment. Squad wise apart from Cunningham should be at full strength win essential draw more likely. Stat Attack: Sheffield Wednesday please log in to view this image We make the second of three trips to Sheffield this season, this Good Friday game at Hillsborough sandwiched between our visits to Bramall Lane in January and April. please log in to view this image This is our 50th league match against the Owls in their home city, with the first five taking place at their Olive Grove ground. Fans travelling to Sheffield by train will see the site of the ground as they arrive at Midland Road station. In 1899, Wednesday moved across the city to the Owlerton district, from where they get their nickname and their home ground held that title until 1914 when the Parliamentary constituency of Hillsborough was created and the football club changed the name of their ground to reflect this. It was not only the name of their ground that has changed over the years, as until 1929, the football club was known simply as The Wednesday Football Club. This unusual title matches our own to some extent, as it was derived from The Wednesday Cricket Club, whose member formed a football section in 1867, making them one of the oldest football clubs in the world. Why ‘The Wednesday’? Because that was their traditional day off in Sheffield in the 19th century and the only day they could play cricket. Our 49 previous league games against the Owls have resulted in 11 wins and nine draws for North End, producing exactly 50 goals, whilst our hosts have 29 wins and 81 goals to their name. Uur 5-0 victory in our first ever visit to Olive Grove in 1893 remains our biggest win over Wednesday at either of their home grounds and in 1957 we shared eight goals in a 4-4 draw. Perhaps surprisingly, this is one of six occasions when we have recorded a 4-4 scoreline on our travels in the league and another notable feature of the match was that both teams fielded a Finney in the No.11 shirt – and both scored twice in the match, Alan for the home side and of course Tom for North End. Derek Wilkinson and the exotically named Redfern Froggatt were the other Owls’ scorers whilst Tommy Thompson also scored a brace for North End. On This Date A notable game took place on this date over 100 years ago. In 1889, we found ourselves at the Oval Cricket Ground in south London, but we had not reverted to our roots as a cricket club. Instead, we were contesting that year’s FA Cup Final, having lost the previous season to West Bromwich Albion. Our opponents on this occasion were their west midlands neighbours Wolverhampton Wanderers. A crowd of 25,000 turned to see us put right the mistakes of the previous season, as first half goals goals from Fred Dewhurst and Jimmy Ross, followed by a 70th minute clincher from Sammy Thompson, saw us win 3-0 as we maintained our run of not conceding a goal in the competition. Winning the FA Cup saw us become the first club to achieve the ‘double’, as a few weeks earlier we had clinched the first ever Football League title without losing a single match. Twenty-two years ago today, Tom Finney opened a new stand at the McCain Stadium before we went on to overcome Scarborough 2-1 at their ground on Seamer Road. Scarborough went out of the league soon after before folding completely but a phoenix club now play in the seaside resort, but not at Seamer Road, which was finally demolished a couple of years ago. Former centre half Tony Singleton was born 82 years ago today. Tony only scored twice in 333 games for North End and both came in the FA Cup. His 45-yard screamer, hit with his left foot, took us to the 1964 FA Cup Final as we overcame Swansea Town at Villa Park. He later emigrated to the United States where he played for the New York Generals before passing away in 2008. Dominic Ludden is another ex-player celebrating his birthday today as he reaches 42. He spent two years at Deepdale in the late 1990s, making 42 appearances at left back. Gary Peters christened Gary Bennett ‘goals on legs’ when he signed him from Tranmere in 1995. He made his debut and scored in the game at Scarborough mentioned earlier but sadly it didn’t quite work out for the renowned striker at Deepdale. Gary only managed 25 games for North End, but his five goals included two as a substitute as we overcame our Fylde coast neighbours 3-0 at Deepdale the following season. Gareth Ainsworth, who we faced as Wycombe manager in this season’s FA Cup, made his third North End debut on this date in 2002. He returned to Deepdale on loan from Wimbledon and after two substitute appearances, he scored his final goal for the Lilywhites in a 4-0 demolition of Coventry, which was also notable for Gareth finishing the game with his head swathed in bloodsoaked bandages. No wonder he is so fondly remembered by North End fans! Last Five Games At Hillsborough Sheffield Wednesday 2 (Forestieri, Fletcher) Preston North End 1 (Doyle), 3rd December 2016 Sheffield Wednesday 3 (Lee, Pudil, McGugan) Preston North End 1 (Browne), 3rd October 2015 Sheffield Wednesday 2 (Madine, 2) Preston North End 0, 31st March 2012 Sheffield Wednesday 1 (Gray) Preston North End 2 (Mellor, Parkin), 20th October 2009 Sheffield Wednesday 1 (McAllister) Preston North End 1 (Chaplow), 23rd August 2008 Ref Watch: Sheffield Wednesday please log in to view this image This Friday’s clash with Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough will see Tim Robinson as the man with the whistle at a PNE game, for the third time this season. Tim, from West Sussex, in his sixth year on the EFL list and was the match official for the 1-1 draw with Norwich City at Carrow Road in November and the 1-0 win over the Owls’ city rivals United in December. Before that, he last took charge of North End in his only trip to Deepdale, when we overcame Birmingham City 2-1 back in March of 2017. That was his fourth game overall in charge of the Lilywhites, the others all being away trips; Brentford, Ipswich and a 2-0 victory at Coventry City when Joe Garner and captain Tom Clarke were on the scoresheet. In his 40 games so far this season, Tim has issued 129 cautions and 11 red cards, but it yet to officiate a Sheffield Wednesday game in those matches. The assistants on Friday afternoon will be Jonathan Hunt and Mark Jones, whilst the fourth official assigned to the game is experienced official Eddie Ilderton. Mr Robinson missed a stone waller for us at Norwich after Hugill was felled in the box but managed to give about 10 in a recent Hull game, he is one of the better ones.
Buoyed after the break please log in to view this image Having enjoyed an extended period on the training ground with his growing squad, Jos Luhukay has hailed the last international break of the season. The Owls boss has recently welcomed back the likes of Tom Lees, Barry Bannan, Sam Hutchinson and Fernando Forestieri to bolster the ranks for the Championship run-in. And with Wednesday out to put more daylight between themselves and the drop zone over Easter, Luhukay says the boost to the ranks is timely. please log in to view this image He told swfc.co.uk: “Of course, any manager wants his big players available and for us, it is a big positive to see these players come back. “We must be careful with these players but for now it is about having them back in the squad. “It was a good ten days for us to work on a couple of things we have to do and I have a good feeling about that. “For the first time we have had full training and preparation time for the game, with players back and available for us. “I’m very positive for the future but first we focus on the games to come, starting on Friday against Preston where we want a good performance and, of course, a win.” Alex Neil Ready For Final Push Manager Alex Neil feels his side are ready to take on the final eight games of the season as they target a spot in the top six. PNE kick off the final run in on Friday afternoon at Hillsborough as North End take on Sheffield Wednesday. Despite a clash with fellow Play-Off chasers Derby County at Deepdale on Easter Monday, the manager has reiterated the importance of only focusing on the next game, with each game growing in importance with the right results. Speaking to iFollow PNE ahead of the clash, the gaffer said: "The significance of the next one is either going to grow in significance or diminish in significance so we’ve got to make sure that do that, we want it to grow. "We want to make sure that going into that next game it becomes even more important and that we’ve done good work prior to that to give us ourselves an opportunity. "Ultimately we’re still the team chasing, we’ve not got anything to lose at the moment so I think that is a good place to be in because you’re always trying to gain and we’ve got to make sure that we go and try to gain ground on other teams.” Even if his side find themselves in the top six before the end of the season, the PNE boss insists it will not change the mentality of his team who will be aiming to finish as high as possible in the Championship table. “I think because now there’s two spots to chase for, if we manage to get into the top six we’ll probably end up being sixth so then what we’re doing is chasing fifth, because if you can get into fifth then obviously you’ve got a wee bit of margin for error then. "So if you do lose a game, you’re hoping you don’t drop straight out of the top six, if anything the worst case scenario is you’re going to drop maybe to sixth place. So we’re in a position where we’ve been chasing the top six for quite a few months now and we’re getting to that point where it really is pressure and I think certain teams and recent runs have stuttered a little bit and let us catch up some ground. "Equally our form has been very good, we’ve been going into it with real confidence and real belief so there’s absolutely nothing for us to fear, we want success and to have success you need to be able to handle pressure and you need to be able to perform in big games.” The Sheffield Wednesday fixtures comes off the back of the international break, and with the style of play he has implemented within the squad, the gaffer feels the break was beneficial to his players. “I think the international break for us is good, I think with how intense we work in games, how intense we work during the week, the detail that we try to put into the lads heads, they do need a freshen up, they need to go and unwind mentally. "Physically they need to just rest their limbs and get themselves ready, but now we’re at the stage where every little bit matters, every little mistake’s going to be blown up to the point where it’s like a catastrophe and every bit of quality’s going to be the best bit of quality anybody’s ever seen. So we’re at that stage now where it really is sort of judgment time, and we’ve got to go and try to show what we can do.” The manager should have the added boost of having his full squad available for the busy Easter weekend, and that can only be a positive says the gaffer. “They’re looking forward to it and what it means is we’ve got real competition for places and the lads that are not playing obviously want to try to get into the team but equally they’re hoping their mate can go and do the job for us. "So we’re all pulling the one way and hopefully it should make for a successful and exciting end to the season.” The first test comes on Good Friday, and Alex knows it will be a tough game against a side who have hit a good run of form recently in Sheffield Wednesday. "I think in terms of the way they play is unrecognisable from the team that we played at the start, even personnel’s changed significantly so it’s going to be very much a different test from the team that we played at the start of the season.” "I think we’ve played against a back three quite often this season we’ve got a really good record against it but it’s more at the top end of the pitch where they are certainly different from most other teams that play a 3-5-2 so that’s something we need to pay a wee bit more attention to but nothing that we can’t deal with, it’s just making sure that, there is a few dilemmas in there that we are going to have to make good decisions on.”
Sheffield Wednesday 4 Nuhiu 2 Joao Forestieri Preston North End 1 Moult Wednesday: Wildsmith, Venancio, Lees, Pudil, Hunt (Palmer 74), Pelupessy, Hutchinson (Joao 46), Bannan (Forestieri 77), Fox, Reach, Nuhiu. Subs (not used): Jones, Rhodes, Butterfield, Dawson. PNE: Rudd, Fisher (Harrop 77) Huntington, Davies, Earl, Pearson, Gallagher (Johnson 70), Barkhuizen, Browne, Robinson, Maguire (Moult 70). Subs (not used): Cunningham, Clarke, Bodin, Maxwell. Referee: Tim Robinson (West Sussex) Attendance: 26,588 A truly odd scoreline this one although to be fair to the home side they took their chances and we didn't mind you they were helped by our inability to actually start playing until 10 minutes into the second half by which time the Owls had potted two and left us with a mountain to climb. After the joys of the Woodhead pass due to inabilities of people to drive straight on the M62 arrived at the ground in surprisingly decent time to see a first half which we more than dominated although in truth didn't create a lot from open play, two headers by centre backs Huntington and Davies should have been better directed but Davies's chance on half time should have gone in. Wednesday probably got into the better areas with the ball but Rudd didn't have to make a save. Mr Robinson set his stall out to annoy the home side by booking Hutchinson in 15 seconds and also booked Nuhiu, however it was the officials ability not to show the giant striker a second yellow for a foul mid way through the half which came home to roost in the second half. The big man up front caused us problems in the air winning most of the headers for absolutely no one to run onto.But all in all we were more than comfortable.. We were late back onto the pitch in the second half physically and mentally, as Wednesday went two up in the space of seven minutes. Awful defending for both of them. The home side got in easily down the right hand side, following a scramble Nuhiu potted the first, then a Bannan cross from the left found the head of substitute Joao in acres of space his header over Rudd looped into the empty goal. Looking like strangers we were hanging on for grim death and then as the temperature dropped and the rain lashed down we woke up. Maguire should have scored from about four yards but his shot dribbled towards the net in slow motion, Lees slid into clear. From the resulting corner Marguire and Barkhuizen both had efforts they should have scored with. Then back in the game when the two substitutes Johnson and Moult combined for the latter to score his first goal for the club, could have been two a minute or so later when he just couldn't get on the end of a Barkhuizen cross. Then the weather started to affect the home players who seemed to be affected by frost bite and what with the resulting treatment our flow of play disappeared and never looked like getting back into the game.Into injury time Nuhiu scored a decent second curling one home from about 15 yards, when they were awarded a free kick in the edge of the box even we knew it would go in. As I said odd scoreline didn't reflect the game but life's a bitch, move onto Derby on Monday (losing 1-2 at the moment) Finally a word about Mr Robinson probably managed to annoy everyone in the ground today and that takes some doing. Alex Neil Left To Rue Missed Opportunities 3 Hours ago Neil Left To Rue Missed Opportunities Alex Neil was frustrated that North End couldn’t convert their opportunities, particularly in the first half this afternoon, and felt his side were ‘architects of their own downfall’. Alex Neil’s side went in at the break as the dominant side and could have been ahead through Ben Davies - who had the chance to head PNE ahead on the stroke of half-time only for his header to be well stopped by the Owls’ goalkeeper. Goals from Adthe Nuhiu and Lucas Joao sent the hosts ahead early on in the second half, and despite Louis Moult’s first goal for the club, Wednesday managed two goals in added time which ultimately gave the hosts a flattering scoreline - and speaking after the game, Neil was disappointed that they didn’t make their dominance count when they were on top in the game. the Scotsman said: “It’s one of them strange games where first half, they couldn’t get out of their half and we had some good opportunities where if we’d had put a cross in or got the ball away quicker we might have been ahead, but we were dominant in the game and really good in the first half. “At half-time they made a change and too be honest, we just didn’t deal with it well enough for the first 15 minutes. However, the first goal comes from a mistake; they come down the side and we go down far too easily and the ball comes in and it ends up in the back of the net. “We’re then pushing to try and get a goal back and I think it’s Barry Bannan who picks a good pass for Lucas Joao to run in behind and loops a header into the far corner, and I think to myself, how did we get to this point? We were the dominant side. We make a couple of alterations and even before we get a goal and make the changes we miss three golden opportunities. We then get the goal and then have several more chances to score and as we know, goals change games and then towards the death, we throw caution to the wind and get men forward and we get hurt and concede two. “The one we concede from a corner is defensively the worst goal I’ve seen us concede since I’ve been here but If we go one or two goals up, it changes the game. The fact is we’ve conceded four goals which is unacceptable for us and we’re going to have to be a lot better defensively. Neil’s men have little time to dwell on the misfortune of today’s result with a huge game against Derby County to look forward to on Monday in front of the cameras, and the gaffer believes today’s result makes the magnitude of Monday’s game even bigger in their quest for a top six slot. He continued: “If you’re ever going to achieve something - sometimes you need to feel a bit of pain - and then it’s how you react and respond to that. "We’ll analyse it tomorrow, and if we’ve got any ambitions to get in the top six then defensively and individually, we can’t make as many bad decisions as we made today. "We’re at that stage of the season where we can’t afford to have many more slip ups. I don’t think we played badly today and we applied ourselves well, the lads were up for the game, we had good opportunities but we didn’t deal with the two big lads well in the second half. “We’ve got a game on Monday and we can’t dwell on this now. It becomes massive for us now and if we’re going to get into the Play-Offs, these are the games we have to try and win.” Sheffield Wednesday manager Jos Luhukay: "Fantastic, I'm very happy for the team, players and fans. What a game for everybody. "We made two goals early in the half, it was a happy situation, it was fantastic to win like that today. "The players work so hard, did extensive work for this game and they deserve the rewards."
