Sheffield Wednesday got back to winning ways at Hillsborough on Saturday thanks to two first half goals against Coventry City.
Having produced probably their worst league display of the season at Derby County prior to the international break it was important to get back on track straight away and Wednesday took the game to the visitors right from the start.
The much maligned captain Darren Purse kept his place in the side and partnered youngster Mark Beevers at the heart of central defence due to Richard Wood’s illness and the skipper got the Owls off to the best possible start when he headed home Darren Potter’s corner to give the home side the lead inside five minutes.
Jermaine Johnson also returned to the starting line up in place of the unwell Etienne Esajas and he impressed and caused problems with his pace and direct running although his final ball could have been better at times.
With Coventry just beginning to recover from the early set back Wednesday were presented with the opportunity to extend the lead on the 20 minute mark thanks to James O’Connor. The fiery haired midfielder skilfully made his way into the penalty area before being felled by Coventry defender Elliott Ward and the referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot.
With Marcus Tudgay kept out of the side due to a neck injury Wednesday were short of their usual penalty taker and it didn’t seem as though anyone was to keen to step up to the mark before Leon Clarke did so. The striker would probably have lost his place in the side had Tudgay been fit due to a number of glaring missed opportunities in recent games but he kept his composure to send the Coventry keeper the wrong way and drill the ball home to give the Owls a healthy early cushion.
Despite not creating too many more clear-cut opportunities Wednesday continued to dictate the first half with the midfield quartet of Gray, Potter, O’Connor and Johnson well on top.
The away side appeared to have found a scarcely deserved route back into the game on the stroke of half time when a Leon Best header looked to have found its way over the line but the officials ruled that the ball had not gone in.
City played with more purpose in the second half without overly extending Lee Grant in the Owls goal before they were again aggrieved by the decision of the match officials with 25 minutes to go. The referee initially awarded a penalty to Coventry for what he deemed to be a foul by Tommy Spurr. However, on consulting his linesman he overruled the decision and rightly so as Spurr had clearly won the ball with his challenge.
Shortly after the penalty incident Leon Clarke curled an effort just wide and the game petered out somewhat in the final twenty minutes which suited Wednesday just fine.
It may not have been the most spectacular performance but it was a job well done with key players missing and the clean sheet was a major positive given some of the defensive errors that have cost the team in recent games.
Wednesday can go into Tuesday’s home game with Preston on a positive note but must also look to improve their away form starting at Watford on Friday if they are to make a sustained challenge in the top half of a typically unpredictable Coca-Cola Championship table.