Sheffield Wednesday came through a scrappy contest against Crystal Palace at Hillsborough on Saturday to put an end to run of over 4 hours without a goal having previously lost back-to-back local derby matches.
For the third game in succession Wednesday were slow out of the blocks and were fortunate not to trail at half-time. Although Palace offered little in terms on concerted pressure Wednesday found their set-pieces hard to deal with and created very few inviting opportunities of their own.
The Owls were forced into changes to their defence prior to kick-off with Lewis Buxton unavailable through suspension and Captain Richard Wood unable to shake off a knock. This meant a return to the starting line up for Frank Simek and the American took some time to adjust to the pace of the game following his long lay-off although he improved as the game wore on. Mark Beevers also returned having sat out the midweek defeat to Barnsley.
As was widely predicted James O'Connor was replaced in the centre of the park by Sean McAllister while up front Francis Jeffers came in at the expense of Leon Clarke.
Despite the changes the team did little to encourage the crowd early on and the only plus point to take from the first half was that they were still on level terms.
There was no massive improvement at the start of the second 45 but the introduction of Leon Clarke in place of Michael Gray just before the hour marl pepped up the Owls, enabling them to hold the ball up better in the final third and become more of a threat as a result.
The selection of McAllister paid dividends with ten minutes remaining as he profited from Clarke's presence in the area to drive home from 12 yards. The game then became stretched and a disheartened Eagles side were made to pay in the final minute as Clarke steered home a low cross from Johnson from close range.
The two previous performances against Doncaster and Barnsley were flat and uninspiring and although this may not have been one of Wednesday's better displays the clean sheet will give them renewed confidence and hopefully now they can get back on track having seemingly lost some focus following the memorable win at Bramall Lane.
First and foremost the three points were vital as the Owls now face a tricky run of four matches against sides in real contention for promotion in the Coca Cola Championship.