Sheffield Wednesday saw off the challenge of League Two side Hereford at Hillsborough on Saturday to reach the 5th round of the F.A. Cup for the first time in over a decade.
The Owls have been in indifferent form in the league of late and an upset could have been on the cards when a slow start from the home side saw them fall behind inside 10 minutes. Jake Jervis crossed low from Wednesday’s left side causing confusion at the back as Spurr and Morrison appeared to leave the ball to each other. Stuart Fleetwood was not so hesitant and fired past Weaver to give the visitors the lead.
Wednesday responded well and after good work by Daniel Jones, Potter fired a crisp drive past Bull’s keeper Bartlett to level matters. Having got back on terms Wednesday threatened to take control of the game with Heffernan and Teale both forcing the visiting keeper into fine saves. Hereford were still very much in the tie though, with Kovacs and Fleetwood marginally off target as half-time approached.
Wednesday started the second half on top but some resilient defending frustrated the hosts as Clinton Morrison saw his close range strike deflected wide. The breakthrough finally came with just over 20 minutes remaining as Morrison was hauled down with the goal at his mercy by Heath as he looked to connect with Jones’ accurate cross.
Heath was given a red card for his indiscretion and Morrison made no mistake from the spot to ease the Owls nerves. From here on in Wednesday made the most of their numerical advantage to ease into the next round. Jermaine Johnson scored after a fine solo run with 15 minutes remaining and Morrison scored his 2nd penalty following a harsh handball decision just two minutes later.
O’Connor and Johnson went close to adding more goals in the closing stages but that would have been somewhat harsh on the visitors.
Wednesday are ball number 16 in the draw for the 5th round, which takes place at 4.10pm on Sunday. Big names such as Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal remain in the competition alongside non-league Crawley and League One sides Brighton and Leyton Orient.