Wednesday stopped their six-game losing streak with a 3-3 draw at Burnley in midweek and they’ll aim to get one better and get all three points against Hull City today.
A break for international football follows the match and Dave Jones won’t want his men going into thinking just where their next win is going to come from after slumping to 21st in the Championship table.
Hull boss Steve Bruce will be thinking the same after seeing his Tigers lose three matches on the spin, most recently at home against Blackpool in midweek and before that against basement dwellers Peterborough.
Vital Quotes:
Owls boss Dave Jones told the official SWFC website:
“I would imagine that if you speak to Steve Bruce, he will say his side`s performances aren`t coinciding with the results they have been getting.
“We`ve seen how well they played against Blackpool but ended up on the losing side and that can happen – it`s only when it happens week in, week out when you start to worry.
“But I`m sure they`re aiming to get back on track as much as we are.’
Tigers boss Steve Bruce told the official Hull website:
“Sheffield Wednesday had a wonderful start to the season and they seemed to roll on from last season.
“When I went to see them, their crowd were right up for it. Their team is big strong and powerful and they`re quick in the wide areas as well and up front they are big and strong. We`re going to have to defend properly at set-pieces.
“But it`s like the challenge we took on at Leeds the other week. We`ve got to relish it and lets go and take them on.’
Wednesday Team News:
Owls boss Dave Jones could be tempted to stick with the same starting eleven that picked up a point at Burnley in midweek, with no fresh injury concerns and none of his previously injured troops ready for a return to action.
Chris O’Grady must surely have done enough to keep his place in the starting eleven thanks to two goals at Turf Moor. He could line-up alongside Jay Bothroyd in the Wednesday attack.
Jermaine Johnson is set to continue as a makeshift right-back with Lewis Buxton and Kieran Lee both sidelined through injury. Left-back Reda Johnson is also expected to miss out through injury again, leaving Joe Mattock at left-back and Anthony Gardner set to face his former club alongside skipper Martin Taylor.
Player to watch: Chris O’Grady
Many had wondered why O’Grady had been dropped following his impressive start to the season but he came back with a bang at Burnley in midweek and his performance will be key again as the Owls look to maul the Tigers.
Hull City Team News:
Former Owls defender Alex Bruce won’t be featuring at Hillsborough after suffering a groin injury and he’ll be joined by James Chester in the Tigers treatment room.
City will also give a late fitness check to Joe Dudgeon, who trained on Friday and is rated as 50-50 for the Owls clash.
Striker Matty Fryatt had hoped to be in contention this weekend but received a set-back in training on Thursday and won’t feature as he looks for surgery on an Achilles injury.
Player to watch: Stephen Quinn
No doubt ready for a bit of stick from the Hillsborough faithful, the former Sheffield United midfielder will also be relishing the chance to perform well back in the Steel City and he’ll be one to look out for.
Match Facts & Stats
Form:
Wednesday: D-L-L-L-L
Hull: L-L-L-W-W
Head-to-Head:
Wednesday wins: 19
Hull wins: 10
Draws: 16
Last Time Out:
Hull 1-0 Wednesday
The KC Stadium, 30/12/2007
Dean Windass’s first-half strike was enough to give the Tigers all three points the last time the sides met in Christmas 2007.
Next Fixtures:
v Leeds United (H) – 19/10/12
v Blackburn Rovers (A) – 24/10/12
