Wednesday 3-0 Bournemouth

Three goals in the first ten minutes gave Wednesday three more comfortable points under the guidance of new manager Dave Jones at Hillsborough against Bournemouth.

Danny Batth, a Miles Addison own goal and Michail Antonio strike saw the Owls steam into an emphatic early lead to leave the Cherries in a state of early shock.

A rout looked on the cards, but that’s the way it stayed as Wednesday kept pace with bitter rivals Sheffield United and an automatic promotion spot.

Jones kept faith with the same starting eleven that saw off Bury 4-1 in midweek – and he was rewarded in fine style.

The Owls certainly had the momentum going into the clash thanks to that 4-1 win in Jones’s first game in charge. Lee Bradbury’s men also arrived in S6 on the back of four straight defeats.

Antonio was the architect of Bury’s downfall and he continued where he left off against Bournemouth. It was the on-loan Reading man’s fourth-minute shot that forced Cherries stopper Darryl Flahavan into an early save. And from the resulting corner the ball found its way to Antonio, who provided the cross for Batth to head in the Owls’ opener.

The game was being played at a fast early pace and Scott Malone struck wide for the visitors in response before Wednesday winger Mike Jones fashioned another chance at the other end.

It was Wednesday who took their next chance on nine minutes. Chris Lines’s corner found Rob Jones at the back post and he headed the ball back into the danger area to find its way into the back of the net via Addison.

And there was no respite for Bradbury’s troops as the Owls, buoyed by their superb start, struck a third just two minutes later.

No surprise that it came from Antonio, who looks a class above the rest at League 1 level. With seemingly nowhere to go, the Reading man squeezed between to Bournemouth defenders before drilling a shot into the back of the net.

It prompted jubilant scenes amongst the near-20,000 crowd inside Hillsborough as Wednesdayites watched their side tear their visitors apart at will early on.

Perhaps understandably at 3-0 to the good, the Owls took their foot off the gas but a confidence-sapped Bournemouth side couldn’t find a way back into the game.

Wes Fogden did have a half-chance but he struck over from just six yards from a dangerous Malone cross. Stephen Bywater was also forced into a save to deny Wesley Thomas while at the other end Wednesday still looked dangerous and Flahavan turned a Lines free-kick away.

The closest Bournemouth came to pulling a goal back was just before half-time when Thomas beat Bywater but saw his shot strike the inside of the post with none of his teammates following up. It was a sign it wasn’t going to be the Cherries’ day.

Half-Time: Wednesday 3-0 Bournemouth

Bournemouth had no option but to come out in the second half and attack Wednesday in search of a way back into the game, and so it transpired, albeit without much of a threat to Bywater and his defence.

The Cherries hugged and puffed for at least a consolation strike, and the Owls looked comfortable in allowing them to do so.

Bournemouth’s attacking approach to the second-half meant Wednesday could exploit some gaps at the back on the counter-attack. They nearly did just that through Lowe and Mike Jones but the former saw his shot well saved by Flahavan and Jones’s follow-up was also denied.

At the other end Thomas struck a shot wide as the minutes ticked away, and Wednesday saw out the second half with relative ease.

Wednesday: Bywater, Buxton, Batth, R Jones, Bennett, M Jones, Semedo, Lines, Antonio, Madine, Lowe (Morrison 77). Unused substitutes: Jameson, Llera, Prutton, O’Grady.

Bournemouth: Flahavan, Cook, Thomas (Stockley 71), Malone, Fogden, Francis, Daniels, McDonald, McDermott, Addison, Gregory. Unused substitutes: Cooper, Tubbs, Baudry, Zubar.