Sponsored by
Sheff Wed 0 Reading 2 - MATCH REPORT
MARCUS Tudgay soared to flick on a long kick by Lee Grant and the ball dropped towards Luke Varney.
The striker showed marvellous technique to swivel and strike a volley from 12 yards.
It would have been one of the goals of the season. But the ball hit the inside of the post and bounced to safety.
Were Wednesday and Brian Laws just inches away from a turning point in their season?
If that had gone in, then the Owls would have been at 1-1 against fellow strugglers, kicking towards the Kop and inspired by their first goal in three games.
It is not too fanciful to imagine that they could have turned the game around.
They certainly now need a break when a moment like this goes in their favour: a great goal, or a bit of luck, or a clanger from the opposition ... anything, so long as it enables them to nick a result and start clawing their way back towards normality.
When they were not getting the points earlier in the season, there was still some smashing football to admire.
But recent results - especially the 4-0 hiding against West Brom - and a slide down the table seem to have taken their toll on the team's mentality.
Wednesday were so tentative on Saturday. That was was the key. They struggled with their passing and movement and struggled to create chances, and Reading worked hard to make their task as difficult as possible.
A dull-as-dishwater first-half contest between two mediocre-looking sides was turned by the sort of breakthrough goal that Wednesday need.
Grzegorz Rasiak's fine header came in a Reading purple patch just after half-time which was inspired by right winger Jobi McAnuff, and produced four opportunities in the space of eight minutes.
The goal also demonstrated the importance of scoring when you're on top - something that Wednesday have failed to do on some past occasions.
A cross by McAnuff was nodded home as Rasiak soared between Richard Hinds and right-back Lewis Buxton. The winger made Tommy Spurr's life tough for the opening 25 minutes of the half.
Varney's near miss came in the 58th minute, and nine minutes after that the game was killed by Reading's second goal, for Wednesday never looked capable of coming back from two down.
The build-up to it saw McAnuff get around and behind Spurr to reach a pass and to cross from the byline. Midfield powerhouse Kalifa Cisse ran unnoticed past Darren Potter to get into the box and side-foot home with ease.
When Potter uncharacteristically knocked one pass out of play, and Tudgay headed a good late chance yards wide, they were just little examples of the malaise that appears to be afflicting the Owls.
Reasonable changes beforehand did not do the trick, as far as the team's overall performance was concerned.
Mark Beevers kept his place after his sound showing as a sub against West Brom, and he made two terrific early tackles on Saturday.
Etienne Esajas can be a big-match player, hence, no doubt, the logic of recalling him after an off-day for Jermaine Johnson the previous week. But the Dutchman could not get into the game and hardly got a decent pass.
Laws went for experience up front by bringing back Varney but the reformation of the Varney-Tudgay partnership still did not bring goals.
Seven games without a win, three without a goal, and four consecutive home defeats are grim statistics, so Brian Laws was spot on when he praised fans' patience.
The crowd did not turn on him or the players, and they did their best to encourage the team, though that cannot have been easy in view of what they were watching.
There were a few boos at half-time, and a greater number at full-time, which was the normal, spontaneous reaction to a home defeat, as was the sight of large numbers of fans slipping quietly away before the end. They will have missed a late "goal" by Leon Clarke in a scramble - but it was disallowed for handball.
Laws made the point of saying: "The supporters were outstanding. They deserve a lot of credit. They have been very patient.
"I can understand their frustration. The last thing they want to be doing is paying good money and not seeing us winning."
Saturday's outcome inevitably increased speculation about the manager's future, and Laws knows that more ammunition has been provided to his critics.
"I'm not stupid, as a manager," he said. "We know that if you are not getting the right results the pressure mounts. The pressure is mounting. I'm not stupid enough to think any differently.
"However, I said to the players: 'we have to look to the next game'.
"Maybe being away from home might be the opportunity we need to put in a solid performance and get a result."
It's all eyes on the Keepmoat Stadium tomorrow.
Manager's ViewWe're short of confidence, particularly at home. 'Fragile' is the word I would use. I know confidence is low - Reading know that.
It was always going to be a very tight occasion, with both teams at the wrong end of the
table.
It was always going to be a turning point for whoever got the first goal; it would be a
massive injection of confidence. We're searching for that first goal - Reading got it. When the second one came, it killed the game.
We're doing simple things wrong, making the wrong choices. You can't inject confidence into your arm. You have to grind out results and get back to being hard to beat. If it means being ugly, then be ugly.
The one thing we have to do is to get a result. That will inject a bit of confidence. Then the football will come back.
What do you think? Add your comments below.
READ MORE
Subscribe to The Star or Green 'Un
Visit our Matchday Centre for free live coverage of every match
Football headlines. Football gossip. Blades news Owls news Reds news. Millers news. More rugby. More boxing. Sports columnists.
All sport categories
Free E-Mag: Premier League 2009-10 Preview
Watch Premiership highlights, international football, golf, tennis, darts and much more - click here
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Sheffield
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 9 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: East
