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Canny Laws puts Owls in prophet: MATCH REPORT AND SLIDESHOW
Sheffield Wednesday 1 v Doncaster Rovers 0: BRIAN Laws had described his two-year Wednesday reign as a rollercoaster ride but on Saturday it was more a case of swings and roundabouts as he celebrated his 100th match in charge with a flattering victory.
The Owls dominated the previous home game against Plymouth but lost 1-0 because they could not find a killer touch and the opposition defended valiantly.
On Saturday it was Wednesday who got the vital goal and competed stubbornly, and picked up the three points that they should have had against Paul Sturrock's Pilgrims.
It was a rough ride against a Doncaster side who fulfilled all expectations.
Laws had warned at his pre-match conference that Rovers would pass the ball well and perhaps would have the greater share of possession.
Patience would be important, he said; but Rovers had missed some simple chances in previous games, and it was a case of whether or not they would be able to hurt Wednesday.
"We'll get our chances and we must take them when we get them," he had said. Talk about prophetic.
At times it almost seemed as if the Owls team were playing into Rovers' hands when they appeared to be more content to defend than to get a grip on the game and do more going forward in the second half, with Leon Clarke having headed them into a 43rd-minute lead.
Wednesday's James O'Connor suspects that the run of four games without a win injected a touch of wariness into the side, and heightened a desire to protect a lead once one had been earned.
He accepted that sometimes it looked as if the Owls were just defending and looking to play on the break.
"It's a dangerous game to play. Perhaps with the run we've had, it's understandable. But after the game we all agreed it needs to be a lot better than that.
"It seems to be a case of when we go a goal up we have a few attacks and we become an awful lot more cautious.
"From a players' point of view and, I'm sure, a fans' point of view, it's not nice to watch because if a goal goes in, you're in trouble. It's something we need to look at.
"But the important thing is we've got three points and we're in the top half of the table."
Wednesday had moments of great defending, and moments of sheer bad passing when they put themselves under pressure and unnerved home fans.
There was, however, a goal to savour.
Etienne Esajas whipped a first-class free-kick in around the back of the Rovers defence, and there was good movement by Wednesday in the box before Leon Clarke got free to bulge the net with a header.
If Rovers had created that very same chance it is entirely possible they would have missed it.
There were close-range failures in the Wednesday area by centre-halves Sam Hird and Matt Mills, midfielder Lewis Guy and forward James Hayter, in the seventh, 58th, 82nd and 90th minutes.
Owls keeper Lee Grant made a sharp save in the 75th minute from Hayter, who was sent on for the second half to lend support to lone striker Jason Price.
It is easy to see why Rovers are bottom of the table. Their football may be easy on the eye but the game is all about goals, and their record of only seven in 16 games is alarming - the worst in the whole league. They look in desperate need of a goalscorer.
Clarke has come to the fore for Wednesday with three goals in five games. Even without Francis Jeffers, who was ruled out by illness, the Owls also had potential firepower on the bench.
Apart from the goal, the Owls did not create the sort of simple openings that fell to Rovers.
Shots by Clarke and Tudgay in the first half were well struck but the kind that a well-positioned keeper should save, and Neil O'Sullivan did.
Clarke could have set up an opportunity for Wednesday to get a killer second goal in the 69th minute, but his cross from the right was wayward as Marcus Tudgay and Jermaine Johnson supported him to his left.
It was an attempt to improve his team's attacking when Laws changed his right-back at half-time, sending on Tony McMahon for Lewis Buxton.
The Owls boss explained: "Lewis took a bang on the head and felt a bit drowsy; we were thinking about that change anyway.
"The way Doncaster were playing, we thought our full-backs were going to get the ball and Tony could get on the ball and get forward."
Steve Watson was in the wars as well. "He took a few knocks," said Laws. "But we'd used all the subs.He's an important part of our team."
Wednesday finished up hanging on but, by keeping a fifth clean sheet in their last six home matches, proved again that they are made of stern stuff.
And they are always capable of getting a goal.
MANAGERS' VIEWS
Brian Laws: "We rode our luck. I'm sure many teams have done against Doncaster,as they're a good footballing side. It was important to get the first goal. We needed the second one; had we got that, it was going to be game over. Credit to them, they kept going. We had to dig in deep.The game was getting very stretched in the second half. We haven't been brilliant today but we were very solid and will grow in confidence with that win. Etienne Esajas has some super skills. Unfortunately they were very minute today. But it was a great ball from him for the goal, and I'm delighted for Leon Clarke. He's turned things around."
Sean O'Driscoll: "It's the story of our season. We're are bottom of the table; we accept that. But we're not a team who play like that.We have maintained a level of performace which is pleasing but some old problems have occurred: Defending from set plays, and not being able to take our chances. We haven't solved the two things you need to win games."
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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