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MATCH REPORT AND SLIDE SHOW - How rest and relaxation pays off
Norwich 0 Sheff Wed 1 Johnson (48)
WHEN you are tapping out your match report in the sunshine on the banks of the River Yare on a quiet Sunday morning, the intensity of the Championship seems a world away.
Wednesday can afford to relax as well, free of the anxiety that afflicts Norwich and their fans.
Canaries supporters could be overhead in the local pubs on Saturday night talking about their team's shortcomings.
By then, of couse, the Owls and their followers were happily on the way home, after another job well done - and done completely.
There were none of the slips that recently turned potential victories at Preston and Watford into draws; and this time they got the break that refused to come in the stalemate against Swansea.
It was just like two years ago. Wednesday, under no pressure, and with no realistic chance of going up or going down, played calm, unhibited football.
Their win was also merited, taking the 90 minutes into account, though the Canaries will argue that they had some misfortune on the way to losing to the Owls for the eighth time in a row.
Jermaine Johnson's winning goal took a defelection, some referees might have given a penalty for a second-half challenge by Sean McAllister on striker David Mooney and a goal was controversially disallowed.
No team is going to be comfortably in control for an entire game, so Wednesday, having outlcassed the opposition in the first half, also drew on their battling qualities in a more scrappy second period.
They ended up hanging on in stoppage time after Tommy Spurr's sending-off for two uncontestable bookings in the space of four minutes.
But when it came to holding firm and winning tackles and headers, the Owls were good at that as well.
They also had the best player on the park: Luke Varney. What a pity that he is ineligible for next Saturday's home game against Derby, and that the Owls probably will have to say goodbye to him when his one-month loan ends.
He and two similarly clever players, Francis Jeffers and Marcus Tudgay, looked as if they had been working together for ages rather than for the first time from the start, such was was the understanding they showed in some slick link-ups.
Varney ran and ran, could beat a man and was unlucky not to get a goal.
It would have been a fitting way to mark his impressive full debut if, after beating two defenders with nimble footwork in a second-half run in the box, his shot had found the net rather than being half-stopped by a defender.
Maybe when Johnson's earlier shot did go in, off Norwich midfield Lee Croft, a quiet Norwich crowd got the feeling it was not going to be their day.
At the end, home supporters vented their anger at the referee for disallowing a headed goal by Mooney.
The TV replays showed the reason for the decision. Lee Grant seemed to be baulked by sub Kory Smith as Mooney jumped alongside the keeper to nod home and spark Norwich celebrations - for a few seconds.
McAllister said: "Granty says he knew straight away that he'd been fouled."
Wednesday manager Brian Laws did not know why the goal had been disallowed at the time and admitted that maybe the Owls had had a bit of fortune.
"But overall I don't think anybody can disagree that we deserved to get the points," he said.
Norwich boss Bryan Gunn thought, of course, that the goal was good. The decision was particularly galling to him because Norwich were also involved in controversy where they conceded in their previous game against Birmingham and they argued their keeper had been fouled.
I saw that on TV and was in no doubt that it was, in fact, a goalkeeping mistake.
When you're in a desperate situation, you tend to clutch at straws.
Wednesday have no such tension. When they're in the relaxed, confident mood they showed for most of Saturday's game, they look a good side.
Tudgay took a switch to the right side of midfield in his stride.
The Owls were solid at the back and tenacious and creative in midfield and up front. Tudgay, Darren Potter, Varney and Richard Hinds could have scored.
The bench also looked a lot stronger, and included Akpo Sodje and Etienne Esajas, two welcome attacking options.
It wasn't the plan for Sodje to end up as a lone frontman in a 10-man team, however.
Spurr collected one booking for blocking off Smith then another for a lunge on Cody McDonald and had to go.
With Richard Wood at left-back, and sub Mark Beevers in the middle (though sent on a few minutes earlier as an extra defender in front of the back four), Wednesday held firm.
Some of their attacking football had been terrific and they seem determined to end the season with a flourish.
Boss's view
We have been exceptional in our last four away games; we'd have deserved it if we'd won all four of them.
In the first half we dominated and played well. We passed the ball well, and our strikers caused them all sorts of problems.
It sends a message out that we've not switched off; we are working extremely hard to win every game.
We were so unlucky to only draw our previous three games.
We had about 10 attempts at goal in the first half. Norwich are in a difficult
situation; it drains you; you end up looking for scraps. Maybe on one or two
occasions they feel they didn't get the rub of the green.
I really hope they stay up. They're a great club.
They should be in the
Championship, and I wish them well.
Got a view? Add your comment below.
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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
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