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Wednesday coach Summerfield learns from Wembley heartache of the past
LESSONS learned by Kevin Summerfield at Wembley are helping to forge Wednesday's approach to the play-off final.
The Owls assistant manager was Shrewsbury's coach when they were runners-up to Rotherham in the 1996 Auto Windscreens Shield.
The Shrews lost because they allowed the off-field build-up to encroach on their football planning, believes Summerfield.
That's one of the reasons why Wednesday are treating Sunday's showdown in Cardiff more like a normal league game than a cup final.
"The lessons I learned will hopefully benefit us," Summerfield told The Star.
"We treated it very differently to a normal league game: we went around Wembley, we went out to the dogs; there was a hullabaloo about tickets. It all detracted from the game."
Wednesday made sure that they planned early. There were to be no play-off final suits. The team are travelling in tracksuits as normal. Ticket allocations for the players were swiftly sorted out, as soon as they had reached the final.
This week's training pattern at Middlewood has been the same as usual, and the squad will leave for a pre-match, overnight stay at a hotel, as normal.
The fact that the final is on Sunday created an "extra" midweek day so that the team could be sent canoeing as a fun break from routine.
But orthodox work on the training ground has continued, with boss Paul Sturrock, Summerfield and defence coach John Blackley honing Wednesday's normal game rather than formulating any special measures to combat Hartlepool.
Says the assistant boss: "It's what we do that matters. We are playing a team from the same division as us. It's up to Sheffield Wednesday to be better than the opposition on the day.
"Getting to the final has rekindled a lot of passion for the club: we might come out of it with another 1,000 supporters, who have come down to Cardiff, backed the team and think 'I'll have a bit more of this'.
"It's big day for the supporters.
"The players will be more experienced from going through it; and it will help them if we get into this position again at any time."
For the coaching staff, the final is an extension of their job of trying to get the best out players.
The Walsall-born 46-year-old assistant boss played at centre-half, midfield, on the wing, and up front in his time with Birmingham, Walsall, Cardiff, Plymouth and Shrewsbury. He has coached his way to three championships - two at Plymouth and one with Shrewsbury.
He paid tribute to the way the players inherited by the current regime adapted to a change in playing style.
"It's been a really long season for our players. They have had to cope with an awful lot," he said.
"The ones who have been here the whole time have done well for us. They had to adapt to what we wanted them to do.
"We're delighted to be where we are, playing in such a big game."
Wednesday have spaces left on holiday football events for kids at Middlewood, Worksop and Dore next week. For details phone 0114 2212377.
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Weather for Sheffield
Tuesday 22 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 22 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: North
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 13 C to 23 C
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