Charlie McNeill backs Sheffield Wednesday to have a 'proper go' next season after points news
The buzz of possibility is back at Sheffield Wednesday after US consortium Arise took ownership of the club last week.
The sense of excitement felt in the Sheffield Wednesday fanbase over the possibilities for the club going forward is felt in the changing room also, according to young forward Charlie McNeill.
The Owls are stood at the door of a whirlwind summer in which players will come and go as their new owners look to spark a rebuild campaign from League One. There is much to do on and off the pitch, with a squad to restock and vast structural changes to come both physically within the stadium and in terms of the implementation of a management structure.
Those changes will likely require a bedding-in period but with news that Wednesday will not face a points deduction next season and that recruitment restrictions will not put the club at a disadvantage, the hope is that the Owls can veer well away from any fear of a double-drop relegation.
The dawn of a new era at S6 kicked off with the ‘Club Reborn’ display at Hillsborough on Saturday - during which supporters celebrated a countdown of the points from 15 to zero. A sold-out stadium celebrated the end of a brutal campaign.
Speaking in a wide-ranging interview on the ‘More Than a Match’ YouTube channel, young attacker McNeill went some way to describing an emotional day - and the feted support of the Wednesday fanbase in that of all campaigns.
He said: “It was unbelievable, you know, to everything that we've gone through this season with the old owner and for them to come and actually buy the club.... They were there a couple of months ago watching a few games, so they got a feel for it. And then, obviously, came to the game on Saturday and it was just, the atmosphere was unbelievable.
“I've never seen anything like it, to be honest. The owner came in the changing room before the game, spoke to us, then he were on the pitch in front of the fans and, yeah. And we've won as well, so it was a good way to end a not-so-good season.
“When I go out in Sheffield, you know, you just see so many fans and they're so positive about everything that's going on. And they're always there supporting us, like, you've probably seen away games. I keep going back to it, the atmosphere was just... It just gave us that little bit of something, even before the game when we was doing our warm-up, everyone was in the stadium, cheering, doing whatever.
“It was quite emotional, to be honest, because of everything that we've gone through this year. To see them all come back to the stadium now and to keep supporting us, you know, they've backed us ever since the start of the season. So it was a thanks to them as well, because they've been massive for us this season.
“They never stopped believing in us, never stopped supporting us.”
News of the club’s avoidance of a points deduction heading into their rebuild season came as a surprise to the majority of the football staff. Henrik Pedersen was told just a few moments before the side went out to warm-up for their final day game, which registered an impressive 2-1 win over West Brom. Club captain Liam Palmer was told only during the warm-up.
The countdown on the big screen at Hillsborough was a shared experience, then, for fans and players alike. Though a monster effort will be required to turn the club around in a short space of time, McNeill is confident they can ‘give it a proper go’ in League One next season.
“We didn't know,” McNeill said. “We got told when everyone else got told. We obviously saw it and then everyone was going mad in the stadium. It was quite a relief, to be honest, because we had punishment this year, which I think was enough, to be honest.
“And I didn't think we needed any more than what we got, because we already got punished, you know, we got relegated. So I think to go into next season now, starting on a fresh, and not being on minus again, I think it's another positive for the club, and with the new owners coming in, I think they'll recruit well. I just think we can have a proper go next year.”
On a personal basis, McNeill was one of a number of young players who benefitted from the club’s torrid situation, playing 41 times across all competitions in a number of roles across the front line. Four goals and an assist came his way including a well-taken strike in the Steel City derby. Though the finished strongly with just one defeat in their final five matches, it was a slog of a campaign made more palatable by the scenes from the stands.
“They’re unbelievable,” McNeill continued on the club’s support. “In that league, I've never seen anything like it, to be honest, especially away games, all year, no matter what day it is, Tuesday night, Wednesday night, Norwich away, they're there, sold out every game, just, it is unbelievable, like, to play in front of them every week, and when I first came, they supported me really well because I didn't really play too much my first season. If I'd see one on the street or wherever, you know, they'd have a conversation with me, and they'd just be unbelievable.
“It's an honour to play in front of them all.”