Ciaran Brennan desperate to keep his Sheffield Wednesday place as Darren Moore faces tough decision

The 21-year-old centre back was thrown into Darren Moore’s side last month during a bit of a defensive crisis at the club, with a number of key players on the sidelines due to an array of different injuries.

Brennan got his first league start in Wednesday colours in the 3-2 win over Accrington Stanley, and then went on to start all three of the following matches as the Owls extended their unbeaten run to 12 games in League One.

Now, on the back of a lengthy break caused by a Covid-19 outbreak at Middlewood Road, Wednesday are expected to have Chey Dunkley and potentially Sam Hutchinson back in contention – but Moore has a decision to make as to whether the young Owls academy graduate should lose his place.

The young defender is loving life in the first team setup, and speaking after the late win over Accrington, he told the club, “It was brilliant… You don’t really notice at the time, but when the ball goes out of play and there are breaks then you really realise what the atmosphere is like. You look around and think ‘I’ve been at the top of this stand, looking down at players’. And you think about how many people are staring at you at once - it’s weird thing if you think about it.

“But I’ve been drip-fed into things because of the Papa Johns game, so I was probably more nervous for that. It was my first time playing in front of fans, and I really enjoyed that and got used to that. I loved it, and hopefully we can pack out Hillsborough a few more times this season.”

He also spoke about how he was eager to keep his place, and – aside from a tough night the Papa John’s Trophy against Hartlepool United – he has barely put a foot wrong. He’s also been speaking to Moore, a former centre back himself, about how he can get even better.

The Republic of Ireland youth international added, “There are lads out injured and I want to keep my place in the team… This is football, you have to play for your shirt all the time. So I won’t be resting on my laurels, I’ll be pushing even harder and I’ve spoken to the gaffer about what I can do to improve.”

Brennan is out of contract at Hillsborough in the summer, but fans will be hoping that the club can make moves to secure his future beyond the end of the 2021/22 campaign in order to try and nurture him onto the next level whilst still in blue and white.

The centre back has made seven appearances in all competitions for Wednesday this season, and also played five times for Notts County earlier in the year during a short loan spell with the National League outfit.

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