Barry Bannan: Changing room character got Sheffield Wednesday through the bad times this season

Confidence in the Owls dressing room is high after six wins in their last ten league games, but earlier in the season the Owls were the shell of a side full of promise and potential on paper.

Wednesday were given a lift to their current level in increments - first under Lee Bullen, then Steve Agnew, then Steve Bruce – but Bannan insists that he never doubted what his team mates were capable of.

And they have repaid his faith with a dramatic u-turn in their style of play and performances that has seen them rise into the top half of the table.

The Owls’ talisman notched an impressive three assists in the last game before the international break, a 4-2 win against Blackburn Rovers, but with eight games to go until the end of the season the priority is bringing three points back to Sheffield from Stoke’s Bet365 Stadium on Saturday.

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“We’re not really thinking about it, we are taking each game as it comes,” Bannan told the Star.

“We know that we are on a good run but I’ve touched on it this season when we have been having bad times, I knew in that changing room what we had.

“It’s just getting the confidence and taking it into games.

“You can see it in training, everybody is aware and transferring it to games and they’ve found that in the last month or two and it has shown in the results.”

Bannan is expected to be in contention for this weekend's match despite missing two matches for Scotland over the international break through injury.