Pierce Charles' shock absence from Sheffield Wednesday squad explained
The reason behind Pierce Charles’ surprise absence from the Sheffield Wednesday squad in their 2-0 away win at Hull City has been revealed.
The Northern Ireland goalkeeper was an absentee in a 2-0 away win for the Owls that pushed them on to 12th in the Championship table; number one James Beadle making a handful of classy saves to claim a fifth clean sheet of the campaign. Wednesday boss Danny Röhl made crystal clear last week that Beadle was his first choice stopper - but maintained Charles was ‘attacking’ the position with huge strides made in recent months.
Former Manchester City youngster Charles has been on the bench throughout Wednesday’s Championship campaign this season but did not feature at the MKM Stadium, with experienced gloveman Ben Hamer instead sitting in as first reserve and Jack Phillips operating as a third keeper in the warm-up.
Speaking to The Star post-match, Röhl was asked on the 20-year-old’s absence from the squad and said: “He picked up a small injury yesterday in training, but he should be OK. It is not a big one. It is just with the finger, he went to save some balls and got a little bit of a small thing but it is OK.”
Whether or not Charles is fit to resume duty as Beadle’s back-up for Sunday’s trip to Derby County remains to be seen.