After the week that was, Sheffield Wednesday are up and running. Alex Miller provides his thoughts from behind the scenes at Hillsborough.

On the back steps up to the Grandstand at Hillsborough lies a light sprinkling of dust from a couple of month’s hard graft, the footprints of tradesmen a visible sign of a work in progress as the process continues behind the scenes in edging the stadium towards modernity.

At the bottom of that stairway, newly-laid flooring stands outside the Dooley’s hospitality offering and a sign beyond the entrance to the restaurant advises of no entry; the transforming Quixall Suite lies ahead. To the other side of the reception, the old ‘1867 Lounge’ bears signs showing the branding of ‘Hirsty’s Social’ and is cordoned-off as a building site. On the Grandstand concourse, dust sheets dangle over stacks of furniture and catering equipment sits ready to be wheeled into its appropriate place.

The scene serves as a reminder of Sheffield Wednesday are a work in progress, less a metaphor than a real-life, physical display of the efforts that are being undertaken at rapid pace to turn this rusty old tanker around. When senior figures at the club make light of David Storch’s first promise to supporters being rudimentary offerings such as WiFi and water, there’s a very serious point to their words; this is a ground-up exercise racing along to a deadline.

New, striking branding adorns the reception area, the new badge and steadfast font a theme throughout. The changing room and players’ areas look stunning and have been dragged away from a look and feel that left you rather suspecting you might find one of David Pleat’s notepads in a cupboard. The wider work will continue through to the home game against Bradford City on August 20, when it is expected the Megastore will open too. All hands are pumping by all accounts and there’s no suggestion things aren’t on track. In a turnaround of months, it’s some effort.

The scale of the required transformation mirrors what’s having to be carried out on the pitch. Hillsborough’s opening game came after a year’s squad decay and a year of valiant depression; somehow brave and forlorn all at once. The new kids on the block are here and the team is being rebuilt.

Seasons are not built on such outings of course, but somehow a 1-0 win over Bolton Wanderers on Saturday felt somehow vitally important, as if everybody bloody well needed it. It was no swash-buckling 4-0 Plymouth Argyle romp and for large periods it felt like a bloated pre-season friendly. Bolton were underwhelming and in truth, Wednesday’s best stuff came after their opposition were reduced to 10 men. What was impressive is how they carried out their step-up from that point. It was a reminder that substitute options absent not long ago are hugely useful.

All that said and as League Cup season openers in front of a half-empty stadium go, it did feel to be a significant step. This is an expectant fanbase and to discuss fan unrest at this stage of proceedings seems a little barmy, but for now at least, everyone can take a breath.

That it all came after a lacklustre 4-0 defeat in their final pre-season friendly at Oldham Athletic made it so. Pedersen himself made no bones about the lack of substance in that defeat and via social media, so did a handful of senior players. The reaction from supporters was fierce both live and on the internet. Match-winner Jamal Lowe spoke after the Bolton game to outline the importance of providing a response.

In the moments after the whistle, Pedersen took his time to thank the supporters in the South Stand, wandering far past the tunnel as fans applauded back and exchanged punches of the air. Had the scoreline been reversed, you fear the post-match scenes at Hillsborough would have been very different indeed. A summery first round Carabao Cup defeat, even against a side in the division above and who finished in League One’s top six last time out, would have felt like a further chipping-away of the faith but on August 8, a week before the proper stuff even starts, there was a real sense of relief in the stadium air. It’s a mad old club.

No matter its stage of rebirth, there are no dustsheets on the football team and the expectation is there. It’s one the manager has embraced. Speaking in Hungary and again in the lead-up to the Bolton game, he didn’t seek to dampen the higher of hopes and instead smiled and spoke about how to deal with it. In the lead-in to last season and faced with what might have been seen as negative questions from the media, he appeared almost frustrated in encouraging us not to ‘think small’ about Sheffield Wednesday, no matter the circumstances. He appears to have no intention of reducing its reputation now.

Football doesn’t care about from how low you are starting or how difficult it is to strike a tune from a squad thrown together in a matter of weeks. It cares nish about the abrupt exit of your right-hand man from your coaching staff. It doesn’t take into account that alongside a number of encouraging new signings, your best two players left to drag down the gain somewhat. Football is so often about results in the here and now and in the case of a Wednesday side in the third tier, even more so.

It won’t go down in the annals of history, but the nature of the Bolton win was a vital step in the right direction towards Leyton Orient. And then to another home clash against Bradford City. And then on and on. This is a never-ending demand, an effort to build an aeroplane while it’s already halfway through its take-off.

The transformation of Wednesday’s fortunes on the field are at the same stage as the behind-the-scenes areas that require hard hats. There were moments of swagger, new faces shone and the Owls won their opening game of the season. The work continues.