Sheffield Wednesday: '˜We need to stand up and be counted in the Sheffield derby'

It completely spoils Adam Reach's weekend when Sheffield Wednesday lose.
Adam Reach has scored five goals this seasonAdam Reach has scored five goals this season
Adam Reach has scored five goals this season

"Maybe some people think it doesn't affect us (the players) but we are the same as anyone," said the Owls midfielder. "If the team you love and play for doesn't win, it ruins your day.

"You don't want to go out and see friends and family or have dinner with them over a weekend because they are going to be asking you 'what happened today and blah blah blah'. You don't want to speak about it."

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Reach admits Wednesday's players were "hurting" after their second half defensive horror-show against Norwich City. It was the Owls' fourth consecutive defeat and the result leaves the Owls hovering just above the Championship relegation zone.

Reach said: "I think we are still trying to figure out exactly what our best 11 and formation is. You want to find your best 11 and get players settled into positions.

"I think the fans and the pundits have seen both sides of Sheffield Wednesday this season. They have seen us work hard and play magnificent football against the top teams such as Leeds and WBA.

"They have seen us go away to Aston Villa and outplay the opposition but then they have seen in the last couple of games the other side of Wednesday in terms of fragility of when we go one or two nil down and it turns into four. We know that is not acceptable.

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"You need to stay in the game all the time and we try and pride ourselves in keeping the game tight and staying in the game as long as possible, trusting that our quality will come through. We have let ourselves and everyone else down in the last few matches.

"But we spoke about this as a group on Monday and it is only us who can turn things around.

"It is not the fans, the pundits, the chairman or the manager. It's the players in the dressing room who need to stand up and take responsibility."

If Wednesday are to start climbing the table, the team must rectify their defensive shortcomings. Jos Luhukay's side have failed to keep a league clean sheet in 16 attempts this season.

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"It doesn't play on our minds," insisted Reach. "I know for a fact it doesn't play on Cammy's mind in goal or the defenders because it is not just one man's responsibility for a clean sheet. The responsibility doesn't fully fall on Cammy (Cameron Dawson) in net. It's the whole 11 and whole squad who keep clean sheets together.

"The manager has been changing personnel at the back trying to find the right formula.

"We were poor defensively in the Norwich game. We gifted them chances. Had it not been for Cammy, it could have been a lot more than four.

"But in other games, I think we have been a little bit unlucky where someone has made an individual error and it has been punished.

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"Sometimes you can go through spells of where you make mistakes but you don't get punished and keep clean sheets. But at the minute, whenever we make mistakes, we seem to be getting punished.

"Everyone is trying to address the defence. It is just not falling through us at the minute."