‘Taken aback’ Sheffield Wednesday favourite George Byers touched by fan response

Byers’ cameo appearance against Chesterfield in the 2-1 preseason friendly win this week came exactly four months after he was forced off against Portsmouth during the 2022/23 campaign, that injury ultimately ruling him out for the successful promotion push.

Now, with his contract being extended until the end of 2024, he’s on the comeback trail, and he received a huge ovation from the travelling Wednesdayites at the Technique Stadium as he came on for the final 10 minutes of the game.

“It means a lot,” he told The Star. “To be fair I was taken aback a bit by the reception I got when I came on, it was a really nice touch. Obviously I’ve got a good relationship with the fans, personally, so it’s nice to hear that big round of applause - because I’ve been out for a while. I’m really pleased, really humbled, and hopefully this season we can repay them again with good performances and kick on.”

He’s now raring to go for the remainder of preseason and upcoming campaign, even if those in charge are taking him to not go gung-ho just yet...

“It’s full steam ahead really,” he added. “I got told to take it easy tonight in the 10 minutes that I was on, but when you’re out in the game situation you don’t really think about that - you just want to crack on and get down to work, so that’s what I tried to do. The more minutes I get the fitter and stronger I’m going to be, so I’m just looking forward to the games and training coming up.”