View From The Town End: Sheffield Wednesday ‘Doomed’ To Relegation

Sheffield Wednesday couldn’t be having a much worse season. Sitting 23rd in the table with just 28 points from their 33 league matches so far, they’d be rock bottom of the table - below Wycombe Wanderers - had their original deduction of 12 points not been reduced to six. Relegation to the third tier, where they’ve not played since 2012, looks highly.

That’s certainly the view of Owls fan and writer Louis Shackshaft, who readily admits below that things haven’t got any better for Wednesday since we last spoke in December. There’s been change in the dugout too: Tony Pulis, who himself replaced Garry Monk in November, was in charge for just 10 matches (one of them the reverse fixture) before leaving the club in late December. Neil Thompson took charge on a caretaker basis before Darren Moore swapped League One side Doncaster Rovers for Hillsborough this week.

Got all that? Then let’s begin.

How’s the season gone for Wednesday since we last met?

As bad as it was back then, if not worse. Just look at the league table, it doesn’t lie. We managed to string a few decent results together under Neil Thompson’s temporary charge but that just papered over the cracks. It’ll take a miracle for us to survive now.

What did you make of Tony Pulis’ brief time in charge of Wednesday and the manner of his departure?

He was never my first choice and probably should’ve never been appointed in the first place. I suppose you could say we took a backwards step during his reign and wasted a good 10 games while doing so. His departure didn’t come as a surprise at all, I think it was a bad move for both Pulis and Sheffield Wednesday. Still, you can’t point your finger at him alone for the disarray, the chairman and the players are to blame also.

Was Darren Moore the right replacement?

I would say so. It was either him or Paul Cook for me. I’ve was impressed with Moore at West Brom and I think he was unfairly dismissed in that role, plus, he was doing well at Doncaster. I can’t imagine many better managers would have wanted the job so I would like to welcome him to Hillsborough with open arms. I’m with him all the way.

What did you make of Reading in the reverse fixture?

Well drilled, worked together as a unit and an improvement to the season prior. I would still consider Reading as a dark horse this season. Still, how the hell Wednesday came away with a point at the end of that fixture I do not know. It was one-way traffic after Liam Shaw’s sending off, we’d have lost that game any other day.

Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images

Who are the main danger men in this Wednesday side that Reading should look out for?

Your guess is as good as mine. Goals and creativity have been few and far between this season. Paterson and Windass are both capable of scoring goals but we have no consistency or form to go on whatsoever. This has been the biggest problem area for us all season.

How do you see the rest of your season panning out?

We’re doomed. I can honestly say that I’m 90% certain we will be playing League One football next season. The only glimmer of hope we have is the arrival of Darren Moore as boss, but I think it’s too little too late, especially after the dramatic loss to Rotherham mid-week.

How will the game play out, and what will the score be?

I’d expect both sides to have a similar amount of possession but Reading should be capitalising on more chances than Wednesday during the 90. For that reason alone I’ll predict a 2-0 win for the Royals, but I would like Darren Moore to pick up a point or three sooner rather than later. I just can’t see it happening in this fixture. Home win.