v Sheffield Wednesday (a) - 29/12/2025

[Gav]

Two poor sides last night with academy players propping them both up. Bannan and Cantwell the only quality on the pitch and they struggle with the dross around them.

Most frustrating aspect for me was playing the short ball at set pieces, why fill the box full of players if you’re going to play it short ball then surrender it the opposition?

Plus point and I only saw 1, our defence seemed solid, ok its against a Wednesday side playing an academy lad up front, but still, we look solid and assured.

VENKYS OUT – NOTHING ELSE MATTERS

[jim mk2]

Wednesday were as poor a side as you will see at this level yet we still gave them 2 gilt edged chances from which they should have scored.

I understand alot of our lads are running on fumes at present with all the games and the thin squad but we should have won that game at a canter. How did Ohashi miss that header and Cantwell scuff that shot in front of goal late on?

Wrexham game is going to be tough. I cannot see where our goals are coming from and the defence will have to be on its mettle against an in-form side. I'd take another 0-0

 

 

[M_B]

14 minutes ago, jim mk2 said:

Wednesday were as poor a side as you will see at this level yet we still gave them 2 gilt edged chances from which they should have scored.

I understand alot of our lads are running on fumes at present with all the games and the thin squad but we should have won that game at a canter. How did Ohashi miss that header and Cantwell scuff that shot in front of goal late on?

Wrexham game is going to be tough. I cannot see where our goals are coming from and the defence will have to be on its mettle against an in-form side. I'd take another 0-0

 

 

Wouldn't say they were gilt edged Jim by any means, but they were chances. To give 2 chances up in 90 minutes away from home isn't really the problem. I watched the "highlights" this morning and two thirds of it was Rovers missed chances/opportunities,there's the problem. 

Edited 9 hours ago by M_B

[jim mk2]

Just now, M_B said:

Wouldn't say they were gilt edged Jim by any means, but they were chances. To give 2 chances up in 90 minutes away from home isn't really the problem. I watched the "highlights" this morning and two thirds of it was Rovers missed chances,there's the problem. 

 Bannon should definitely have scored when through on goal and the lad at the end only had to toe-poke it in. 

[Crimpshrine]

10 minutes ago, M_B said:

Wouldn't say they were gilt edged Jim by any means, but they were chances. To give 2 chances up in 90 minutes away from home isn't really the problem. I watched the "highlights" this morning and two thirds of it was Rovers missed chances/opportunities,there's the problem. 

Bannon's chance when he lifted the ball over Pears is one I would expect him to score 8 times out of 10.  We got very lucky there. 

[ruggles1995]

alot of frustration around where i sat in the crowd last night (rightly so I know). But I heard one guy say we should win like 5-0.... come on, we are 17th... We dont score many from set pieces, and bar cantwell and maybe yuki nobody else realistically is a goalscorer, and even cantwell and yuki are barely goalscorers on their rovers records. I told my misses on the way up last night "are you ready for a 0-0 draw" (driving 3.5 hours up knowing what we were probably in for). I was gitted like everyone but hardly surpsied at the result. Ive no idea when our next goal may come tbf, without Gudjohnsen, we havent exactly got the group of players thats going to score 3 goals in a game, and scoring 1 doesnt even look that likely. Yuki is the type of player if you gave him 10 one on ones, you wouldn't be surprised if he only scored 1. Also Cantwell was getting a bit of abuse around me to, and I watch and think hes the only person that can do anything with the football, he cant do it all, were asking him to be dropping deep and then be in the 10 position. Others around him have to step up but there aren't exactly goals going to be flooding from whats available. Going to be a painful watch until we\if get some forwards in. You can maybe try and give the players ideas on a training pitch but sometimes when you've got certain players that aren't exactly attacking players its going to be difficult. 
Players that aren't scorers:
Miller, Mcloughlin, Pratt, Litherland, Hedges, tronstad, Baraji, then your relying on 3 players to create something; henriksen (who is playing out of position, not played championship football), Yuki(not prolific), cantwell(has not been prolific for us since joining bar penalties). Sheff weds drew to hull at the weekend, we have no divine right to go and win 5-0. We had 3 or 4 alright chances last night and didnt take them, and if your only creating that many real chances with a group that aren't prolific i wouldnt be surprised we've drawn 0-0. Hopefully we can work on some more set pieces because when you aren't great at scoring in open play they are the get out of jail cards. Sadly id take a draw against wrexham, cant see us scoring more than 1 saturday, and i can see them scoring at least 1. 

[BankEnd Rover]

30 minutes ago, jim mk2 said:

Wednesday were as poor a side as you will see at this level yet we still gave them 2 gilt edged chances from which they should have scored.

I understand alot of our lads are running on fumes at present with all the games and the thin squad but we should have won that game at a canter. How did Ohashi miss that header and Cantwell scuff that shot in front of goal late on?

Wrexham game is going to be tough. I cannot see where our goals are coming from and the defence will have to be on its mettle against an in-form side. I'd take another 0-0

 

 

But we didn't concede - That's a positive. They put 2 past Hull their previous game.

I'm not sure what world people live in when we should be going to any away game and winning on a 'canter'. We are literally a few places above Wednesday, we are their level bar one or 2 players (which we will lose next season)

Back line did well yesterday. We didn't create enough and that's the reason we didn't come away with 3 points - Toothless. 

[jim mk2]

13 minutes ago, BankEnd Rover said:

But we didn't concede - That's a positive. They put 2 past Hull their previous game.

I'm not sure what world people live in when we should be going to any away game and winning on a 'canter'. We are literally a few places above Wednesday, we are their level bar one or 2 players (which we will lose next season)

Back line did well yesterday. We didn't create enough and that's the reason we didn't come away with 3 points - Toothless. 

 

The Hull game is irrelevant.

The world I live in is on last night's evidence Wednesday are probably the weakest team I've seen in the Championship for years. The game was there for the taking in the first half hour when Wednesday never got out of their own half

We need 2 new forwards 

[lraC]

For some reason, people think we are better than we are, especially away. The last away win seems like awhile ago now and given the defeat at Pompey and yesterdays draw, both feel like missed opportunities, let’s hope our hope our home form improves.

[roversfan99]

I dont think we are just a striker/Gudjohnsen short based on last night. There is a lack of quality and pace going forward even beyond that. I didnt see last nights performance as one that just lacked a bit of a finishing touch against a dismal Wednesday side hurt even more than us by unavailability, it was totally flat.

The way we play, we need some real attacking quality and energy coming from either wing backs/and or central midfield. We clearly need not just 1 but 2 new forwards to give us more quality, pace, goals and different options as its important to have options off the bench too. Ohashi isnt good enough to be a guaranteed starter either. But we cant just rely on our 2 forwards to provide all of the threat.

I think we really miss Alebiousu as you would expect, he gives us our only bit of pace and he is so important to how we attack. None of our other wing backs provide anything like that level of threat. Hedges is definitely more suited to being a wing back compared to a winger but when theres no Alebiosu flying down the wing on the other side, theres more emphasis on Hedges to get forward and he simply doesnt give us that. I wonder if one potential solution could be Harry Amass who I thought was one of the only bits of quality on the pitch and I think his loan ends imminently. I cant see us strengthening left wing back but I think he would be a shrewd bit of business.

We still need competition for Alebiosu on the right too. Litherland as he breaks in will be judged by slightly lower standards as any player that comes through for his first senior games, but he certainly has done himself proud and looks a real player for the future. He doesnt look like a right wing back though, I think he is at wing back rather than Miller because unlike Pratt he perhaps isnt quite physically ready to cope with Championship forwards. Technically he looks good (he played one fantastic pass in the first half that Henriksson again failed to do anything with) but I wonder if we could get a more similar alternative to Alebiosu in, and also with Litherland not yet trusted in a back 3 and with potentially 2 additional bodies in that position anyway, whether it would make sense to loan him out towards the end of the window. Half a season in League 1 or perhaps League 2 but as a centre back could similar to Wharton a few years ago help him to develop physically. Rather than keeping him around to cover Alebiosu when he simply doesnt offer the same attributes.

Cantwell has always been a poor striker of the ball and has a tendency to drop deep. That being said, him and Tronstad really are key in allowing us to get any semblance of control over a game. Cantwell was understandably becoming clearly frustrated with a lack of movement around him last night. 

[Gav]

8 minutes ago, lraC said:

For some reason, people think we are better than we are, especially away. The last away win seems like awhile ago now and given the defeat at Pompey and yesterdays draw, both feel like missed opportunities, let’s hope our hope our home form improves.

As Ruggles said above, the distain for Cantwell at times was bonkers last night, what are these people expecting? He's the only bit of quality in that side, but he isn't Messi!

[B16Rover]

You don't score many goals with 5 defensive defenders and 3 midfields who all like to drop deep/stay deep.  Let alone with our lack of quality upfront.  

Needed someone to put their head up and start moving the ball forward more - Cantwell, Baradji or a full back.  Litherland is marauding but not a full back.  Hedges is too defensive minded to attack.  Should've stuck one of the youngsters to a full back position and let them carry it forward more 

[JHRover]

The regime will have been salivating for 6 months at the prospect of packing Gueye off to the Gulf and getting a decent fee for him after the interest that emerged late in the summer. This is just the culmination of that.

I agree he's poor, like most of the squad, but in the state we are in we can't be leaving him out of the squad for supposedly 'not running' enough in training. 

I doubt Ismael has much say in this matter, they've cuts to make and money to raise, what the 'head coach' wants won't be featuring in this.

Edited 8 hours ago by JHRover

[LDRover]

I see Gudjonssen has turned into prime Shearer due to his absence.

Truth is we didn't really create anything clear cut in the box all night so not sure why there is this assumption we'd have won with him in the side. In fact, the best 2 chances in the game fell to the opposition, if I was a Wednesday fan I'd feel more aggrieved not to win than we do.

[bazza]

15 hours ago, BankEnd Rover said:

Ohashi was the worst player on the pitch for me.

Agree. And Barry Bannon was the best.

[philipl]

26 minutes ago, LDRover said:

I see Gudjonssen has turned into prime Shearer due to his absence.

Truth is we didn't really create anything clear cut in the box all night so not sure why there is this assumption we'd have won with him in the side. In fact, the best 2 chances in the game fell to the opposition, if I was a Wednesday fan I'd feel more aggrieved not to win than we do.

Not entirely true.

Ignoring Cantwell's half dozen shots either wide of the posts or straight at Charles, Ohashi had 3 straightforward chances from which Gudjohnsen would certainly have scored at least one without being either the second coming of Shearer or Rhodes. He would just need to be the 7 goals in 17 appearances Andre Gudjohnsen which is his Rovers track record.

 

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

1 hour ago, Gav said:

As Ruggles said above, the distain for Cantwell at times was bonkers last night, what are these people expecting? He's the only bit of quality in that side, but he isn't Messi!

Strange isnt it - take away his awful shooting (which could, in part, be down to the injury he seems to be playing with) - I actually thought he had a reasonable match. I also like the look of Baradji - be interesting to see how he develops as he builds up his match fitness (if he doesnt get injured)

[roversfan99]

Cantwell was the only player last night that remotely looked like making something happen. 

Baradji once in particular just totally gave up trying to chase back which nearly had us in serious danger.

[RevidgeBlue]

2 hours ago, BankEnd Rover said:

I'm not sure what world people live in when we should be going to any away game and winning on a 'canter'. We are literally a few places above Wednesday, we are their level bar one or 2 players (which we will lose next season)

Sorry that's absolute rubbish.

Obviously that would normally be the case with any other side but Wednesday have been ripped apart by Chansiri, their situation and the effects of administration.

Ignoring all the points deductions they've 11 points from 23 games and a goal difference of -27.

Anything other than a victory against them by at least 2 clear goals is a catastrophic result imo.

[roversfan99]

I dont see why it has to be 2 clear goals and I think replace catastrophic with poor.

Had we won 1 nil for example. That wouldnt have been a catastrophic result!

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

Sheff Weds have had some decent results against half decent teams this season - inter mingled with some/more awful results.

As with all Championship games - nothing is a given. We were the dominant team for the majority of the match - maybe my glass is half full because I expected us to get beat 1-0 to a sucker punch goal such was our dominance at times (without doing the important bit of putting the ball in the back of the net)

[Herbie6590]

19 minutes ago, roversfan99 said:

Cantwell was the only player last night that remotely looked like making something happen. 

Baradji once in particular just totally gave up trying to chase back which nearly had us in serious danger.

I commented last night along the lines of how long can we expect Cantwell to be happy playing in this side.

IMO he isn’t captaincy material, sadly, he clearly isn’t a goalscorer either.  

However he is definitely our most technically accomplished player.

[RevidgeBlue]

1 minute ago, Herbie6590 said:

I commented last night along the lines of how long can we expect Cantwell to be happy playing in this side.

Id imagine we're well past that stage already.

Clause or no clause after 50 games I'd still be surprised to see him here in Feb.

[RevidgeBlue]

21 minutes ago, roversfan99 said:

I dont see why it has to be 2 clear goals and I think replace catastrophic with poor.

Had we won 1 nil for example. That wouldnt have been a catastrophic result!

Fair enough.

Replace "unconvincing" for a 1-0 win.

Still think failure to beat them is catastrophic though. There's a reason we dominated the game, they simply aren't competitive at this level through no fault of their own due to their situation.

[bluebruce]

20 hours ago, KentExile said:

he has been in India for weeks

 

not left the club as far as I know

Shame about the last part. Snivelling little shit.