MEGSON PAYS PRICE FOR AUTOMATIC "FAILURE"

The Owls will start Thursday morning looking for their 30^th manager. There is nothing new about Wednesday sacking a manager, infact it has become something of a novelty over the past decade.

However, there is surely no sacking more surprising or ill-timed than when the news broke on Wednesday evening that Gary Megson had been relieved of his duties. Megson departs Hillsborough with a hugely respectable win percentage of 47.06% - the second highest of any Wednesday boss, and on the back of a Steel City derby success which looked to have re-ignited an automatic promotion push.

Yet despite this record and recent win, there is no doubting recent that events across the city played a huge part in his departure. Despite recording a well-earned win against the Blades just three days prior to his dismissal, Megson ultimately paid the price for four consecutive losses beforehand and more importantly the way that United were going about their League One business.

In a city where football is mentioned in every workplace and where the two teams are passionately followed, there is almost no escape from scrutiny for managers and especially in the rare scenario when they are both in the same league and competing for promotion.

The run of four consecutive defeats in February, combined with United forming a gap in the crucial second automatic spot, outweighed the joy of that derby victory and saw Megson depart S6 after barely twelve months, even less time than his predecessor Alan Irvine lasted.

The Blades holding on to second spot meant that the recent run of defeats was magnified furthermore, and shows the cutthroat nature of football as well as the desperate need to return Championship football to the club.

Whether people think it is justified or not is irrelevant. Milan Mandaric has surely got the backing of fans after saving the club from financial oblivion and he has chosen to act quickly and rather ruthlessly. He maintains that automatic promotion is still the aim this season and with this in mind, it is evident he believes automatic elevation is still a possibility rather than to risk the route of the play-offs, which is the way Wednesday were heading.

Time will tell whether this shock sacking was worth it. It will certainly be interesting to see who takes the reins over, with Dave Jones, Lee Clark and Billy Davies just three of the names touted so far.

One thing’s for sure, it’s never dull following Wednesday.

Steel City heroes - Where are they now?

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
It is just over three years since Wednesday completed a memorable double over the Blades.

Back in February 2009, Brian Laws led the Owls to a historic victory at Bramall Lane, in what was the first time Wednesday had taken six points off their nearest rivals in 95 years. Goals from Tommy Spurr and Marcus Tudgay secured the points for Wednesday, after a 1-0 win earlier in the season at home, thanks to Steve Watson’s terrific lob.

In honour of this occasion and with an impending Steel city derby on the horizon, we look at where those Wednesday players are plying their trade now. In total, over the two games, Wednesday used 18 players.

THE SQUAD

LEE GRANT
Grant is now at Burnley, where he was bought by Laws after the Owls relegation to League One. During his time at Hillsborough, he single-handedly kept Wednesday in many a game and is fondly remembered around s6.

TONY MCMAHON
McMahon played 15 games for the Owls during a loan spell and put in a solid shift at full-back in the first game against United, at Hillsborough. He returned to parent club Middlesborough and is now a regular in their side.

MARK BEEVERS
Still on the books at S6, Beevers has fallen out of favour since Gary Megson’s arrival and was loaned out to Milton Keynes Dons earlier this season. He played both games against the Blades in 08/09.

TOMMY SPURR
Spurr made over 200 appearances in total for Wednesday, and was on the score sheet in the second tie at the Lane. The academy product transferred to Doncaster last summer and has made the step up back to the Championship with little trouble.

RICHARD WOOD
Wood, now at Coventry, skippered the Owls and was an academy product, leading the side against the Blades in both games. A good servant to the club, Wood made over 150 league appearances for Wednesday before transferring to the Sky Blues in November 2009.

SEAN McALLISTER
Now at Shrewsbury, McAllister was another to progress through the Wednesday academy before making the step up to the first team. He was caught with a high foot by Matthew Kilgallon in the first game at Hillsborough, leading to the defender’s sending off. He was an unused sub in the second game.

JERMAINE JOHNSON
The winger is one of just three players still at the club from that memorable double. He was bizarrely shown a red card in the Hillsborough game after kicking a water bottle into the home crowd after reacting badly to being substituted.

STEVE WATSON
The veteran made his final senior appearance in that game at the Lane, coming on as a late sub. He also scored the only goal when the two sides met at Hillsborough, with a sublime lob over Paddy Kenny. Most recently, Watson was part of the coaching staff at Huddersfield but left when manager Lee Clark was dismissed.

JAMES O’CONNOR
O’Connor was midfield enforcer for both games and was an underrated member of the side. He went on to figure for the Owls majorly until a surprise move to the States last month when he joined outfit Orlando City.

DEON BURTON
The Jamaican missed a penalty in the Hillsborough game, when he would have made it 2-0. Burton’s hold-up play was rightly praised throughout his S6 stay, before he eventually left for Charlton. Most recently, he was playing for Gabala in Azerbaijan under the stewardship of former Arsenal legend Tony Adams.

MARCUS TUDGAY
Tudgay scored three goals against the Blades during his Wednesday stay, but none will live in the memory more than his cracker against them at the Lane. His effort was to prove the match-winner and ensured he stayed in Owls folklore before moving on to current club Nottingham Forest.

ETTIENE ESAJAS
The Dutch winger is now at League Two Swindon Town but he featured in the first game at Hillsborough, as a substitute for O’Connor. He later scored a world-class free-kick against United in the following season in a 3-2 defeat.

AKPO SODJE
Sodje was a fans favourite at Hillsborough and scored against the Blades in his first season before featuring as a sub in the first game of this double. A series of injuries went some way to ending his spell at Wednesday, and after a spell in the SPL with Hibernian, he is now a free agent.

FRANCIS JEFFERS
Jeffers signed for big money but ultimately didn’t warrant such a fee whilst playing for the Owls. A substitute appearance against the Blades in the first game was his involvement in the derby, and after Wednesday suffered relegation, he represented Motherwell in Scotland and Newcastle United Jets in Australia.

LEWIS BUXTON
Buxton is still a first-team regular and he made his Owls debut just two days after that first win against the Blades. He started the game at the Lane, by which time he was fully settled into the side.

MICHAEL GRAY
The veteran made over 40 appearances in a Wednesday shirt and was to finish his career with the owls. He featured in the second game, where he played a prominent role whilst on the left-wing. Gray is now a radio pundit with BBC 5live.

DARREN POTTER
Potter featured in just the second of these games, playing centre midfield. He was a regular in the Wednesday side and went on to score against United the following season. After relegation, Potter departed to Milton Keynes.

LEON CLARKE
Clarke started the Bramall Lane game and was a handful that day for the Blades backline. In his Owls career, he never really delivered and it was no surprise he departed after relegation. Now at Charlton, Clarke has since represented QPR, Swindon, Preston and Chesterfield.

TOFFEES’ STICKY PATCH MAY PROVE FATEFUL FOR MOYES

Flash back to May 2005. Everton had just finished fourth in the Premier League and in doing so, ensured Champions League football the following campaign.

David Moyes and his squad had broken the “big-four” monopoly and although the two-legged qualifier which followed against Villarreal may have been ultimately lost, Everton had shown a huge signal of intent to the rest of the league and had built a solid platform to build on.

Flash forward to the present day and it is pounds, shillings and pence which are a more prominent subject of discussion. While it is understandable that a team such as Everton would fail to qualify for Europe’s most prestigious tournament year upon year, you would at least expect some progress after such a feat.

When they finished fourth seven years ago, it is fair to say they had a squad that included a modest amount of talent. Since that high point, numerous players have come and gone for mega-money moves, without significant reinvestment. The likes of Joleon Lescott, Mikel Arteta and Steven Pienaar have all departed in recent seasons much to the disgruntlement of Toffees’ supporters.

Speaking of supporters, crowds at Goodison have been dwindling. During the recent defeat to Bolton, barely 29,000 turned up and this combined with protests against the board regarding the non-investment have undoubtedly affected Moyes and his players.

Of course, the financial situation at Goodison does Moyes no favours. Recent acquisitions in the transfer market have been restricted to free transfers and loans. This comes as quite a surprise, given the fact that over £24m was recouped from the sale of Lescott, and half of that banked from Arteta’s departure to Arsenal.

Such is the disarray regarding available funds at the club, that there is even a mock-style website which counts down the time elapsed since the chequebook was last dusted off by Bill Kenwright (incidentally it is well over two years since Diniyar Bilyaletdinov signed).

Moyes’ dealings in the market are glaringly restricted, but there is no excuse for the last transfer window’s business. The potent attacking quartet of Yakubu, Jermaine Beckford, Arteta and James Vaughan were all allowed to depart Merseyside, with just two players brought in as replacements (ironically on loan).

All in all, it is a pretty miserable time to be connected with the club. Of the few quality players they still have on the books, even they seem to be struggling. Tim Cahill, the Australian who has built a reputation on scoring key goals, has failed to find the net for Everton since December 2010, which just highlights the struggles the club has.


Their form this season has been alarming to say the least; Defeats at home to the likes of QPR, Stoke and Bolton have done nothing to quell the fear on the blue half of Merseyside and there is no doubt those dealings in August have some part to play.

The way things are going, it would be no surprise to see Moyes depart the club in the near future, despite his undoubted loyalty. Too many restrictions will eventually get to anybody, and Moyes will be no different.

SOLUTION NEEDED FOR LOAN MADNESS

This Thursday evening will see the closure of the Football League loan transfer window, and with it we are highly likely to witness a number of panic signings, reminiscent to a Christmas Eve shopping dash.

Already we have seen a number of teams hurriedly add to their squad. Sheffield Wednesday added three players in as many days to take their overall loan tally to seven, whilst Doncaster Rovers continue to find a quick-fix to their problems by adding players almost everyday, with Habib Beye and Herold Goulon the latest duo to arrive in South Yorkshire.

As the August and January windows show, there are always teams who take a gamble, and it is no different with regards to the loan window. Managers will doubtless be panicking by tomorrow lunchtime, pondering whether their squad will cope until the New Year without a new addition or two.

But you have to question how good it is for the game for so many teams to be relying on essentially other teams’ players. A few seasons ago Yeovil Town at one stage had eight borrowed players on their roster. Considering there is a maximum of five allowed in a matchday squad, it beggars belief to be so over-reliant on such a system.

The recycling of players is now so commonplace that surely a scrapping of this particular window would solve the problem of so many rash signings. By allowing loans at anytime throughout the season, fewer clubs would make panic acquisitions allowing more time to get the right player in.

Of course loans can be highly helpful and beneficial to some teams, especially in the instance of an emergency signing such as a replacement goalkeeper. But it has to be said the majority of loan transfers are purely to plug a gap in a side when it may be more beneficial to blood an academy youngster, giving them invaluable experience.

Whatever business occurs tomorrow evening, you can be rest assured that the majority will have not been thought-through nor done with the club’s long-term interests at heart.

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TOON ARMY FEAST ON BONFIRE TOFFEES

Newcastle United 2-1 Everton

There were fireworks of the right kind at St James’ Park on Saturday, as Newcastle United maintained their place in the top three of the Premier League with a workmanlike victory against Everton.

An own-goal from Johnny Heitinga gave the home side the lead before Ryan Taylor’s sparkler put them 2-0 up. Jack Rodwell threatened to drag Everton back into the game on the stroke of half-time but it was Taylor’s effort which won the points for the Toon.

The Magpies are now unbeaten in 14 games going back to the tail-end of last season and are on the coattails of the two Manchester clubs.

Since taking up the reins Pardew has gone about stamping his own authority on the club in a quiet, but nevertheless impressive manner and one of the most startling statistics that United possess is their form at St James’ Park. Since Pardew’s arrival last December, the team has lost just twice in 17 Premier League games at SJP, highlighting how hard they are to beat on their own patch.

David Moyes’ men found this out the hard way and after Heitinga put through his own net early on, Ryan Taylor soon followed up with a scorcher to add to his repertoire of impressive goals.

United held on for the three points, despite Rodwell’s goal, but did so via some solid defending, especially in the second-half.

Despite the departure of a number of high-profile players in the summer, United have the look of a well-organised outfit, with a defence marshalled by the increasingly impressive Fabricio Collocini, once again at his best against the men from Merseyside.

Behind the backline sits young Tim Krul, who is finally starting to realise his potential now that he has wrestled the number one jersey from the ever-reliable Steve Harper.

Many questions were posed after the non-arrival of a big-money replacement for Andy Carroll in the last transfer window. However, the basement bargain duo of Demba Ba and Leon Best have more than made up for that particular shortfall, with a combined total of 11 goals so far.

All of this combined with the likes of Cheik Tiote and Yohan Cabaye in midfield, adds up to a healthy situation on Tyneside.

There is no doubting that there are tougher times to come for Pardew’s troops with two trips to Manchester on the immediate horizon.

However, they can take solace from the fact that they currently sit on 25 points after just 11 games: Last season it took them until the New Year to reach such a total, before eventually finishing on 46.

After such a start this time round, there are few who doubt they can surpass that total this season.

STEEL CITY PRIDE AT STAKE

OWLS AND BLADES RENEW HOSTILITIES IN THIRD TIER

As the media circus gathers momentum, we head into the 125^th Steel City derby with the formbook definitely pointing towards the team in blue and white.

Gary Megson’s men are in the middle of a four-match winning streak and have been unstoppable at fortress Hillsborough this season with an unblemished 100% record.

In stark contrast, the Blades, under the stewardship of ex-Owls player and manager Danny Wilson (a fact that those of a blue and white persuasion will be eager to point out more so this week, than any other), have wilted recently since their early season spurt.

They head into the clash on the back of a tight win against local rivals Rotherham, which followed defeats to Charlton, Wycombe and Huddersfield in recent weeks. Those setbacks combined with Wednesday’s fantastic form lately will tempt many to punt on an away win this coming Sunday.

However, as the old cliché goes “you can throw the formbook out the window in derbies”.

The game will be unpredictable, as most derbies are, but with the added spice of both teams being serious promotion contenders and Wilson’s personal history this promises to be one of the most explosive steel city derbies in recent years.

With a capacity crowd expected at Bramall Lane on Sunday, and around 10,000 flocking to S6 for a beam-back of the game, there is no shortage of interest in this match, which has all the ingredients to be an explosive encounter.

KEY BATTLES

Madine v Collins

Madine has been prolific this season with 10 goals under his belt so far, and will take some stopping by the experienced Collins.

Ironically, Collins made his Blades debut in this fixture during an initial loan spell five years ago, before making the switch permanent this season.

Marshall v Williams

It will be an intriguing battle between the two loan stars on Sunday. Speed merchant Marshall likes to expose full-backs but will come up against a tough challenge in Williams, who is no slouch.

Marshall has already bagged two goals this season but will have to get the better of the Reading loanee in order to make that three.

Quinn v Semedo

The Portuguese lynchpin will be given the unenviable task of marshalling the livewire Quinn.

Semedo has put in some impressive performances so far, with the ability to break up play and protect the defence, but on Sunday he will come up against arguably one of the best players in the division.

POSSIBLE LINE-UPS

Blades

Simonsen - Lowton, Maguire, Collins, Williams - Doyle or Flynn, Quinn, Montgomery, McDonald, Porter, Evans

Owls

Bywater, Bennet or R Johnson, Batth, R Jones, Buxton, Semedo, Lines, O'Connor, Marshall, Madine, McGoldrick or O'Grady

LAST MEETING

SHEFF WED 1-1 SHEFF UTD – April 2010

The two sides last met 18 months ago in a 1-1 draw at Hillsborough.

Darren Potter volleyed the Owls in front before half-time but Lee Williamson’s free-kick levelled proceedings in a result which ultimately relegated the Owls.

The Blades followed suit 12 months later, joining their neighbours in the third tier.

DID YOU KNOW?

Of the Sheffield Wednesday 18-man squad which took part in that 1-1 draw back in April 2010, only four are still on the club’s books.

MILLER: “WE’RE THERE TO BE SHOT AT”

Tommy Miller insists that Huddersfield Town’s amazing unbeaten run has made them one of the big scalps in League One this year.

Town are currently on a sensational 34-game unbeaten league run (at the time of print), stretching all the way back to December 2010.

Midfielder Miller, who joined the Terriers from Yorkshire rivals Sheffield Wednesday in the summer, says that the further the run stretches, the more Lee Clark’s men become targets.

He said: “It’s remarkable (the unbeaten run). But we’re there to be shot at, and obviously a lot of clubs want to be the first ones to end the run.

“The lads did ever so well last season and should have been promoted really. The play-offs are a lottery and they failed them, but league-wise, it’s a run that they’ve continued this season and all credit to them and also the new lads who have come in and helped along the way.

“There’s great belief in the lads and the whole squad throughout, so we’ve just got to keep that going now.”

Whilst speaking at Town’s Galpharm Stadium, Miller also revealed that he shunned other teams, including one higher division club, in order to rubber-stamp a move to Town and he cites the team’s playing style as the catalyst:

“It’s a fantastic club and everything’s set up here. They play football the way that I like to play and the manager’s ideas all added up so it was all perfect and I was delighted to come.

“I also know a couple of the coaches: Steve Watson from Sheffield Wednesday and Paul Stephenson who I played with at Hartlepool back in the day.”

Miller also revealed that a new deal was initially promised at Wednesday, before a surprise change of heart paved the way for a move to West Yorkshire. The former Sunderland and Ipswich man concedes he was disappointed not to be kept on the books at Hillsborough, but believes the future is bright for both himself and Town.

He added: “I’m enjoying it here and hopefully we can be up there come the end of the season. It’s a big squad and I’ve got to bide my time but at the moment I feel fit, injury-free and hopefully this season I can kick on, stay in the team and get a few goals aswell maybe.