Sheffield Wednesday's promising recent form was abruptly halted by a 2-0 defeat at Notts County on Tuesday. D. Kanu opened the scoring for the hosts from the penalty spot in the 38th minute. The match turned decisively against Tuesday when Callum Slattery was shown a red card just five minutes into the second half. Playing with ten men, the visitors struggled to create chances and conceded a second goal to Darius Lipsiuc in the 81st minute.
Statistically, Wednesday were second best. Notts County registered 19 shots to the Owls' six, with an expected goals tally of 2.41 compared to a meagre 0.3 for the visitors. Sheffield Wednesday failed to win a single corner and their goalkeeper was not forced into a save all night. The Owls made a total of eight substitutions during the match in an attempt to change its course, but the numerical disadvantage proved too great.
League context and next steps
This result ends a run of three wins and a draw in the last five matches, a sequence that included a 5-0 thrashing of AFC Wimbledon just three days earlier. The defeat means Wednesday are now two points behind leaders Bradford City in the tightly-packed division. The team's overall goal difference stands at +12, having scored 20 goals and conceded just eight this season. Jamal Lowe remains the team's top scorer this season with five goals in nine appearances, but he was unable to add to his tally at Meadow Lane.
This recent form of three wins, one draw and one loss in their last five outings, which also featured a 2-2 draw at Huddersfield and a 2-0 win over Sunderland U21, has kept them in the promotion hunt. The Owls must now regroup quickly for a short trip to face 17th-placed Doncaster Rovers this Saturday. That fixture at the Eco-Power Stadium kicks off at 3pm and is a key opportunity to get back on track. The team will hope to have a full complement of players available for the derby clash with Doncaster.
Henrik Pedersen took nearly 40 minutes to address the media after the defeat, the club confirmed on Wednesday, with clear signs of a stern post-match debrief. A Notts County player was overheard in the tunnel joking, "Yeah, not a bad little wander about, was it?" The loss leaves Wednesday 6th in League One with 18 points, now four points behind leaders Stockport County.
