Sheffield Wednesday lost 2-1 at home to Coventry City in the Championship today, but there was a debut for one Owls man.
Sheffield Wednesday welcomed Coventry City in the Championship this afternoon.
It was a welcome return to Hillsborough for Danny Rohl‘s Owls who were thumped 4-0 away at Southampton last time out.
But the visit of an in form Coventry City side promised to be another tough encounter for Sheffield Wednesday, and it certainly was.
At the end of a well-contested first half the Sky Blues took the lead through Ben Sheaf who saw a curling effort hit the top corner.
Sheaf then doubled Coventry’s lead after the break with Josh Windass soon after scoring what proved to be a consolation goal for the Owls.
Among many talking points today was James Beadle; the 19-year-old made his debut for Sheffield Wednesday after joining on loan from Brighton.
Alex Miller impressed by early James Beadle signs
Beadle was brought in to give Rohl and Sheffield Wednesday a better ball-playing goalkeeper.
He shone during the first half of the season on loan at Oxford United in League One and watched from the bench as Cameron Dawson conceded four at Southampton.
But he was given his chance today, and although he didn’t have to many saves to make, he managed to impress with his calmness on the ball.
Journalist Alex Miller praised the England youth international on his Sheffield Wednesday debut, highlighting his calmness, his ability to ‘draw attackers in’, and his comfortability coming out of goal.
Miller posted on X:
No route for Cameron Dawson back into the Sheffield Wednesday XI
Dawson split opinion in the first half of this season.
He’s not a bad ball-player but Beadle showcase a lot more ability today, and now it seems like Dawson faces a very uphill battle to get back into the side.
Expect Rohl to stick with Beadle now; he showed similar loyalty to Dawson when fans were calling for the now-departed Devis Vasquez to start in goal.
Although Beadle is still young, and playing for a Sheffield Wednesday side in a very desperate position, he showed his maturity and quality today.
He really complements the style of play and with a few more signings, Sheffield Wednesday could have a team really suited to Rohl’s style of play.
Coventry City are back at Hillsborough next weekend for an FA Cup fourth round clash against the Owls.