One player stood out for praise during Sheffield Wednesday’s disappointing 1-1 draw against Cardiff City in the Championship on Saturday.
Sheffield Wednesday returned to Championship action with a game against Cardiff City at Hillsborough on Saturday, following a two week break for internationals.
Danny Rohl’s side were looking to bounce back from their Steel City derby defeat earlier in November, and they started brightly against Cardiff City who began the day in the relegation zone.
Rohl defended Ike Ugbo’s Sheffield Wednesday form once again before this game. Then in the first minute, the Canadian had a goal disallowed.
Cardiff hit the Owls on the break and scored the opening goal on 34 minutes, though Di’Shon Bernard replied a couple of minutes later.
The second half saw both teams go for the win, Wednesday slightly more so, but the game ended 1-1 which was probably a fair result on the day.
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Joe Crann hails Di’Shon Bernard performance for Sheffield Wednesday
Bernard endured a nightmare performance with Jamaica during the November international break, scoring an own goal in his side’s 4-2 defeat against USA on Monday morning.
Despite that, and despite the late game with the Reggae Boyz and the long-haul flight back to the UK, Bernard had a standout game for the Owls against Cardiff City.
The 24-year-old put in a commanding display at the back and took his goal well to get Wednesday back in the game.
Posting on X during the match, journalist Joe Crann hailed the performance of Bernard, highlight the fact that Bernard is so good at reading the game from the back.
Crann wrote: “Not just his goal, but Di’Shon Bernard has been excellent again today. Such a steady performer, reads the game so well.”
Di’Shon Bernard stats for Sheffield Wednesday vs Cardiff City
Bernard recorded the fourth-most touches of any Sheffield Wednesday player on the day (82), and boasted the most accurate passes of any player on the pitch (74), with one key pass to his name.
The centre-back only had to make three defensive actions against Cardiff (one clearance, one interception, and one tackle), whilst not being dribbled past by a single player in the game.
In terms of duels, Bernard won four of six attempted, which was fairly low down in the Sheffield Wednesday rankings, though it was his positioning that meant Bernard didn’t have to do too much defending on the day.
He was composed on the ball throughout. He commanded the backline and allowed the Owls to attack more often, albeit not very clinically.
Now for Bernard, it’s about staying both consistent and fit ahead of a congested run of fixtures through to March.