*End of Season Review 2012/13*

     If anybody had offered me an 18th position finish following the 2-2 draw with Derby County on the opening day of the season, I'd have gratefully accepted and started the celebrations right then! Over the course of the 46 game season there has undoubtedly been the high points: Fulham FC, Ipswich Town, Hull City, Brighton and of course the double over Barnsley - but more than enough low points including Bristol City, Peterborough Utd and Huddersfield Town - not to mention the imbecile Leeds United fan that attacked Chris Kirkland. A sore point with a lot of fans I've spoken to has been team selection, with a good chunk of the promotion achieving squad ignored for the majority of the season.



 A prime example being Gary Madine - last seasons 'Goal Machine' losing his way and seeing a season in the Championship pass him by without playing as much as a bit part. Excuses ranged from a lack of physical strength, impending court cases and a fallout with management to restlessness and a 'club image issue'. Whichever was closest to the truth, the fact remains that Gary had the expectations of a whole fan-base on his shoulders only to fall flat in his attempts for first team football. When the former Carlisle player turned down the offer of first team football at promotion chasing Swindon Town, fans expected him to force his way into the Wednesday setup but again were left waiting by the striker.

Sheffield Wednesday fans.

One mainstay of this season is the following the team continue to have. Come rain or shine, good results or poor showings - 'the massive' descend on cities and towns to back the team week in/week out. With one of the highest home & away attendances of the country (not just the Championship), the team cannot help but be invigorated with the 'twelfth man' behind them. Numbers continue to grow and the fans that have been keeping away from Hillsborough have started to go back as the club is currently under a rebuild phase - one that breeds confidence throughout Wednesdayite's worldwide. A subject that splits those supporters though is the band: stay or go? I can see both sides of this argument - the good being that it stirs up the atmosphere when there is a lull but the bad being their repertoire is relatively short, the same songs being repeated to the point of exhaustion. As an armchair-fan I can't really comment on this too much but I will say that the 'famous' Wednesday band has its place in the clubs culture - for now.

Owls legend Lee Bullen.

     The youth setup has gone from strength to strength with Dave Jones watching over the project and having put the academy onto a more important standing. The work of the coaching staff including Owls legend Lee Bullen is going well and with scouts of Premier League teams taking note of this, it comes as no surprise when every week there's an Owls academy player linked with a big move away. Whether it is 'paper talk' or facts, it makes a pleasant change to see our youngsters noticed and them make the column inches - boding well for the future of our team. Players catching the eye at this level include Hayden White, Caolan Lavery, Emmanuel Dieseruvwe and Ayo Obileye who have all improved vastly this season are are close to a senior squad place according to some reports. Personally I would love to see academy products come through into the first team and become the 'next big thing'. 

     As far as major points in the season, you can look at the run of 7 losing games from October to mid-December and the poor level of refereeing that cost us valuable points. A prime example of that was the Gary Madine equaliser against Bristol City in that bad run of results that was ruled out for Miguel Llera confronting referee Andre Marriner. As for Llera and how he affected our season, I take the good with the bad regarding the Spaniard. He has come up with 6 goals and his defending has been fine for this level. On the other hand, his rashness into a tackle (collecting 10 yellow cards) and misplaced passes out of defence have given plenty of cause for concern and with the defender out of contract now, fans have an opinion on him as they do Marmite: love him or hate him. That leads me onto my player ratings for the season:

Chris Kirkland: 9 (an almost faultless debut season & my Player of the Year)

Reda Johnson: 7 (hampered by injury & occasionally caught out of position)

Miguel Llera: 6 (reasons above)

Anthony Gardner: 8 (took a few weeks to settle but became solid and dependable, leading from the back)

Martin Taylor: 3 ('Tiny' has not had a successful run in the team with his mixed performances and with that comes a low rating)

Joe Mattock: 3 (a lack of games results in a low rating too for Joe - maybe one for the near future if he can keep a spot in the squad)

Lewis Buxton: 9 (Mr Consistant - a much better season than our last Championship outing and a close second in my Player of the Year)

Danny Mayor: 3 (another where a lack of games results in a low rating, loaned out to Southend United but Mayor has potential to improve given the chance next season)

Paul Corry: 3 (a player for the near future for sure, loaned out for English league experience - one to watch)

Michail Antonio: 8 (nailed on for POTS until the groin injury, glad he signed permanently as he is one of our top players already)

David Prutton: 6 (returned from a loan move a better player but often left wanting in a match as the pace sometimes leaves him behind)

Giles Coke: 6 (another who returned from a loan deal a better player - too hit & miss to be a mainstay in next seasons team though)

Chris Lines: 4 (Linesy did ok in the matches he played but then got loaned out to MK Dons after returning from injury)

Nejc Pecnik: 2 (positionally incompetent, poor accuracy and not a player that added anything to the squad unfortunately - likely to move on in the coming days)

Rhys McCabe: 4 (I like Rhys but with a lack of action it's hard to rate him higher - I would like to see him be an integral midfielder next season)

Jose Semedo: 3 (didn't look comfortable at this level after having a lengthy run in the team, shame for the fans favourite but the pace left him behind and he was easily bypassed on numerous occasions)

Kieran Lee: 6 (when moved into midfield, Lee excelled and became a regular squad player. He will be better next season if given the chance to have a run in the team)

Jermaine Johnson: 7 (JJ stepped up following Antonio's injury but was hit & miss for the first half of the season - age and injuries look to hamper his Wednesday career)

Gary Madine: 3 (unfortunately the same reasons as McCabe's)

Chris O'Grady: 5 (COGba was doing well until loaned out to Barnsley and ultimately missed at SWFC, I don't believe Howard as his replacement is an improvement)

Chris Maguire: 4 (came back from injury with a point to prove but ultimately failed to make that point with games running out)

Loanees

Rodri: 1 (after the exciting debut nothing else happened as the Spaniard became home sick & his loan was cut short)

Jay Bothroyd: 2 (a slight improvement on Rodri only due to DJ's persistence on playing him - ultimately a waste of a loan spot as he was brought in to score goals and didn't do that)

Stuart Holden: 4 (Stuarts short stay at S6 was a successful one as he added bite to the midfield and showed a quality that Bolton wanted back for their play-off push)

Ross Barkley: 5 (One of the better loan deals as Ross showed his potential almost every game, adding bite to the midfield and his accurate passing was a gift)

Danny Pugh: 4 (Brought in for flexibility and set-pieces, didn't set the place alight but didn't fail either, a steady loan deal)

Leroy Lita: 6 (a few more goals would have put Lita at an 8 for that and his workrate - I would like a permanent deal for him as he has the experience we need for next season)

Seyi Olofinjana: 7 (a taller version of Semedo, a successful loan stint and another I'd like on a full deal)

Mama Sidibe: 2 (another failed loan, he'll have taken fitness from it whilst we take nothing away from the deal) 

Jeremy Hélan: 7 (DJ should be trying to make this a permanent transfer. His pace and ability on the ball improved the team and with him being young and 'raw' - he will only get better)

Steve Howard: 6 (a strange, unexpected loan which eventually paid off, hold up play was good - but any better than COG? Not in my opinion)

Michail Antonio's season ending injury.

Another of the major points which saw us stumble towards the finish line this season was undoubtedly the groin injury picked up by one of our most effective players, Michail Antonio. The threat Michail brought to matches was evident with his speed, ability to beat a man (or 2!) with ease and his eagerness to fire a shot at goal. With that threat missing, Jermaine Johnson had to step up - and did so, but to have the threat of Antonio & JJ on opposing wings would have seen us safe sooner, of that I'm sure! 

     The lack of depth in the squad also cost us points when we lacked that 'impact player' from the bench to change a game - or even the players to effectively change a formation once or twice in a match to gain points. Personally I'd have liked to have kept Danny Mayor at the club instead of loaning him out to Southend United as he brought a little something different on the ball. A man that can feel frustrated at his this season is another player I like in midfield; Rhys McCabe. With games comes confidence and there is the conundrum faced by Dave Jones. The ability Rhys showed playing for Glasgow Rangers shows his talent but that didn't come off early in the campaign, how long do you give a player to turn it round with game-time before shuffling the pack and seeing if somebody else does the job? Rhys will grow to be an important player for the Owls, no doubt about it - as long as we keep the ambitious player playing next season. 

I can't find fault in our managers outlook on the 2012/2013 season once the FT whistle had blown at the 2-0 victory over Middlesbrough:

SWFC manager Dave Jones.

Sheffield Wednesday manager Dave Jones:

"This is a far bigger achievement than last year. Nobody will ever sway me on that because this has been a tough year for this football club." 

Overturning a 5 point gap with 2 less games to achieve promotion is a brilliant achievement but the quality difference between League One and the Championship was huge, massive even. That is evident with the points total for the bottom half of the table in comparison with the season before.

So, in conclusion of all the above I have to think that this season was as good as it was going to get. Through the rough and the smooth it's been a crazy season and this armchair-fan has nothing but admiration for the fans that watch our club in all weathers in their masses. I'll be interested to see the outgoing/incoming players over the coming weeks and look forward to another successful campaign in English footballs second tier. As far as player recruitment goes I think its common knowledge the positions we need to fill; a new centre-back, a left-back and a couple of strikers at the very least. Goals have been a real issue for us this season and with solid foundations at the back in Kirkland, Buxton and Gardner - we can build from there. I would like to see Llera given a new deal to be a squad player but think he would have to settle for a place on the bench. The transfer gossip is already in full flow and some of the names mentioned to fill the mentioned spots are comedy gold. In DJ and Milan we trust! Any improvement on an 18th place finish will be progress and progress is always good... UTO!