HotChocolate Posted April 28, 2015 Author Share Posted April 28, 2015 Sheffield Wednesday 1st 10 Games of Season 2024-2025 We came storming out of the blocks in our opening game of the season. It was a warm summers day down on the South-East coast in Southend-on-Sea and by 3:32pm we were already 4-0 up! That's how it finished as well, Southend United 0 Sheffield Wednesday 4, what a start. At home in front of an impressive 23,000 we worked our way to a 2-1 victory over Preston North End but just a few days later fell short of the first 2 performances as we lost 1-0 to promotion rivals West Brom. Quick to bounce back goals from Lance Cork and Sean Brady fired us to a win over Birmingham before 1-1 draw with Bolton Wanderers. 3 wins on the bounce at the beginning of September fired us to top of the league before we came unstuck against Wycombe Wanderers, allowing Swindon to take early advantage of top spot. We're full of bounce-back ability however which we showed against Crewe in a 2-0 win. Goals from Danny Jensen and Victor Dreyer rounded off a very solid September. Sky Bet League 1Didn't expect to be doing this well early on Capital One Cup - A comfortable 2-0 victory in the 1st Round over Carlisle United saw us into the 2nd where we faced Championship side Southampton. A battling performance took us to extra time but ultimately the legs were gone and gaps appeared for Southampton to take advantage. A Swift Summary A fantastic start to the season sees us top of the league! Play-offs is the aim and as there is only 10 games gone we shall not get ahead of ourselves but I really didn't expect the squad to gel like they have - especially given they were unhappy that I allowed Gareth Barrett a chance in the 1st team after he asked! Transfer news: Deadline day saw us snap up Kenneth Steffensen from Liverpool for 200k to make us the biggest spenders of League 1 (something I don't usually agree with but given we've made more than what we've bought I've managed to balance it out). And since the start of the season we've sold Paul Digby to Swindon and allowed Anthony Joseph and Richard Jackson to leave on loan. Victor Dreyer was named Young Player of the Month for September whilst I picked up the accolade for Manager of the Month. Odd news: Barnsley somehow beat Sheffield United even though they were down to 9 men for more than half the game! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GDH38 Posted April 28, 2015 Share Posted April 28, 2015 Is there a part of you that regrets not being with Tranmere in the Championship, rather than Sheff Weds in League 1? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HotChocolate Posted April 29, 2015 Author Share Posted April 29, 2015 Huge potential in that squad, good luck fella Thanks! Is there a part of you that regrets not being with Tranmere in the Championship, rather than Sheff Weds in League 1? Not at all, I took Tranmere and turned them round and I'd had my eye on the Sheffield Wednesday job since the start of the season. I was delighted to see Tranmere win the league and I hope they stay up next season but I couldn't see me going any further with them whereas with Wednesday everything is in place to take them far. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
True Blade Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 That's a weird looking league 2 table! Cracking start though mate, keep it up Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanikain Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 Just been reading through this, you are going very well so far and as a Villa fan seeing West Brom and Birmingham where they are is rather amusing (hopefully Villa arn't worse off). Keep it up will be following! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HotChocolate Posted April 29, 2015 Author Share Posted April 29, 2015 Sheffield Wednesday Half Season 2024-2025 A big game at the start of October saw us face Swindon Town in a top of the table clash, unfortunately we didn't turn up and we were comfortably beaten 2-0. Another away trip saw us fall short again as we lost out 1-0 to Shrewsbury Town, frustration was kicking in after a solid start. We then put in a 3rd lacklustre performance at home to Chester in my 500th game of management where we could only pick up a point, not a great start to the month at all. A 3-2 win away at Bradford restored a little bit of belief in our fans before we took all 3 points in a tight encounter against Charlton Athletic. A 1-1 draw with MK Dons and 1-0 victory over Hartlepool left us neck and neck with Swindon and just a few points clear of 3rd. Portsmouth were part of the chasing pack and they handed a devastating blow as they powered past us to take the points in a 2-0 win. We had to bounce back and show the league we were serious title contenders or else we'd have to settle for the play-offs. And bounce back is precisely what we did. A 3-1 victory away at Colchester was followed by a 3-0 win over Luton Town, confidence was back, we were scoring goals and taking early control of games. This was again proven in the game against Southend United as we stuck 4 past them for the 2nd time this season. Against Oldham we went 1 better bagging 5 goals in a 5-1 victory before hammering newcomers Stoke City at Hillsborough in the final game of 2024. 5 wins from 5 was enough to pull us clear of 3rd but not enough for us to take top spot. Sky Bet League 12 run away leaders so far FA Cup - Breezed past Vanarama Conference side Eastbourne Boro 4-0 in the first round before a replay was needed to get past League 2 Bury. A favourable draw in the 3rd Round sees us up against league opponents Chester at home. A Swift Summary It's been a brilliant first half of the season for us, play-offs was the aim and before we kicked off in August I was worried we might have to fight for our place in them but not at all. We're in the hunt for the League 1 title but I'm solely focused on the 8 point gap between us and 3rd and making sure it doesn't get any smaller. The board have granted a request to upgrade the poor youth facilities which is reassuring that they're committed to building the club. Always nice to see former players doing well, Accrington Stanley appointed Callum Reynolds as caretaker manager and I hope they appoint him full-time. Finally, the good news of December was that Sean Brady picked up Player of the Month. The bad news, his competition for the lone striker role, Joe Morrissey is injured for 3-4 months. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darius1998 Posted April 29, 2015 Share Posted April 29, 2015 Pretty much on eneryone's FM15 save, I see Bolton going into meltdown mode. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HotChocolate Posted April 29, 2015 Author Share Posted April 29, 2015 That's a weird looking league 2 table! Cracking start though mate, keep it up Haha, only just noticed that - terrible proof reading. Just been reading through this, you are going very well so far and as a Villa fan seeing West Brom and Birmingham where they are is rather amusing (hopefully Villa arn't worse off).Keep it up will be following! Thanks Vanikain! Villa definitely aren't worse off... They've also reached the FA Cup Semi-Final twice and made the 2nd Knock-out round of Europa League twice & the 1st Round once. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HotChocolate Posted April 29, 2015 Author Share Posted April 29, 2015 Pretty much on eneryone's FM15 save, I see Bolton going into meltdown mode. Don't know what it is about them. They've just been deducted points for going into administration shortly after this update. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HotChocolate Posted April 30, 2015 Author Share Posted April 30, 2015 Sheffield Wednesday Half Season 2024-2025 January was a huge month for us as we had no fear and smashed everyone that came in our way comfortably. We took control of every game early on and never looked like dropping points. The 5-1 thrashing of West Brom was a personal favourite with how easy we found it for the 90 minutes. Our winning run was broken (which I think eventually totalled 13) and I scooped Manager of the Month whilst Sean Brady who bagged a hat-trick in the 3-0 win over Bolton scored the Player of the Month award. A slower start to February saw us win a tight affair down in Wycombe before Grimsby finally got the better of us in a 2-1 defeat. We hit straight back taking all 3 points vs Exeter before a disappointing draw at home to Gillingham. We were now struggling with injuries and suspensions, most of our back-up players had been loaned out and there were times I had to delve into my reserves to fill the bench. We continued to march on into March with a victory over Crewe and a draw to 2nd place Swindon. A following 0-0 and 2-0 victory sees us in a strong position for the title. Sky Bet League 1Lets not blow it now FA Cup - A comfortable win against Chester in the 3rd Round saw us into the 4th where we headed to Adams Arena to face Norwich City. We went into the break 1-0 down, not out, but not looking good as we'd created little. However, a mad 2 minutes saw us not only equalize through Sean Brady but take the lead thanks to Danny Jensen. Sadly a Norwich equalizer followed straight from the break and then to add to the drama they were back in the lead just a minute later. A crazy 4 goals in 4 minutes saw us take the lead and lose it again and unfortunately, try as we might, we couldn't hit back and Norwich City went on into the 5th Round. A Swift Summary A thoroughly enjoyable 2nd half of the season so far. 14 points clear of 3rd and 4 points clear of 2nd, my only worry is for the title and that the amount of injuries that are piling up could quite easily cost us points. Our Youth Candidates arrived and again, there's nothing to shout about. Bolton Wanderers were docked 10 points for administration, have they done well on anyone's save!? Job interview offers came in from left, right and centre but I said no to all: Shrewsbury Town, Luton Town, Chester, Wycombe Wanderers & Alloa Athletic. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rikulec Posted April 30, 2015 Share Posted April 30, 2015 Fantastic form, you should clinch promotion quite comfortably. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HotChocolate Posted May 1, 2015 Author Share Posted May 1, 2015 Fantastic form, you should clinch promotion quite comfortably. Best form so far! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanikain Posted May 1, 2015 Share Posted May 1, 2015 Hopefully Swindon start to fall back soon to give you more breathing room but I think you will take it. Bolton seem to just go into meltdown almost instantly this year and going by your save a few others have aswell, especially West Brom and Stoke. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HotChocolate Posted May 1, 2015 Author Share Posted May 1, 2015 Sheffield Wednesday Title Chase 2024-2025 We were struggling hugely with injuries and I was worried after a great season we'd come up just short of the title. A draw away at Chester didn't help my nerves but a 2-0 win over Bradford did. A 3-1 away defeat at MK Dons again knocked my confidence and we were really were down to bare bones as you can see here. We scraped a point against Portsmouth and I was sure that Swindon would have taken advantage to go top, they hadn't! We went to Hartlepool with a depleated squad and ran out 3-0 winners, we could do it, we could hold onto the title. Or so I thought - after 2 successive draws we'd finally dropped to 2nd and at the worst possible time with 3 games left. To the Britannia we went, just what we wanted on Bank Holiday Monday and we got just what we needed as well a 2-1 victory after going into the break 1-0 down. Belief was back and we as Swindon had drawn, we'd taken top spot. A packed out Hillsborough awaited us for our final game of the season, we knew we could clinch the title with a win and favourable results. A good 1st half saw us go into the break level at 1-1 so I rallied the troops and sent them out fired up for the 2nd half but something must have been in their Lucozade as the fire in the belly was gone. Oldham took advantage and with it took all 3 points. The title would be out of our hands, surely? Nope - Swindon had drawn their 4th game in a row. Someone surely wanted to win the title? This time no favourable results were needed just a good, solid, old fashioned win would be enough. And a good, solid, old fashioned win was given to us on a plate courtesy of a Harry Davis OG. The title was ours. We were Champions! Sky Bet League 1We're Sheffield Wednesday, we're top of the league A Swift Summary A thoroughly fantastic season saw us crawl over the finishing line for a league title that was deserved, even though it didn't seem it with our end of season form. With promotion the board have upgraded the scouting range and the work has begun on our youth facilities. Joe Morrissey won his first cap for the Republic of Ireland and Michael Walsh scored his first international goal for Ireland. Sean Brady finished as Sky Bet League 1's top goal scorer with 32 goals whilst I picked up my first Manager of the Year award for this save. Christy McLoughlin, Cameron Blackmore, Sean Brady and Danny Jensen all secured a team of the year place. The board were delighted and called it an unexpected promotion! Tranmere Rovers battled bravely but lost out on the final game of the season, on goal difference as well. Zinedine Zidane took the vacant Newcastle United post (after previous spells at Bournemouth & Bristol City) whilst the only offer I got was from Northampton Town after David Moyes departed. Finally, QPR have been the first team to break into the top 4 and in the process won the FA Cup beating Liverpool 6-0 in the final. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HotChocolate Posted May 2, 2015 Author Share Posted May 2, 2015 Sheffield Wednesday End of Season Review 2024-2025 Sky Bet League 1 - A fantastic season saw us win the league by 4 points even though we struggled at the end. Sky Bet League 1 (Annual Wage) - Very happy with that, never a big spender on wages. FA Cup - Knocked out in the 4th Round by Premier League Norwich City in a thrilling game. Capital One Cup - Knocked out in the 2nd Round by Championship Southampton in extra time. Johnstone's Paint Trophy - Knocked out in area Quarter Final by Preston North End on penalties. Squad - A squad full of potential showed real ability as well. The youthfullness of the players meant we could quite easily play counter-attacking football with style and that is exactly what we achieved. Everyone chipped in and at one point I thought we'd have 4/5 players on 10 goals but injuries got the better of us at the end of the season. Transfers - We made wholesale changes and I was actually hoping to sell more deadwood that had been signed by previous manager John Sheridan however they were happy to sit in the reserves. Thackeray and Stanbrook actually had their loans terminated early on as they weren't getting enough football. Whereas the substantial fee paid for Kenniel Allen turned out to be a great buy. Finances - We're healthy and have been given a good budget for next season. Just hope that we get a bit more due to promotion which would be nice. Under 21's - Managed to claim the title with help from the first team and deadwood I've hoped to sell. Under 18's - Nothing to shout about really as they finished 5th in the league. Key Players Sean Brady - Brady turned out to be the 30 goal season striker I was hoping for! But with Joe Morrissey offering a strong challenge I think Brady will have work to do to keep the 1st team place. Cameron Blackmore - By far my best signing on a deal where we only paid £50k if we were promoted. His best position is supposedly a DM but he was very effective as my AMC and managed to bag 8 goals. A Swift Summary A fabulous season saw us build a great, young team that won us the league. Next year is simple, stay up - no miracles or play-off hunting just quite simply avoid relegation. Season Team League Pos FA Cup League Cup FA Trophy/JPT Notes ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2014/2015 Hednesford Town Conference North 8th 4th Qual Rnd - 1st Round Took over in October [i]2015/2016 Hednesford Town Conference North - - - - Sacked in August[/i] 2015/2016 Tamworth Conference North 21st - - 3rd Qual Rnd Took over November, Relegated 2016/2017 Boreham Wood Conference South 2nd 3rd Qual Rnd - 3rd Qual Rnd Lost in Play-Off Final 2017/2018 Boreham Wood Conference South 6th 2nd Qual Rnd - 2nd Round - 2018/2019 Boreham Wood Conference South 1st 3rd Qual Rnd - 2nd Round Promoted as Champions! 2019/2020 Boreham Wood Conference 5th 1st Round - 3rd Round Lost in Play-Off Semi Finals 2020/2021 Tranmere Rovers Sky Bet League 2 6th 3rd Round 1st Round 2nd Round Lost in Play-Off Final 2021/2022 Tranmere Rovers Sky Bet League 2 10th 3rd Round 2nd Round 2nd Round - 2022/2023 Tranmere Rovers Sky Bet League 2 1st 3rd Round 2nd Round 3rd Round Promoted as Champions! [i]2023/2024 Tranmere Rovers Sky Bet League 1 - 4th Round 1st Round 1st Round Left in January top of the league[/i] 2023/2024 Sheffield Wednesday Sky Bet League 1 13th - - - Joined in January 2024/2025 Sheffield Wednesday Sky Bet League 1 1st 4th Round 2nd Round 3rd Round Promoted as Champions! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
True Blade Posted May 2, 2015 Share Posted May 2, 2015 Crackin' Season there mate Hope more success follows next season! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northernpilgrim Posted May 3, 2015 Share Posted May 3, 2015 Good decision to move on. Tranmere are a club with decent potential. Exciting times Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted May 4, 2015 Share Posted May 4, 2015 Good to see the Wednesday move paying dividends. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted May 4, 2015 Share Posted May 4, 2015 Very well done Hot Choc. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
HotChocolate Posted May 5, 2015 Author Share Posted May 5, 2015 Sheffield Wednesday Pre-Season 2025-2026 Friendlies - A solid pre-season where we again faced local teams of whom we smashed before coming up against Manchester United where we managed to grab a very respectable 3-3 draw after a late equalizer from them. Transfers - Although we have brought in a good number of players not many, if any, are for the first team as I look to build a bit of potential in my Under 21 team. Squad - Very similar to last season but this time we have slight more ability due to the improvements the players made over the course of last season. Realistically I don't think we require any more additions but I'll keep my options open. Finally, I'm delighted to not be relying on loanees any more, I did consider looking at bringing Victor Dreyer back on loan but opted to just sign players. Under 21's - There is so much potential in here I just hope they get the training and experience required to come to close to reaching their potential. Under 18's - Not too much to shout about here, hopefully the improvements will help. Finances - Solid amount of money that we should hopefully build on as we've not spent during the transfer window and have a lot of wage budget left over. ExpectationsSky Bet Championship - Be Competitive FA Cup - 3rd Round Capital One Cup - 2nd Round A Swift Summary We've had a very solid pre-season, the squad looks ready and raring to go to fight against relegation. The board don't expect too much from us at all and the media predict we'll be down there but survive which is all I'm looking for. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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