Sheffield Wednesday v Doncaster Preview
Posted on | November 7, 2008 | No Comments
There are two South Yorkshire derby fixtures this weekend, one involving two of the division’s in-form teams and then this game. Looking at the form through the last six games, Doncaster sit bottom of the charts while Sheffield Wednesday sit one place above them. Both sides enjoyed good starts to the season but recent form, Doncaster’s in particular, has been dreadful to say the least and a relegation battle looks set to be on the cards.
Sheffield Wednesday had a marvelous start to the season yet recent form has deserted them. Some would say they did exceptionally well to get a point at Crystal Palace considering their method of transport to Selhurst Park. Each player had to stump up £60 for the train journey which shows just how hard times are at Hillsborough at the moment. On the field things aren’t much better as other than that point at Palace, recent results haven’t been good. Their Steel City win over Sheffield United was followed by three straight defeats which now means that they’re now looking over their shoulders – something that doesn’t bode well after battling against the drop for the past few seasons.
As for Doncaster, John Ryan is probably eating his words right now. The Rovers’ chairman claimed that his side had more than enough quality to survive in this league and the step up wouldn’t trouble them that much. How wrong could he be. Donny simply haven’t been good enough this term and having collected just two points from their last eleven games, things aren’t looking good for Sean O’Driscoll’s men. They’re bottom of the league, six points adrift and with no player taking responsibility in front of goal, you have to wonder how they’re going to win a game. Although they kept a clean sheet against Swansea in their last outing, the fact that they have a goal difference of -15 speaks volumes and things simply have to improve or they’ll be more or less down by Christmas.
In terms of team news, Brian Laws is in the rare position of having no fresh injury concerns. The Owls boss was boosted with the news that defender Tony McMahon is returning on a new loan deal from Middlesbrough, although whether or not he will be included is another matter. As for Doncaster, it’s a similar story for them, with Sean O’Driscoll having no concerns but being gifted with the news that Ritchie Wellens can make a long-awaited comeback from injury.
Even though they lost their last home game, Wednesday’s home record isn’t bad and we think they should overcome Doncaster quite easily. Donny don’t look like scoring, never mind winning and we can only predict an Owls victory – 1-0.
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- Doncaster v Sheffield Wednesday Preview
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- Sheffield United v Doncaster Preview
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