Regular Wednesdayite.com match reporter Matthew Herring returns for the new season and brings us his first match report of 2010-11 from the Owls first game back in League One against Dagenham & Redbridge at Hillsborough on Saturday 7th August 2010.

A 2-0 win set the ship sailing from the dock hoping that the final destination next May will be the Championship.

OWLS 2-0 DAGENHAM & REDBRIDGE - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Opening day and it’s off to a winning start. A potentially tricky match against a newly promoted team who were bound to be confident of continuing a winning run is navigated with, for us, ease.

A fantastic crowd (the Good) is the best in the division, and third best overall on the weekend showing that, despite a mixed pre-season of good signings, poor results, boardroom unrest, Revenue winding up orders and pundit tips, the support is there to back the team. Around me there was a mix of the same old faces, but also plenty of newcomers, which suggests that if we can get a winning run together, those who have not returned may be lured back, and Hillsborough may get near to full again.

Other positives were the play in the opening twenty minutes which suggested a rout was on the cards, Weaver was commanding and confident and made a couple of saves suggesting that Grant may not be as big a loss as I was worried about, Sedgwick and Teale showed speed and guile and crucially an end product which must have our forwards salivating, no player had a stinker and, most importantly, Clinton Morrison, not only scoring but looking a threat and showing that we may finally have a forward who can get us 20 goals a season.

Unfortunately, it was almost a case of déjà vu, as, after scoring, we sat back and our midfield disappeared which led to D&R having too many chances (the Bad). Even that must be tempered though as Purse and Beevers had pretty good games, players got crucial tackles and blocks in, and you never felt that we had to concede as would have happened last year.

Most players had a rather mixed game, looking good going forward without any real standouts. Maybe Weaver, but he didn’t have enough to do to justify a man-off-the-match award and his kicking was often very poor. Both fullbacks offered options going forward, with perhaps Tommy not getting forward enough, and Buxton not being given good enough balls. O’Connor was as solid and energetic as ever in the middle, and Coke showed promising signs, trying to make runs to give us something different in the middle of the field although he had too many Potter moments of giving away the ball trying to make a simple pass. But getting a goal on debut makes up for that for me.
Tudgay had a quiet game and Mellor did not look match fit or sharp when he came on, so if they can both improve, we will finally have a forward line to envy.

And the Ugly? That had to be D&R’s finishing, as they had at least two runs/shots and two headers which really should have been goals or at least tested Weaver.

But on a day like today, I’m not going to complain and am just happy we’ve got a win.

Up the Owls.
Matthew.

NEXT UP:
BURY (H) - CARLING CUP ROUND 1
TUESDAY 10 AUGUST – 7:45PM