FA Carling Premiership Game 35: Sunday 30 April 2000 Sheffield Wednesday 0 - 3 Leeds United (Half-time: 0 - 1) Crowd: 23416 Referee: R Harris (Oxford)
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Ooooh - Wednesday Report - Matt G

A1 blocked yet again -so more cross-country detours but still in the pub on the edge of Sheffield by 1.30.

A few team changes so we lined up;
Martyn
Kelly Duberry Radebe Mills
Hopkin Bakke Jones Wilcox
Bridges Kewell

I guess Duberry was preferred to Woody as Andy "only ever scores v Leeds" Booth is quite physical and surprisingly it was Mills at left-back not Kelly. A perfect start, Bridges falls over in the box and is virtually sitting on the ball, but it takes Wednesday so long to react that Bridges has time to plant some flowers and do a bit of weeding, before shovelling the ball sideways to the waiting Hopkin, who calmly sidefoots into the corner of the net. For the next few minutes Wednesday seemed to want to give us the ball all the time and it looked like it could be a slaughter. Unfortunately the disease was catching and though Hopkin, Jones and especially Bakke were winning a lot of ball we started giving it back just as easily. Wednesday therefore had a lot of the ball and Martyn made a good save from Quinns shot from the corner of the box and a Jonk free-kick went just wide. I still thought we were more likely to score as often Wed gave away the ball leaving Kewell and Bridges with only 2 men marking them. Unfortunately we only managed to create 1 decent chance during this time, when Kewell was just wide when clean through. So half-time and to be honest we'd only been marginally less crap than them.

Second-half different story - early on Bridges was again left un-molested in the area and had time to curl a neat shot in off the far post. At this point Wed just seemed to give up and it was just a matter off how many we'd win by. Kewell managed to hit the side-netting with another decent chance before scoring a beautiful third, chipping it over Pressman even though his body didn't seem at the right angle to shoot. Cue more "Harry stay at Leeds" songs. A large proportion of the few Wed fans who'd bothered to turn up, went home at this point.

We spent most of the 2nd half enjoying ourselves, loads of "oooooooooooooh you fat bastard" chants to Pressman, who to be fair is only the 2nd fattest goalie we've faced in Yorkshire this year. Team were also having fun, Kewell, Mills, Wilcox and Huckerby all went close and Hinchcliffe nearly scored an own goal. Alfie came on for Bakke and put himself about for 20 minutes to big cheers.

A cruise in the end, Wednesday were shite, nice to win again though. Back outside to play hunt the coach and zoomed home.

Scores
Martyn 7 - Good early save, little else to do.
Kelly 7 - Largely untroubled, got forward but to little effect.
Mills 7- Actually did pretty well for playing out of position, though often on a different wavelength from Wilcox
Radebe 9 - Just pure class
Duberry 6 - Battled well enough and developed close physical relationship with Booth but distribution seemed to involve seeing how high he could kick / head it.
Hopkin 7 - Nicely taken goal, bit careless with possession in 1st half but pretty solid.
Bakke 8 - Plenty of tackles, very combative game.
Jones 8 - Played the Batty role well, got stuck in, passed it simple. Even tried an overhead kick, which Batts probably hasn't.
Wilcox 7 - Wed seemed to give up marking him in the 2nd half but should probably have done more with the time and space. Corners were an improvement though.
Bridges 7 - As Hopkin
Kewell 8 - Quality goal and a constant threat though probably should have scored more.

Alfie 8 For entertainment value

Ref - No idea what the advantage rule is.

Wed fans - Quiet except for that bloody drummer.

Wednesday one step from the fall - Daniel Taylor

Copy from Football Unlimited of 01/05/2000.

It may not be over until the fat lady sings but in the case of Sheffield Wednesday the dreaded diva is already waddling on to the stage, microphone in hand.

The pecking order of Yorkshire football was emphatically brought home yesterday and the fall-out leaves Wednesday needing a snooker or two in their seemingly hopeless pursuit of survival.

Another demoralising nul point, coupled with Bradford seizing the moment against Wimbledon, casts Hillsborough's sorry occupants six points adrift with an inferior goal difference and the clock ticking down.

© Guardian Media Group plc

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