Sky Blues On The Road - Sheffield Wednesday

WHO ARE THEY?
Formed in 1867 by the Sheffield Wednesday Cricket Club. Early matches were played at Highfield,Myrtle Road,Sheaf House,Olive Grove before moving to Owlerton in 1899. In 1912, the ground became known as Hillsborough, The Owls home ever since.

Wednesday's first Football League game was in 1892 with a 1-0 away win at Notts County. They have won Division One on four occasions and Division Two on five occasions. Relegated from the Premier League in 1999/2000,they had three seasons in the Championship before being relegated.

The Owls were promoted into the Championship in 2004/05 via the play-offs.

They have won the FA Cup three times and three times lost the final. They also won the League Cup in 1991.

Their current manager is Brian Laws who took over from Paul Sturrock earlier this season.
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THEIR OFFICAL WEBSITE
www.swfc.premiumtv.co.uk
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LAST MATCH
Coventry lost 4-0 at home to Preston whilst Sheffield Wednesday won 1-0 at West Brom.

This is the 76th league and cup game between the two sides. The Sky Blues have won on twenty nine occasions with twenty draws.

Back in November, City beat Wednesday 3-1 at the Arena. Chris Brunt who was also sent off put Wednesday who were already down to ten men when Wade Small was red carded ahead. An own goal from Madjid Bougerra and a brace from Leon McKenzie saw City through.

In the corresponding fixture last season,City lost 3-2 with Gary McSheffrey and Andy Morrell on the scoresheet. Marcus Hall,Stephen Hughes and possibly Andy Whing are the only players in the starting eleven that day still at the club.

Coventry are 17th in the table with Wednesday tenth .
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TEAM NEWS
Iain Dowie only has injuries to David McNamee and Don Hutchison. Colin Hawkins is injured. Adam Virgo and Leon McKenzie are out for the season Colin Cameron has a hamstring injury. Michael Doyle is again suspended for the game. There are doubts about Dele Adebola (tight groin) and Andy Marshall (back).

Don Hutchison,Kevin Thornton, Liam Davis and Ben Turner have been drafted into the squad. Andy Whing may feature at right back.

For Wednesday, Steve Watson is available again. Ian Turner will play his final game in goal.Jermain Johnson and Burton O'Brien are both fit and in the squad.
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Brian Laws told WednesdayWorld: "We are in a confident mood. We need to go and win this game - we know we need to win every game, "Coventry is the next step so it is important the supporters get right behind us and be that 12th man.

"The fans were absolutely magnificent at West Bromwich and, whilst it is still alive, I hope the supporters come out to get right behind the players. It could just be what dreams are made of. It is a long shot, highly unlikely, but it is still realistic."

"Coventry are going to give us a good game. Iain Dowie has gone in there and he will be looking to see a response from the players. They are all fighting for their futures as we already saw when he went into the club. They won something like four on the bounce then so they are more than capable of winning games. They have had a tough few weeks but it won't be an easy game for us."

Stephen Hughes told Sky Blues World:: "Hillsborough is a difficult place to go to and they are flying at the moment, especially after winning at West Brom but I think it will be a great game for us. "

City still need a point fron the game to ensure mathematical safety and Tim Flowers said: "A guy on the radio told me that we are not mathematically safe and I nearly fell off my seat. "I fronted it out and said I knew that already. "We are as near as damn it, but we really do need to break this hoodoo away from home.

"It is something we are carrying on our back and we want to get rid of it and Iain has stressed to the boys that we want an away win before the end of the season."That performance at Derby is enough to give anyone confidence and good teams follow that up with consistency. "When you look at the record over the season it has been a smattering of wins and smattering of defeats with no real rock-solid consistency, which is what we want."

On Wednesday, who are unbeaten in ren matches,Flowers added: "I saw them last Friday against West Brom and they were excellent. "Chris Brunt has got a world-class left foot - I don't often use that phrase, but it is a top, top weapon and they have got good energy throughout the team.

"They are a good side and pushing for a play-off position and if we go there not prepared we will be in for a tough afternoon, but hopefully we will get what we got at Derby where we worked hard, had good shape and energy throughout the team, and if we do that we will hopefully be as hard to beat as anyone."
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MATCH OFFICIALS
The currently appointed referee is PT Crossley. His assistants are R.Tiffin and N.R.Yates. The fourth official is J.Tyas.
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MATCH DETAILS
Kick off is at 3pm. Tickets are priced at Adults £19 Concessions £10 City supporters in West Stand Upper Entrance D
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WEATHER
A sunny but not too warm day with temperatures only likely to scrape in to the sixties.
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HOW TO GET THERE
Hillsborough is situated 3 miles north of the city centre, but visitors are advised to avoid this route and approach the ground from the north instead. Parking is possible in the area just north of Hillsborough.

By Coach
Adults £10, Senior Citizen/junior £8.50, Adult season ticket holder £7.50, Concession Season Ticket Holder/JSB/Disabled £5

From The North/South/East - Exit the M1 at junction 36 and follow the A61 towards Sheffield. Continue along the road for approximately 4 miles until the 2nd roundabout. Take the 3rd exit (Leppings Lane) - the ground is situated on the left-hand side.

From The South/East - Leave the M1 at junction 33 and turn left towards Sheffield City Centre on the "Sheffield Parkway" dual carriageway. Continue until the end of the Parkway, when you will come to Park Square roundabout. Turn right and continue to follow signs for the A61 towards Barnsley. Signs for Hillsborough are also prominent. The stadium is situated 3 miles from the city centre and is on your left-hand side after Hillsborough Park.

From the West - Take the A57 for Sheffield. As you approach the city the road splits in two - take the left fork onto the Rivelin Valley Road (A6101). Continue for approximately 3.75 miles, turn left (onto one way system) and follow the road round to the right onto Holme Lane. This road then becomes Bradfield Road. At the junction with the A61 Penistone Road, turn left towards Barnsley. Hillsborough Stadium is on the left-hand side after Hillsborough Park.

By Train
Sheffield Railway Station is situated in the town centre, 3 miles from the ground. Change at Birmingham New Street of travelling from Cov although the 10.23 and 12.23 do go straight through. Trains back are every thirty minutes.

By Supertram
Take the South Yorkshire Supertram (signposted from the Railway Station) towards Middlewood Road (yellow route). Exit at the Leppings Lane stop, which is a short walk from the ground.

By Bus
From the Railway Station, Flat Street Bus Terminus is a one-minute walk - cross over at the pedestrian crossing, and follow the signs. Bus numbers 53, 77 and 80 all run from Flat Street to Hillsborough.

From Angel Street, buses 74 and 74a run to Hillsborough. From Snig Hill, buses 85 and 86 run to Leppings Lane.

From the Sheffield Transport Interchange, bus 57 runs past the ground towards Stocksbridge. On matchdays, bus frequency should be roughly every 15 minutes.

Pubs around the ground are home fans only,so either drink in Sheffield City Centre or elsewhere.
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