Late double secures vital Owls win

Two goals in the final five minutes secured an all important, and much deserved, three points for Wednesday and under pressure manager Brian Laws. The result was overshadowed by the ankle injury to Francis Jeffers that is set to keep the former England Under 21 star on the sidelines for quite some time. While The Potters may feel they were worth a point it was The Owls who enjoyed more possession and more shots on goal, while the fact that they scored more goals in this 90 minutes than in the previous eight league and cup games will only do wonders for confidence.

Laws made five changes to the side that lost at home to Leicester last weekend - bringing Richard Wood, Tommy Spurr, Jermaine Johnson, Francis Jeffers and Burton O'Brien all back into the side. There was still no return to action however for the injured Frank Simek, Steve Watson and Wade Small.

Conceding early goals has been a real problem for Wednesday this season and the writing was on the wall yet again when Stoke grabbed a 12th minute lead through Ricardo Fuller. The stocky Potters forward got himself in behind Wood and through on goal before slotting calmy past a helpless Lee Grant.

The game saw a second goal just past the quarter of an hour mark, a repeat of last weekend when Leicester's double strike had killed the game off, but so importantly it was Wednesday who scored next and not the home side. Jermaine Johnson cut in from the right before unleashing a wonderful left foot strike from the edge of the box. It was the Jamaican's first goal of the season.

In the 23rd minute The Owls grabbed a second, the first time in almost two months they've managed to do such an audacious thing, as Jeffers and Tudgay combined with the latter also opening his account for the season. Jeffers set up Tudgay whose shot rebounded back off the post only for the Scouser to have a second bite of the cherry and whip in a delightful cross from the left for his partner to head in at the back post.

The Owls were dealt a body blow ten minutes before the break when a strong challenge from behind by Ryan Shawcross left Jeffers in a heap and in need of a stretcher. Initial fears were that the striker had broken his ankle but scans after the game revealed it is more likely to be cartilage damage. Either way Wednesday can expect to be without the former Arsenal man for a few months at least. Laws was left fuming on the sidelines that Referee Mason had felt the challenge was only worth a caution for the Stoke defender.

There was yet more drama to come as The Potters grabbed an equaliser four minutes before the break. Lee Bullen's weak header back to Grant was punished by Fuller who nipped in for his second of the afternoon. Bullen certainly paid the price for his error as he was taken off at half-time and replaced by Richard Hinds.

Tudgay should have restored Wednesday's lead early in the second half but volleyed wide from close range.

The chances dried up for the majority of the half before The Owls popped up with two late goals. Graham Kavanagh, playing his final game on loan before returning to Sunderland, whipped in an 85th minute corner that Tudgay connected with and found the back of the net.

Two minutes later Deon Burton put the game beyond Stoke's reach with a goal that had the kind of luck that has deserted Wednesday this season. Johnson fed the ball into the forward who turned and fired a shot in on goal that deflected twice before rolling past Steve Simonsen and into the net.

Experienced Irish midfielder Graham Kavanagh said in midweek the next three games could decide if Wednesday will be in a relegaton dog fight this season. If that is the case this was the perfect way to taking steps towards crawling out of the bottom three for the first time this season, but with Kavanagh and defender Michael Johnson returning to their clubs Wednesday will need to muster up experience and leadership elsewhere on the park if they are to really turn this season around.

Laws verdict: "I would like to have sat here and felt good but I am dejected and disappointed to have lost a quality player to a broken ankle." "What still worries me is that we're giving goals away. The lads were savaged after the first six results, but they showed here how much they are together."