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Sheffield Wednesday 4 Burnley 1 - Sodje sparks Owls blitz
AFTER a summer dominated by takeover talk at S6, Sheffield Wednesday produced a stunning display which had everyone inside Hillsborough drooling over the football.
Geoff Sheard – and his supposed takeover which is "days away" – may have been the name on everyone's lips pre-kick-off, with anxious eyes peering at the directors' box for an appearance, but as the North Stand clock struck 3.17 a returning hero was the toast of Hillsborough.
Akpo Sodje's first appearance after an eight-month injury lay-off saw him produce an amazing cameo performance, packed with power and pace.
Just 30 seconds had elapsed when Sodje teed up Marcus Tudgay for Wednesday's first goal, before unleashing a thunderous shot two minutes later to make it 2-0 and leave Burnley shellshocked.
Martin Paterson, the Clarets' new signing from Scunthorpe, made it 2-1, but former Port Vale striker Sodje was not to be denied as he ghosted in at the far post to convert Jermaine Johnson's shot-cum-cross.
At 3-1, the Owls were buoyant, but this is Sheffield Wednesday and things never run smoothly. Sodje pulled up chasing a lost cause, and was substituted after 20 minutes. A scan on his troubled hamstring yesterday could see him out for some time.
Sodje's departure dampened the spirits inside Hillsborough, and the game drifted along, as both sides probably sobered up after a hellraising start.
Leon Clarke came on for Sodje and put in some tireless running alongside the impressive Tudgay and Deon Burton, which he capped off by setting up Tudgay for his second just after the hour.
Rewind 12 months and the Owls had been on the end of an opening day 4-1 defeat at Portman Road, which was the embryo for an unwanted record of six consecutive defeats, so Laws was simply happy to have got off to a winning start.
"We learned our lessons from last year. The previous start is dug deep within everybody's minds and we wanted to eradicate that memory and try to get that first win under our belt," he said. "It was almost a complete reversal of last season's opener away at Ipswich where they scored in 30 seconds and finished the game at a canter. We did exactly the same today.
"People know that Akpo Sodje can be a talisman and what effect he can have for this football club. We are waiting for news on his injury though. He will have a scan, it looks like his hamstring and he pulled up very quickly. It doesn't look clever but I wouldn't want to put a timescale on yet."
Sodje will definitely sit out tomorrow's League Cup match with Rotherham United, when Laws is expected to make several changes to his starting line-up.
Sheffield Wednesday: Grant, Spurr, Hinds, Beevers, Wood, Tudgay, McAllister, O'Connor (Watson 88), Johnson (Smith 69), Burton, Sodje (Clarke 21). Unused substitutes: O'Donnell, Esajas.
Burnley: Penny, Alexander, Duff, Caldwell, Jordan, Elliott, McCann, Paterson, Van der Schaaf (Gudjonsson 59), Eagles, Blake (Akinbiyi 77). Unused substitutes: Jensen, Kalvenes, Mahon.
Referee: Clive Oliver (Northumberland).
Man of the match: Akpo Sodje.
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Saturday 11 February 2012
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