Sheffield Wednesday 1 Bournemouth 1: Mellor stakes claim for regular start

The striker, on a season's loan from Preston North End, was thrown on as a half-time substitute after an abysmal first 45 minutes from the hosts saw play-off rivals Bournemouth lead thanks to Ryan Garry's goal.

The chance of Wednesday scoring during that first half seemed slimmer than a 2m cheque landing on the Hillsborough doormat as the Owls' long-running takeover saga shows no sign of ending soon.

But manager Alan Irvine, along with the 18,000 regulars who booed the Owls off the pitch at the interval, had seen enough as Mellor and winger Gary Teale were sent on to add some urgency to proceedings.

Suddenly the midfield, which started with four players who prefer a central position spread across the park, had some thrust and Teale's energy was infectious.

The game had been crying out for a specialist wide man to break Bournemouth's domination in midfield, and without the mercurial Jermaine Johnson – he jetted to America for personal reasons before kick-off – the Owls were too one-dimensional. Johnson is due to return to the UK for training on Wednesday.

The Cherries were ripe for picking off, transformed from the free-flowing outfit which had their fans cheering some slick ball retention – although their opening goal came from sloppy marking from a near-post corner – as Wednesday attacked at will.

Teale and Marcus Tudgay tested goalkeeper Shwan Jalal but the hosts had to stay patient before Mellor's intervention in the 82nd minute for a deserved equaliser.

Teale surged from the halfway line and sent a teasing cross to the back post which Mellor slotted home for his fifth goal of the season.

His only start in the last six games was a Johnstone's Paint Trophy tie against Chesterfield, where he also scored, and after coming off the bench against Yeovil the previous weekend to provide the assist in Johnson's goal which broke the Huish Park stalemate, Mellor is hoping to force his way into Irvine's starting XI.

"Every time you are on the pitch, you have something to prove, whether you are starting or coming on as a substitute," said Mellor. "For me personally, I have been disappointed not being in the side for the last five (league) games.

"It was a good opportunity to come on and pleasing to score, but disappointing not to take all three points.

"I am desperate to play football, but for whatever reason I have not been in the side. It's now up to me. As long as I keep coming on and influencing the play then I am staking my place in the team.

"It keeps the unbeaten run going, the dressing room is a lot happier place now. We have two massive games coming up, against Charlton and Huddersfield, and it's important we keep the unbeaten run going."

Mellor praised the contribution of fellow substitute Teale, who was left out as Irvine opted for four ball-playing midfielders, with Tommy Miller and Giles Coke rarely troubling the opposition full-backs.

"I thought Teale's width in the second half was a major factor, it caused Bournemouth problems," stressed Mellor.

"I have played with Teale before, at Wigan, and know if you get in the box he will get a cross in. I just gambled, fortunately I read the cross and it was an easy finish in the end."

Mellor is pragmatic when it comes to Wednesday's financial troubles. The club have been in takeover talks with Certified Oilfield Rentals, but are still waiting on a promised 2m advance.

With fears of administration hanging over Hillsborough ahead of another High Court date with the taxman next month, the Owls players could be forgiven for being distracted. Not so, says Mellor.

"As far as we are concerned, everyone is still getting paid so until that stops it won't really affect us," he said.

"We just need to keep performing and let the board sort out what needs to be sorted out."

While the COR group, which includes former Owls chief Chris Turner, are still in discussions, Hillsborough officials say they are still in talks with other bidders.

The club stated that: "Advanced talks with other interested parties, separate to COR are progressing.

"Although COR have stated that they wish to advance the club 2m, this has not yet been received. It remains the aim of the board to complete the best deal for Sheffield Wednesday, either with COR or another potential investor."

Irvine must hope for a swift conclusion before the November 17 High Court date creates similar panic to their previous tax winding-up hearing which coincided with a terrible run in September of four straight defeats.

Sheffield Wednesday: Weaver, Buxton, Purse, Beevers, Jones, Miller, Potter, O'Connor (Teale 46), Coke, Morrison (Mellor 46), Tudgay (Heffernan 77). Unused substitutes: Jameson, Spurr, Hinds, Sedgwick.

Bournemouth: Jalal, Garry, Pearce, Bartley, Pugh, Robinson, Feeney (Fletcher 82), Smith, Wiggins, McQuoid (Taylor 90), Hollands. Unused substitutes: Stewart, Cooper, Partington, Bradbury, Cummings.

Referee: R Booth (Nottingham).

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