Spirit is not something Sheffield Wednesday lack, but stamina definitely is. Most people had already got the message, but their 2-2 draw with Hull City was yet another reminder of their need to twist the Football League's arm into allowing them some January reinforcements.

The Tigers were able to play very poorly for half-an-hour, and still take a point away from home.

They will have wanted more, of course, against a team now on minus eight points, but so long as you do not make too much of a habit of it, taking something when you play badly is an important tick in the box for play-off wannabes.

Wednesday's season is as good as over, but that does not mean January is not important.

Going into their first Boxing Day home game for 10 years with Jarvis Thornton making his first league start and the six senior starts between their outfield substitutes all in this season's League Cup, the Owls looked like lambs to the slaughter.

The injuries – and Africa Cup of Nations call-ups – piling up mean opportunities for youngsters to show they can be big figures in League One next season, and 20-year-old forward Favour Onukwuli made a bright debut from the bench.

But the danger is that young bodies will be asked to do too much in the second half of this season, and do permanent damage as a result.

Given the Owls now have a preferred bidder – the identity has not been confirmed but it is thought to be Dunfermline Athletic owner and former Sheffield United advisor James Bord – it can only be hoped they are allowed to add to their squad before the February 2 deadline, even if a deal has not been completely signed off by then.

FIRST START: Jarvis Thornton (Image: Steve Ellis)

placeholder image — FIRST START: Jarvis Thornton (Image: Steve Ellis)

Their need is great.

Despite the odds stacked against them, the Owls utterly dominated the first half-hour. The problem was, they only had Svante Ingelsson's goal to show for it.

They forced four corners in the first six minutes, but failed to trouble Hull from any of them. Ingelsson had shot wide after half a minute.

But Pierce Charles was having a great day with his feet and a tactical tweak from 3-4-2-1 to 3-5-2 meant Ingelsson was regularly running from deeper and the keeper finding him.

GOAL: Svante Ingelsson opens the scoring for Sheffield Wednesday (Image: Steve Ellis)

John Egan was forced to smother a Jamal Lowe shot from one such link-up in the 10th minute. They combined again in the 22nd minute, and this time Ingelsson went through one-on-one down the middle, keeping his cool to score.

It said a lot that more players ran to Charles than the goalscorer.

Hull were not having a sniff, but Wednesday were not adding to their lead. Twice Harry Amass put over crosses begging for a tap-in, only for no one to show a scorer's instinct.

When Lewie Coyle pulled Ingelsson down on the edge of the area after 29 minutes, Lowe ballooned the free-kick.

EQUALISER: Matt Crooks (Image: Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)

By then, Hull were at last starting to feel their way into the contest.

Former Sheffield United striker Oli McBurnie steered Coyle's 24th-minute cross wide with a diving header, and Mohamed Belloumi curled a shot just wide after being picked out by a lovely cross-field pass from Ryan Giles.

In the 33rd minute Belloumi hit a post after McBurnie played Liam Millar in. Liam Cooper cleared off the line three minutes later.

So it was no surprise when Belloumi found the net in the 36th minute, cutting inside Cooper after collecting a Matt Crooks pass and finishing smartly. It was the winger's first goal since rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament last season.

Hull came out with more vigour for the second half, even if Dominic Iorfa had its first chance, unable to jump above an Amass cross from the byline.

When Gabriel Otegbayo – the central Owls defender of three – gave the ball away in the 48th minute he showed great strength to stop McBurnie wriggling into a scoring position.

DEFENSIVE STRENGTH: Gabriel Otegbayo gets away from Ollie McBurnie (Image: Steve Ellis)

Ryan Giles very easily side-stepped Thornton but McBurnie was unable to get power or direction on a header which went straight to Charles. Belloumi headed a cross straight at the keeper.

This time it was Hull made to pay, a beautiful pass from Barry Bannan matched by the chest control of Bailey Cadamareri, who coolly put the ball in for his first goal in 20 appearances for for club and country.

This lead lasted five minutes before Matt Crooks bulldozed through and refused to accept defeat when his first effort was saved.

Coming on in the 77th minute, Onukwuli was a bright addition, laying the ball back for Lowe to shoot over and not getting hold of a shot off balance but still panicking Ivor Pandur, who either did not realise or dare risk that it was going wide.

Hull's Kyle Joseph headed over in the fifth added minute.

Wednesday's search for a first home win of the season goes on. So does Hull's promotion push.

Sheffield Wednesday: Charles; Iorfa, Otegbayo, Cooper; Palmer, Thornton (Shipston 77), Bannan, Ingelsson (Onukwuli 77), Amass; Cadamarteri, J Lowe. Unused substitutes: Horvath, Johnson, McGhee, Grainger, Emery, Alao, Moses.

Hull City: Pandur; Coyle, Egan (Famewo HT), Hughes, Giles; Slater, Hadziahmetovic; (Gyabi 67) Belloumi (Akintola 72), Crooks (Destan 82), Millar (Joseph 67); McBurnie. Unused substitutes: Phillips, Ndala, Palmer, McCarthy.

Referee: S Martin (Staffordshire).