Darren Moore addresses major Sheffield Wednesday injury blow after Barry Bannan limps off during win over Port Vale

The Owls will end the year in third place in League One but only behind Ipswich Town on goals scored after Michael Smith was on target from the penalty spot in the 30th minute and added a brilliant second goal after 70 minutes at Hillsborough.

The victory was marred by an injury to Bannan, who was forced off after just 26 minutes. The Scotsman has four goals and six assists for the Owls in the league this term and also averages 3.5 key passes a game, according to WhoScored.

Moore admitted after the game he had not had much time to think about Bannan’s injury as he watched his team pick up three points to take advantage of Ipswich’s 2-2 draw at Portsmouth.

“It’s too early to say with him. I’ve not seen him because he came off the pitch and my head has been totally focused on the game and getting the three points,” said Moore.

“We’ll assess him in the next couple of days. Hopefully the medical team will tell me that it’s nothing too serious. We don’t want to lose ‘Baz’ but if we are to lose him, someone else has got to step into the recognition.”

Moore said of the result: “It was a satisfying win. A real tight game. I was really pleased with the resilience shown. I think we deserved to be ahead from the penalty spot and came out second half a lot better.

“The way we kept the ball was exceptional. We stayed resolute throughout. Smith’s second goal was excellent. I’m pleased for him because he’s worked hard for us and got his reward this evening. We did our job tonight, so it’s a great three points.”