Mallik Wilks shows why he can be a key player for Sheffield Wednesday at business end of 22-23

They were rescued by an earl. With a little bit of help from Mallik Wilks.

In truth, it was not a regal show by any stretch from the Owls, as it certainly wasn’t the previous weekend against the very same opponents.

A replay on the Fylde coast on a midweek night in February - and a fourth encounter with Fleetwood in the space of a month and a half - is not ideal either.

The prospect of maybe landing a big fish in round five in tonight’s draw would make the meeting rather more alluring.

There was a feeling of flatness at the final whistle on Saturday, with another game added to Wednesday’s itinerary. But it should not linger.

No win, but still unbeaten, taking away penalties, since October 4. The last team to beat them? Plymouth, of course, with Argyle due in at S6 for League One’s game of the season this coming weekend. Wednesday have progressed at a rate of knots after their first meeting with the Pilgrims.

Wednesday went strong on Saturday with eyes drawn to their bench, which was stacked. Barry Bannan and George Byers made their eagerly-awaited return to action and Aden Flint made his debut late on, while the resources at Darren Moore’s disposal mean that extra games should not be viewed as a hindrance.

The sight of those three aforementioned players in the blue and white was something for Moore to enthuse over. But comfortably the biggest tick in the box was Wilks.

Grant McCann got a tune out of the mercurial forward during his time at Doncaster Rovers and Hull City. A run to the League One play-offs with Rovers in 2018-19 and promotion from the third tier with City two years later is testament to that.

Moore is now assigned with getting the best out of a player who brings something different to the table in the final third for Wednesday and one who can spark something in tight games which often crop up towards the business end.

Fully fit, settled and acclimatised to life at Hillsborough, there was always a feeling that the Owls would see peak Wilks in the second half of the campaign.

Saturday offered a tantalising glimpse. The sight of him cutting inside from the right in the position he loves and bewildering a defender before unleashing a thunderous shot, which would have been destined for the net if Toto Nsiala hadn’t got in the way, was vintage Wilks. The Wilks you want to see.

Just as impressive, if not more so, was how he took the fight to Fleetwood when the Owls’ light was fading after Fleetwood opened the scoring and frustration was seeping in.

While the introduction of Bannan and Byers helped change the narrative, Wilks’s persistence and threat was what unhinged Fleetwood.

He latched onto a wicked left-wing cross from Marvin Johnson and contested with opponent Josh Earl, with the Fleetwood defender getting the final touch to divert it past Jay Lynch to equalise.

Late on, Wilks left the stage to warm applause. Wednesdayites know their football and it was deserved. Moore’s decision to afford Wilks that moment was astute.

There was also merited applause from elsewhere when the game’s other stand-out player exited in the tenth minute of stoppage-time.

Fleetwood’s Promise Omochere never gave defenders a moment’s peace, like Wilks. He chased lost causes and was up for the battle and made life uncomfortable for Dominic Iorfa, in particular. His goal was a beauty.

Johnson was careless in possession - he would atone later - and Fleetwood, who were better on the resumption, profited.

Former Doncaster loanee Scott Robertson found another ex-Rover in Danny Andrew.

The quality he has always possessed in his left foot was in evidence and his inviting centre got the finish that it warranted with Omochere powering home a superb diving header to follow his goal in the last round against QPR.

The Owls levelled and had chances to win it, with Lee Gregory clipping the bar. But Fleetwood’s draw was earnt in fairness.

Sheffield Wednesday: Dawson; Palmer, Iorfa, Famewo (Flint 90+7); Hunt (Bannan 62), Adeniran (Gregory 61), Vaulks (Byers 61), Johnson; Windass; Wilks (Smith 88), Paterson. Substitutes unused: Stockdale, Brown, Dele-Bashiru. Bakinson.

Fleetwood Town: Lynch; Rooney, Nsiala, Earl (Warrington 77), Andrew; Sarpong-Wiredu, Robertson; Lane (Holgate 90), Vela, Hayes (Macadam 45); Omochere (G Garner 90+10). Substitutes unused: McMullan, Muskwe, Patterson, Johnston, Jones.