Sheffield Wednesday 0 Bristol City 1: Alarm bells are ringing as Owls suffer late blow

If fates do conspire against the Owls and lead to a return to League One, events on this Easter Monday will leave a bitter taste in the mouth.

The Owls should have been home and dry at Hillsborough after dominating the second half yet allowed Bristol City to steal three points.

Manager Alan Irvine was left bemoaning a string of missed opportunities but also felt his side were denied a clear penalty when Darren Purse was tripped by winger Marvin Elliott.

Almost inevitably, other results rubbed salt in the wounds; Watford picked up a surprise point against West Bromwich Albion and Crystal Palace beat Preston North End. Both clubs climbed above the Owls in the process.

With only four games to go – against Middlesbrough, Sheffield United, Cardiff City and Palace on the final day of the season – at least they are only adrift on goal difference.

"I still believe, if we win another two of our remaining games, that we have a really good chance of staying in this division," insisted Irvine.

"Not getting any points today makes it harder and results have gone against us. Now we have to focus on getting three points against Middlesbrough.

"We should have come away with three points but we have none," he said. "We need to look at the defending for the goal because it was not as it should be but we still had enough chances to make that irrelevant. You have to take your chances.

"I am optimistic that we can win games. The remaining four are typical Championship games in that they could go either way.

"We will need a certain degree of mental toughness as well as technical ability, a game plan, the right tactics, and plenty of determination and desire and energy."

In his last job, Irvine steered Preston North End to safety with four games to go. He admits that his latest challenge is proving tougher.

The Owls had started the afternoon two points clear of the relegation zone after extending their unbeaten run to six games with a late equaliser at Queen's Park Rangers on Saturday.

Irvine made one change recalling striker Leon Clarke at the expense of defender Lewis Buxton, who had been employed as a man-marker at Loftus Road.

Jermaine Johnson was absent as the winger suffered a slight recurrence of a hamstring injury.

Bristol knew that anything less than a victory would have extinguished any lingering hopes of play-off qualification.

Unbeaten now in five games since the appointment of caretaker-manager Keith Millen, they initially took the game to Wednesday and forced goalkeeper Lee Grant to make a number of first-half saves.

Diving low to his left, Grant flicked Paul Hartley's free-kick over the bar and also needed to be alert to block a close-range effort by Maynard.

The Owls spent the majority of the first 45 minutes under pressure and were only rarely a threat at the other end of the field. It was only in the final stages of the half that the Owls started to show some fire.

A challenge by Tom Soares on Bradley Orr sparked the change and led to yellow cards for both players after a subsequent off-the-ball altercation.

Clarke was given a tongue lashing by Marcus Tudgay for shooting instead of passing and Mark Beevers was lucky to escape without injury when a high boot from Danny Haynes landed on the side of his head.

Home supporters felt Haynes was lucky to stay on the field and made life uncomfortable for referee Graham Salisbury over a number of incidents. At the half-time whistle, Owls midfielder James O'Connor was also keen to give the referee a piece of his mind.

The Owls finally tested Bristol goalkeeper Stephen Henderson after the break. Henderson, making his debut as a replacement for the injured Dean Gerken, blocked Luke Varney's shot with his legs and tipped Darren Potter's free-kick over.

Showing far greater purpose, the Owls had Bristol pegged back for long periods. Varney was again denied by Henderson in a penalty box scramble, Darren Purse headed narrowly over, and Clarke volleyed wide.

Purse became increasingly involved in attack and referee Salisbury rejected strong shouts for a penalty when the Owls captain was floored by Elliott on the edge of the box.

There looked like being only one winner until Maynard silenced Hillsborough nine minutes before the end, picking up a long clearance from the goalkeeper, evading two tackles and tucking the ball home.

It could have got even worse for the Owls but substitute David Clarkson hit a post.

Sheffield Wednesday: Grant; Nolan, Purse, Beevers, Spurr; Soares O'Connor, Potter (Jeffers 73), Varney; Clarke, Tudgay. Unused substitutes: O'Donnell, Buxton, Hinds, Esajas, Simek, Gray.

Bristol City: Henderson; Orr, Carey, Nyatanga, Fontaine; Elliott, Hartley (Sno 90), Skuse, Campbell-Ryce; Haynes (Clarkson 73), Maynard (Maierhofer 90). Unused substitutes: Collis, Johnson, Sproule, Sawyer.

Referee: G Salisbury (Lancashire)