Sheffield Wednesday 1-1 Ipswich Town - Half-Time Saturday, 25th Aug 2018 16:09 Toto Nsiala’s first Town goal equalised Lucas Joao’s opener for Sheffield Wednesday with the half-time scoreline at Hillsborough 1-1. Kayden Jackson was handed his full Championship Town debut as the lone striker with Ellis Harrison moving to the wide left role. Tayo Edun was back from his one-match suspension replacing Cole Skuse, who missed out due to his quad injury, with Jon Nolan able to start despite having been a doubt with an ankle problem. Grant Ward, who started at Derby in midweek, dropped to the bench. Janoi Donacien blazed high and wide in the opening seconds with the Blues starting brightly. On five Toto Nsiala nodded wide from a corner after a dangerous Trevoh Chalobah ball into the box had been turned behind. Harrison smashed well over from distance on 12, then two minutes later got his name in the book for a wild challenge on Liam Palmer. Wednesday had begun to threaten and in the 16th minute they went in front, Town again conceding from a set piece. Barry Bannan sent over a corner from the right, Joao pulled away from Chalobah at the far post and nodded into the net all too easily. Four minutes later, it was almost 2-0. Bannan whipped in a freekick from the right and Jordan Thorniley’s powerful diving header flew wide when he will feel he ought to have scored. But Town began to get back on top and in the 24th minute Knudsen smashed over a low cross from the left which Owls keeper Cameron Dawson dropped but the ball was cleared by Thorniley from inside the six-yard box before Edun or Harrison were able to pounce. The Blues continued to play the better football but without looking particularly dangerous either from open play or set pieces with a number of potentially promising freekicks having come to nothing. But in the 40th minute Town levelled. In the aftermath a corner on the right, an Edwards ball into the box from the left deflected into the air on the edge of the box. Edun nodded into the area, Chambers headed on and Nsiala planted a third header past Dawson from six yards. The Wednesday players and crowd protested vociferously that the centre-half was offside but referee Jeremy Simpson waved away the protests. Replays suggested Harrison was offside but not Nsiala and that the referee was right to allow it. Soon after the goal Bannan, evidently still annoyed, was booked for his protest having been penalised for a foul. In the final scheduled minute Atdhe Nuhiu joined him in the book for a cynical trip on the breaking Nolan. Town ended the half the stronger side and in injury time weren’t too far away from going in front on two occasions. First an Edun corner from the left was flicked on and Nsiala’s header at the back post was kept out by combination of Dawson and Palmer on the line. Then shortly before the whistle, Harrison ran on to his own knockdown, cut in from the left and hit a goal-bound shot which Dawson bundled away down to his left. The home fans booed referee Simpson off following the whistle, still believing that the Town goal shouldn’t have stood. Whether that decision was right - as it appeared to be - or otherwise the Blues hadn’t deserved to go in behind having been the better side during the first half. Wednesday’s goal had come against the run of the game at that stage with Town having played the better football in the early period, albeit without looking overly threatening. Having gone behind via another set piece goal, the Blues took time to re-establish their ascendency but they gradually began to pass the ball around confidently. They were rewarded with the equaliser and might well have found themselves ahead at the break given the two late chances. Sheffield Wednesday: Dawson, Palmer, Pelupessy, Bannan, Thorniley, Lees (c), Nuhui, Joao, Matias, Reach, Penney. Subs: Wildsmith, Fox, Fletcher, Hutchinson, Kirby, Baker, Forestieri. Town: Bialkowski, Donacien, Nsiala, Chambers (c), Knudsen, Chalobah, Nolan, Edun, Edwards, Jackson, Harrison. Subs: Gerken, Spence, Ward, Roberts, Sears, Downes, Kenlock. Referee: Jeremy Simpson (Lancashire).
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