Josh Windass scored a stunning goal from inside his own half to help Sheffield Wednesday kick off the new year with a 4-2 win over Derby at Hillsborough.
Three goals in 13 second-half minutes, including Windass’ wonder strike, secured maximum points for the Owls as they bounced back from their 3-1 defeat at Preston on Sunday.
Barry Bannan’s early opener for Wednesday was all separated the teams at the break but the hosts took control following quickfire goals from Windass, Djeidi Gassama and Anthony Musaba.
Derby responded through Jerry Yates’ effort at 3-0 down and Ebou Adams’ late strike, but it was not enough to deny Danny Rohl’s men.
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Josh Windass produces a moment of quality as he scores from inside his own half to double the lead against Derby.
Rohl made four changes to the side that lost at Deepdale, with Di’Shon Bernard, Svante Ingelsson, Ike Ugbo and Gassama coming in.
Derby boss Paul Warne made a couple of changes from the 1-0 defeat at home to Leeds, with Craig Forsyth and captain Sonny Bradley joining the starting XI.
Gassama had Wednesday’s first chance when he tested Rams keeper Jacob Widell Zetterstrom from a tight angle.
The hosts took the lead with their next opportunity after eight minutes. Gassama used his pace to get the better of his marker and he played in Shea Charles whose low ball found skipper Bannan, who could not miss.
Kane Wilson had Derby’s first effort as his fierce shot was saved well by James Beadle. The Owls keeper had to be alert from the resulting corner to keep out Nat Phillips.
Gassama was involved for the Owls once more as his curling from the edge of the box had to be tipped over the bar as Wednesday pushed for a second goal.
Derby’s biggest chance of the first half came in added time as Yates hit the post from a couple of yards out.
Wednesday were back on the attack in the second half and Charles tested Zetterstrom from distance before the home side doubled their advantage in the 61st minute in the remarkable fashion.
Substitute Windass picked the ball up inside his own half, spotted Zetterstrom off his line and, having not even reached the centre circle, sent an inch-perfect lob over the backpedeling goalkeeper’s head and into the net.
Boosted by that incredible feat of skill, Wednesday increased their lead two minutes later when Gassama got the goal his performance deserved, using his blistering pace once more to get clean through and finish smartly past the Derby keeper.
The visitors gave themselves a glimmer of hope as Yates finished from close range after 68 minutes following a mix up in the Wednesday defence, but the Owls restored their three-goal lead six minutes later as Musaba slotted home at the second attempt after being put through by Charles.
The Rams got a consolation goal through Adams in the first minute of stoppage time but it was too little too late as Wednesday had already done enough to take home the points.
The managers
Sheffield Wednesday’s Danny Rohl:
“It was a brilliant goal from Josh (Windass) and he’s in outstanding form at the moment but getting that second goal was the most important thing for me.
“At 3-1 we had to stay focused because like we showed at Middlesbrough things can change very quickly once you start to gather momentum.
“The quality dropped a little bit towards the end of the game as it’s been such a busy schedule and the players are getting tired.
“We are conceding more than we would like and getting more clean sheets is something we have to work on.
“We’re in a much better position than we were this time last season but we’ll keep pushing to get to 50 points as quickly as possible.”
Derby’s Paul Warne:
“We’ve been unfortunate in both games against Wednesday; we’ve played well and come away with no points. Today we played well enough to get at least a point.
“There isn’t much we can do about the second goal. I hate losing but I’m not a bad loser and sometimes you have to hold your hands up and appreciate the opposition.
“Take away the screamer, the first and third goal were definitely avoidable. We’re not normally that loose at the back.
“We haven’t created so many chances away from home in a long time. It’s disappointing because we weren’t far away from getting a good result today.”
