‘I love clean sheets’ – Darren Moore revels in new Sheffield Wednesday club record

The Owls beat Morecambe 3-0 at Hillsborough on Tuesday night, earning their 18th clean sheet of the season – the highest of any Wednesday team in the club’s history.

Moore insisted that it wasn’t just about the defenders and goalkeepers though, insisting that it’s a complete team effort.

“As a former defender and centre back, I love clean sheets,” Moore told the media. “So I’m really pleased about that. There’s so much of the season left to go though, so we have to maintain that and keep producing performances like that and keeping more clean sheets. With a clean sheet you can win the game.

“Credit to the players, they haven’t taken their foot off the gas and they very much have to keep that up.

“It’s an area we identified and then got the right bodies in, players that do what it says on the tin. The players have all played their part – Mark McGuinness coming in, Michael Ihiekwe, Ben Heneghan, Aden Flint is in there now, and Akin. Dominic Iorfa. Even with Liam Palmer and Reece James.

“I’ve seen Barry Bannan blocking shots, Will Vaulks disrupting play, George Byers too. I can see wingbacks tucking in, and strikers like Michael Smith chasing back 60 yards to make a challenge on the edge of his box. They all buy into it.”

Another impressive aspect is the amount of disruptions, and therefore changes to the backline, and Moore admits that it’s something to be proud of.

He went on to say, “There have been many different combinations in there, but the theme has remained the same in terms of the defensive approach, and it’s about being proud of gaining and achieving that record with so much of the season to go.

“Everybody has played their part in it. The goalkeeper and defenders will take the accolades, but it’s about the whole squad. It’s the same when they score goals, they score them as a team. Credit to them, but we keep working in training on those aspects, on nullifying the threats of opponents and exploiting their weaknesses.”

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