Sheffield Wednesday manager Brian Laws was understandably delighted with his team's 5-0 rout of Southampton on Saturday afternoon, not only for the score-line but in large part because of his players' hard work on the day.

The Owls boss feels his side are finding the same team spirit which allowed them to march up the table to within a whisker of the play-offs last season. Wednesday have now lost just one match in their last six outings and moved into 15th place in the Championship ahead of Sheffield United's evening kick-off at Stoke City, following an all-time worst start to a season of six-straight league defeats.

Following a great 2-1 win at Plymouth a week ago and a hard-fought 1-1 draw at West Brom on Tuesday, Laws was elated after handing out a thumping to George Burley's team.

"I think it has been a terrific week of results for us, today was a terrific performance and I am absolutely delighted for the players because they are now showing the team spirit that we had last year," Laws said. "It was quite evident then that if you work hard you can get results and today we have really performed as a team.

"You can point your finger at individuals and say Sodje has two goals and Whelan got two goals but, all in all, it was team effort and the only way you can get those opportunities is by hard work. That's what we showed today and it's credit to the players.

"Right from the start of the game we looked confident and were trying to be progressive and positive with the football. At times we struggled getting in their final third of the pitch, particularly in the first 15 minutes but once we got our goal it seemed to give everybody another lift."

"We are starting to make that six-game start dissolve in the background and we don't really need to talk about it any more but saying that I've just talked about it myself!" Laws joked.

But the Wednesday manager said he was serious about giving praise to his players: "The players have been magnificent in training and everything we have approached so all credit should go down to them," Laws stated.

While reluctant to single-out players, he acknowledged Akpo Sodje's confidence had now come to the fore after his move from Port Vale in August.

"Sodje came into a struggling team and this is a big football club, it has probably shocked him in that sense and it has probably taken him a while to find his feet but he got that first goal at Plymouth and you could see him ooze with confidence."

Laws continued: "Today he has got a couple of goals and they're not tap-ins are they? They were outstanding and I can't wait to see his second goal again, it has come from a very acute angle but he has blasted it in the back of the net. He has not only scored the goals but he has worked hard as well. We have had a massive jolt with Jeffers missing but Sodje has come in and said 'you don't have to miss him.'"

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