It was an unhappy Christmas for the Owls as they entered the month 14th but finished it back in the Championship drop zone following four defeats and two draws. The curse of November's Manager of the Month accolade was certainly apparent!

December started in the worst possible way for Wednesday, conceding a goal within the first minute against Geraint Williams' Colchester United side as Teddy Sheringham scored his third goal of the season.

Colchester United were struggling after a fantastic campaign last time out and were in danger of spiralling down into the drop zone. They came to Hillsborough on December 1 following two straight defeats at the hands of Crystal Palace and Wolves and eight games since their last win.

But the visitors were to stop the rot on this occasion with Sheringham and George Elokobi scoring one apiece, let in by some sloppy defending. Akpo Sodje's tap-in proved to be only a consolation goal in the 2-1 defeat.

A below par performance from Wednesday saw their run of resistance come to end, suffering their first defeat in seven games.

The 5-0 victory three weeks prior over Southampton provided the travelling Wednesdayites with plenty of confidence ahead of the return fixture at St Mary's, despite losing out to Colchester. On this occasion, the Tuesday evening down on the South Coast ended with neither side able to score - but still a credible point gained by Wednesday.

The game did provide one key moment as Owls' hitman Akpo Sodje was stretched off after a heavy challenge and as a result missed the next three games against tough opposition.

Wednesday looked to bounce back to winning ways the next weekend against Iain Dowie's Coventry City but the Sky Blues were met with heavy skies and continuing persistent rainfall which was the referee abandon the match with less than half an hour on the clock at Hillsborough.

A 2-1 defeat at Crystal Palace the following Saturday meant that Wednesday dropped closer to the danger zone and, after taking the lead through Richard Hinds' early goal, conceding in the last minute to lose the game was hard to take.

Eagles' danger man Clinton Morrison equalised for the hosts before the break and a cool finish from 17-year-old substitute Sean Scannell in the final minute cruelly stole a point from Wednesday.

But even more difficult to take for Laws was the injury sustained by right back Frank Simek. The USA international landed awkwardly trying to control a high ball and severely damaged ankle ligaments as the S6 injury crisis deepened.

With Watford to come at Hillsborough, things weren't to get any easier for the Owls. Aidy Boothroyd's men had stumbled in the league and after a home defeat to Plymouth, they found themselves in second position.

Return to the top was the aim for Watford and a 1-0 scoreline allowed them to do just that. An early goal from Jobi McAnuff was enough to settle the tie, despite late pressure from the Owls.

Burnley, who were next on the list for Brian Laws' side, were having some success in the league, so a visit to Turf Moor on Boxing Day was always going to be difficult.

The Owls took the lead after half an hour through a bizarre penalty - Deon Burton who was making his 100th appearance for the club slotting home while Gabor Kirally in goal wasted time kicking his post. But just a minute later the home side drew level and Wednesday finished level.

The month ended as it started with the Owls narrowly losing - this time to Hull City at the KC stadium. Having defeated the Tigers back in September, Wednesday were unable to complete the double.

Former Owls loanee Dean Windass fired in the only goal of the game with a superb free kick in the first half. The goal saw Wednesday head into the new-year with a relegation fight on their hands.

December Matches
Owls 1-2 Colchester United (Sodje 36)
Southampton 0-0 Owls
Crystal Palace 2-1 Owls (Hinds 11)
Owls 0-1 Watford
Burnley 1-1 Owls (Burton 30 pen)
Hull 1-0 Owls

To read our other monthly reviews of the 2007/08 season click on the relevant link below:

August 2007
September 2007
October 2007
November 2007