Sheffield Wednesday’s pre-match teamtalks shared with aim of togetherness and direction

Sheffield Wednesday goalkeeper David Stockdale has revealed he took the pre-match team talk ahead of the Owls recent win over Cheltenham Town last weekend.

The 37-year-old was making his 500th professional appearance against Cheltenham, in a game Wednesday went on to win 3-0 in comfortable fashion.

With 500 appearances to his name, it’s easy to see why Stockdale’s experience could be utilised by Owls boss Darren Moore and captain Barry Bannan.

READ MORE:Sheffield Wednesday’s David Stockdale tells of pride as he reflects on milestone appearance

Stockdale has in fact taken a few team talks this season, with Bannan trusting the veteran shot stopper to set the tone before they kick-off.

And speaking to Sheffield Wednesday’s official website, the Owls keeper believes that it can be a good thing to have another player reaffirm the message outlined by Bannan to make sure everyone is pulling in the same direction.

“I did the team talk in the circle and I wanted the lads to put on a professional show after the defeat to Plymouth Argyle where I thought our performance was good,” explained Stockdale.

“I just said carry on doing the same things, and we’ll capitalise and luckily we did. I’ve taken a couple now and I feel like sometimes Baz [Barry Bannan] feels like he’s saying the same things.

“It’s hard but he leads on the pitch. Sometimes it’s nice for somebody else, another voice to reaffirm the same things really. It’s just another voice and obviously Baz feels like I’m somebody they’ll listen to, even though they don’t during the week because I talk gibberish. But it’s about keeping the lads together and showing that we’re all going in the same direction and we all want the same thing.”

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