The Wednesday Word has already reported on where things are at for many of the youngsters ahead of the 2025/26 campaign, but with them having all been separate stories we thought we’d put together a handy guide for you.

With the season now at an end, the likes of Jonathan Pepper, Andy Sharp, Jordan Broadbent and the whole academy team have been working hard behind the scenes to put things in place for the campaign ahead. Unfortunately there will be plenty of players who have now donned Owls colours for the last time.

We’re expecting some kind of first team retained list in the near future, and it could be that one for the younger lads comes at the same time.

Anyway, here’s what we know about the two groups of players underneath Henrik Pedersen’s first team

Wednesday’s U21s

In terms of the goalkeepers, the two to keep an eye on for right now are Logan Stretch and Jack Phillips. It’s understood that the club are eager for both to remain part of things for the campaign ahead.

Defensively, there are still plenty of question marks over who will and won’t be part of things next season. Ernie Weaver almost certainly will be, with the club holding a one-year option on his contract, and there are talks over new deals for Reece Johnson and Joe Emery, too. It’s unknown at this point where things stand contractually for both Cole McGhee and Harry Evers, however the former is expected to stick around.

Mackenzie Maltby and Gui Siqueira, as reported by TWW, have been invited back for preseason after lengthy injuries in 2025/26, and will be hoping to secure deals to remain at Hillsborough. Elsewhere, it’s hoped that Kailen Hatfield will sign his first professional deal and join the U21 ranks.

In midfield, it’s already been confirmed that Rio Shipston will be moving on, while Henrik Pedersen has made it clear that they want to finalise a new contract for Jarvis Thornton as his current deal comes to an end.

It’s understood that there is also hope to sort out a contract for Bruno Fernandes, while details around Denny Oliver’s contract aren’t clear at this stage. The latter will be hoping to remain at Middlewood Road, too. A new addition to the setup could be U18s midfielder, Aodhan Sopala, who the club want to sign a first pro deal.

Then there’s the attackers. Wednesday have a one-year option on George Brown that they’re expected to exercise, while there will also be a desire to make sure Devlan Moses stays in blue and white. Junior Kamwa and Favour Onukwuli, however, may have now played their last game for the club.

Wednesday’s U18s

There’s likely to be a big turnover at U18 level, too. Scholarships will be ending, scholarships will be starting, and plenty of others will have another year to showcase their ability as they hope to land professional contracts.

As has so often been the case, Wednesday have some exciting goalkeeping talents coming through. Oliver Bramhall and Thomas Streets are the two that have caught the eye, but there’s also Charlie Hobbs. The latter could potentially be moving on this summer.

In defence, we could potentially see Jacob Jessop move on. The likes of Perry Ridge, Noah Dixon, Jack Barraclough and Reuben Selby, meanwhile, will start the second year of their scholarships.

The second-year midfielders consist of James Kay, Kleven De Oliveira and Harry Chadbourne, but there are question marks over Daniel Da Costa and Liam Clayton as their scholarships comes to an end.

Further up the field, we’ll see Charlie Robinson return for the second year of his scholarship, and Joel Akpobi will form part of Broadbent’s attack as well. With Will Grainger having quickly climbed up to form part of Pedersen’s senior ranks, they’ll be hoping that another young striking talent puts up his hand in the campaign ahead.

Newcomers to the setup will be Bramhall Jamie Darley, Roman Cawley, Charlie Liddell, Harrison Langford, Dennis Kohn, while the front row sees Louis Hutchison, Logan Scott, Benjamin Sedgwick and Oscar Wildman.

A few of them have already played at this level, and there are high expectations for many. Sedgwick in particular, will be one that fans keep an eye on given that he’s the son of former Owl, Chris.

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As things stand there are only nine players who could be classed as seniors who are contracted to the club for next season, and a handful of them aren’t exactly experienced professionals.

With the final whistle having now been blown for the first team, U21s and U18s, we thought we’d give you a whistlestop tour of what our current understanding is on the state of play going into the 2026/27 campaign.

The contracted

Pierce Charles, Di’Shon Bernard, Yan Valery, Sean Fusire, Gabriel Otegbayo, Ike Ugbo, Jamal Lowe, Olaf Kobacki and Charlie McNeill are all believed to have deals going into next season.

In terms of actual confirmations, only Rio Shipston and Nathaniel Chalobah have made their departures public up to now, but more of those are set to come in the coming days and weeks. There’s also an expectation that Valery will be sold this summer, most likely after the World Cup.

Meanwhile, there may well be some talk of new and improved deals - especially as relegation wage drops kick in - with Charles front and centre on that front. Everybody else, though will no longer be an Owl come July 1st as things stand.

The options

There are options, of course, with the club having the opportunity to extend the deals of Liam Palmer, Svante Ingelsson, Ernie Weaver and George Brown, although there’s no immediate rush on that front given that they have until the third Saturday in May - which is the 16th this year.

It’s expected that Ingelsson, Weaver and Brown will all have their options exercised, however it’s believed that there are discussions taking place regarding the future of Palmer.

Speaking to The Wednesday Word on Tuesday, the Owls captain said, “I’ve not spoken to Henrik since the game on Saturday, I know he’s been busy - as have the owners. They’ve probably got a list as big as their arm to sort out, but we’ll probably go for a bit of food in the next few days.

“I know he’s going back to Denmark as well, but we’ll catch up before that and we’ll talk shop.”

The possibles

Of those who will see their contracts expire this summer, it is unknown at this point exactly who is in Pedersen’s plans for the 2026/27 campaign.

Two that we do know, however, are experienced defenders - Max Lowe and Liam Cooper. It’s understood that early talks have been had, with both players very open to the idea of joining the fight in League One, but as of now there is nothing official with either.

Cooper, speaking to TWW this week, said, ““Hopefully the boys can take that into next season, and I can be a part of that. We’ll see on that, it’s in the club’s hands as we speak. There are amazing people at the club, amazing support, and it resonates really well with myself in terms of how I see life and football, so hopefully I can be a part of things next year. We’ll leave that to those in power, but I’ll do everything I can do be here.”

Jarvis Thornton is set to be offered a new deal after some solid showings in his debut Championship season, and Pedersen has made it clear that he’d like to see the 20-year-old remain at the club for the upcoming campaign.

Young Mackenzie Maltby, who featured in the last two games of the season, could well be offered a new contract as well, but it’s unknown right now as to when that decision will be made.

Other young players such as Zain Silcott-Duberry, Logan Stretch, Reece Johnson, Bruno Fernandes, Devlan Moses, Jack Phillips and Joe Emery fall into the ‘unknown’ category for now given a lack of detail on their individual contract situations.

The loanees

Murphy Cooper and Jerry Yates have said their goodbyes internally, while Joel Ndala has been out of the picture for a little while now. With Cooper and Yates, they could be options that are revisited next season depending on what happens, while Ndala will simply return to Manchester City.

Things could be a bit more interesting when it comes to both Tayo Adaramola and Jaden Heskey, though. It’s understood that both players have left a very positive impression on the technical team at Hillsborough, and that permanent moves are being weighed up for both of them.

Wednesday are no longer bound by an inability to spend transfer fees, and while it’s unlikely that they’ll be splashing big cash this summer, there has been a suggestion that deals could be struck with both Crystal Palace and City - possibly utilising future clauses rather than money up-front.

The youngsters

One name in particular is of interest to Wednesdayites, with Will Grainger having showcased his quality as the season came to an end. The 17-year-old is an exciting talent at Hillsborough, and there is a definite aim to tie him down on a first professional contract. Those talks are expected to progress in the near future.

Also set for the first pro deals are teenagers, Kailen Hatfield and Aodhan Sopala, both of whom have impressed at U18 level this season.

It will sadly be the end of the road for many, with several players from the U21s and U18s having now played their last game for the club. Definitive details on those leaving aren’t quite clear, but it is thought that Junior Kamwa and Favour Onukwuli could be among those on the way out.

The scholars

As reported yesterday, there are 10 players who will begin their Middlewood Road scholarships next season.

They are: Jamie Darley, Roman Cawley, Olly Bramhall, Charlie Liddell, Harrison Langford, Dennis Kohn, Louis Hutchison, Logan Scott, Benjamin Sedgwick and Oscar Wildman.

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Last week was a monumental one for the Owls as David Storch and his Arise consortium finally sealed their takeover of the club, ending the reign of Dejphon Chansiri at Hillsborough. Storch, alongside his son, Michael, and Tom Costin, take over a club destined for League One, but with hopes of a brighter future.

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Thanks to the likes of Tim, Neil, Maverick, Matt, David, Steve and Kate for sending in their questions - I’ll try and do more of these going forward.

Do you think he’s really in Sheffield’s top three for bowling? 🎳😅

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On May 5^th, down at Club de Padel in Neepsend, a ‘Yorkshire Classico’ will take place as former players from Wednesday, Sheffield United, Leeds United, Doncaster Rovers, Rotherham United and Barnsley.

Barnsley lock horns to raise money for Weston Park Cancer Charity. The tournament has been set up by Owls coach, Pete Shuttleworth, in an attempt to raise vital funds for Weston Park Cancer Charity and their Rochelle Baxter Fund, which contributes to the Teenage and Young Adult Cancer Service.

Owls skipper, Liam Palmer, will co-captain the SWFC side alongside club legend, Barry Bannan, while Liam Cooper is their Leeds counterpart.

The likes of Marvin Johnson, Giles Coke, Aden Flint, Billy Sharpe, Brian Deane and David McGoldrick are amongst the other competitors, and ‘Palms’ says that he’s waiting to see how he matches up in comparison to the challengers from elsewhere.

“I’m still very much a padel beginner myself,” he told The Wednesday Word with a smile. “I think that’s why I’ve been given the captain’s mantle! The teams are in, so I’m looking forward to seeing how our side does. Marvin Johnson plays quite a bit, Aden Flint is coming as well - so it’ll be nice to see some old teammates.

“With all the charities around here it’s difficult to just hone in on one, but Weston Park do some fantastic work, and I’m happy to support Pete in his idea. It’s nice that the football community has come together, rivalries aside, to support this charity. I’m really looking forward to it.

“There’s quite a few people that I’m looking forward to seeing that’s not in such a pressured environment, so it’ll be nice to have a proper catch-up… I’m not sure if Baz is down to play or not yet, or if he’s first reserve, but he’s a bit of a sport billy - he’s good at golf, good at padel as well, so he’ll be itching to play. Lee Gregory is hoping to play as well, but he’s got a bit of a padel/tennis elbow at the moment.”

Palmer also heaped praise on the work done by Weston Park, saying that they relish the opportunity to give back to their community.

“Whenever you go up there and meet people that have used their services, you never know what to really expect. But spending time with patients and workers you get to see first hand what they do on a daily basis, so anything we can do as footballers with a platform to do good, even if it’s just sending a video message or having a coffee with somebody, we’re all keen to help and support. If we can make somebody’s day and put a smile on their face, we’re happy to do so.

Meanwhile, Cooper is hoping to get out on the court again once he’s recovered from his injury next month, admitting that he’s expecting it to get competitive even though it is all for a good cause.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun,” he told TWW. “Pete Shuttleworth is heavily involved with his wife, and getting it out there - running the socials and stuff like that. As soon as Pete mentioned it I jumped at the chance. I don’t know as we speak now whether I’ll be able to play obviously with the injury, but hopefully I’ll be there and playing.

“I’ve got Brian Deane involved, as well as Seb Carole and Adam Forshaw who have all played for Leeds, so it’ll be interesting to get around everyone. I don’t know how my padel game is going to compare, I’ve not seen them play, but I was playing a lot in the off-season and when I wasn’t playing.

“The more fans we can get there, the better. Tickets have gone live and I know it’s going to be a great event. Obviously it’s going to be competitive, too, we’re all competitive animals. I’m sure there will be a few smashed bats, but it’s all for a good cause. Everyone’s really looking forward to it.

“We want to win!”

“Of course we want to win. I’ve been competitive since I was a kid, and I’m sure everyone else has too… We want to win, we want to get our ratings up. It’s all fun and it’s to raise money for charity, but I’m sure all the lads will be wanting to win every point.”

‘Coops’ also reiterated the importance of WP and their work, adding, “It’s all for a great cause, Weston Park do amazing things for people living with cancer and the aftercare as well. It’s something that’s very close to my heart, obviously - as with a lot of people - it’s a horrible disease that’s taken its toll on my family. It’s something I’m very proud to raise money for and be involved in.

“It’s so sad that in this day and age we can’t find a cure, but one day we’ll get there and hopefully that day isn’t too far away.”

The tournament takes place from 5pm until 8.30pm on May 5th at Club De Padel on Boyland Street, and you can get your tickets here. Watch the matches, support your team and meet the players. All money raised will go to the WPH Teenage Unit.

There hasn’t been much enjoyment to be had from this season from a Wednesdayite perspective. We’ve had points deductions and takeover tribulations, goal droughts and record-breakingly bad results.

Through it all, though, fans have been there to cheer on their team, to initiate change, and to showcase what it means to be a true supporter - through thick and thin. ‘Til the wheels off.

With that in mind, I thought it’d be nice to give something back. So I’ve teamed up with Heist Brew Co, who are a 13-minute tram ride away from Hillsborough, ahead of the potentially sold-out affair against the Baggies.

I’ll be hosting a special edition of The Wednesday Word show from Heist, where I’ll hopefully have a guest or two, and they’ve kindly offered to put on a special two-for-one beer offer for anybody who is subscribed here at TWW…

The BOGOF special will be available to anyone who is subscribed, free or otherwise, but there will be further benefits still to be confirmed for paid subscribers. We’ll be in touch about how to access the deal next week.

Doors will open at 10, two and a half hours before kick off, and you can head back afterwards after you’ve belted out ‘Honolulu Wednesday’ for a couple of hours over at S6.

If you’re already subscribed, then thank you. If you’re not, and you’d like to get a few free beers next Saturday - simply click the button below to join the family.

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It’s been made pretty clear that Henrik Pedersen will be the man tasked with leading the Owls forward should the Arise consortium complete their takeover, so the Dane will have a big say in what happens next in terms of the Wednesday squad.

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The Wednesday Word reported recently that the 20-year-old was on trial with the Owls, with the youngster scoring in his first outing for the club as they beat Wigan Athletic 2-0 last week. He could now be given a further opportunity to train with the club’s first team after getting a similar chance recently.

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It’s been a huge opening couple of weeks for us over at TWW, with over 2,400 of you subscribing to this brand new SWFC universe. It means more than we can possibly explain.

As a thank you, we reached out to our friends at the Terrace to see if we could give something back, and – like the tremendous folk they are – they obliged.

So… If you signed up as a paid subscriber you could enter into the draw to win one of 20 £10 vouchers to spend at theterracestore.com. They can be redeemed anywhere on the site, with the only proviso being that you spend £30 or more.

It got better, too. They also kindly gave us one £40 voucher as well, which is enough to pick up their Boxing Day massacre replica, one of their lovely tech hoodies, or a couple of great Wednesday t-shirts. If you want an Owl on your Guinness glass, they’ve got you covered there as well.

What you’re getting for your fiver…

I know what you might be thinking - why was this worth your money? Well I’m hoping that the content I’m producing right here on TWW is worth £5 a month, but that’s not all you're getting.

Your money helps fund the entire universe - the YouTube channel, the social media graphics, the podcast, they’re all under the same umbrella. In terms of articles alone, with 50 published this month, you’d have paid 10p per piece.

Now for the bit you’ve been waiting for. The Winners! If you’re on the list below, I’ll be in touch!

Nigel
Jordan Peterson
Timothyowl
HellsBells
Adam Swift
Matthew Simons
Lewis Widdowson
Darren Keating
Duncan Leesley
Olivia McGuinness
Robert Whitelaw
Drabbs
Stuart Cook
Mark Nadin
Mand
Lucy Jeffkin
Jonathan Priestley
Steve Battey
Finlay Sanderson
Lewis Waddingham

And the big winner…

Dale Gordon

The Argentine was arguably the best player that Wednesdayites had seen in years after he joined the club from Watford in the early days of Dejphon Chansiri, and he came so close to helping the Owls back to the promised land of the Premier League in 2015/16.

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Promotion eluded them, unfortunately, and as the following campaign got underway multi-million-pound bids were coming in for the attacker that Chansiri quickly batted away. It didn’t go down well.

Now, for the first time, Forestieri has opened up on the situation in Dom Howson’s ‘Carlos Had A Dream’ book.

There’s an exclusive look below, and you could win a copy for yourself at the bottom of the page…

Forestieri refused to travel to Wednesday’s game at Norwich City amid speculation linking him with a move to Derby County and Newcastle United. A £7m bid from Derby had already been rejected. The noise had unsettled Forestieri and Carvalhal later admitted the player’s ‘mind was not in the right place’ to be involved at Carrow Road as Wednesday ground out a goalless draw.

He had already needed convincing by Carvalhal and Glenn Loovens to play in the season opener against Aston Villa a week earlier – a match in which he scored the winner. Chansiri, meanwhile, made his stance unequivocal: none of Wednesday’s key players were for sale.

Forestieri eventually issued a contrite apology to his teammates, Carvalhal, Chansiri and the supporters, describing his actions as ‘unacceptable and unprofessional’. But years later, he offered a fuller, more reflective explanation.

“I want to say sorry again to the fans because it was a very bad reaction from me,” he said. “But I also felt I was right. Every human being understands this: if you have a shop, and the shop next door offers you something better – and that next door was the Premier League – of course you think about leaving. Everyone would. And if the club had sold me and other players, then we wouldn’t talk about transfer embargoes or anything like that later down the line. It would have been a different situation. Some fans were angry with me, but they didn’t know what was really happening with Chansiri.

“My agent wanted to speak to him to explain the situation, but Chansiri didn’t want to speak to my agent. I went to the stadium to try and speak to Chansiri and he said: ‘Fer, I don’t want to talk.’ I was angry because we had just gone so close to going up and he didn’t want to speak to me about my future. I wanted to say: ‘I made a mistake but please, you need to sell players, you need to do something.’

“But he didn’t want to hear me. So my reaction was: ‘Okay, if you don’t want to hear me, then for the next game I won’t play.’ Maybe it could have been different. I was transparent in that moment. I could have faked an injury, said something was wrong and avoided everything. Other players might have done that. But I went straight and said: ‘I’m not playing because of this reason.’ I’m a transparent person. I always said I would die on the pitch for the fans. At that time, I was frustrated and it felt like the right thing. Because if he had sold me then, we wouldn’t be talking about this now.”

For your chance to win your own copy of ‘Carlos Had A Dream’, leave a comment on this article with the estimated release date of the book. (Hint: The answer is in the link above).

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It’s almost a month since ‘Arise’ were named as the preferred bidder by the Owls’ administrators, with the American group seeking to take ownership of the club and bring to an end a truly difficult time over at Hillsborough.

Speaking in interviews he’s ticked plenty of boxes, and it’s safe to suggest that many Wednesdayites who were possibly on the fence about the consortium’s credentials have been converted by the transparency and forthrightness that’s been shown over the last few weeks.

And it’s no accident that Storch is saying the right things, either. As part of their research, and as they plan for the future, The Wednesday Word understands several local businesses and local people have been engaged with in order to try and make the right decisions to create not only a sustainable football club going forward, but one that is a true reflection of the community in which it finds itself.

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It’s all a bit mad, really. ‘Palms’ has been on quite the journey since his debut against Bury back in 2010, and he’ll definitely not have expected to make 504 outings in the colours of his boyhood club.

There have been promotions, relegations, a great escape and numerous awards… There’s also been a pretty memorable goal at Hillsborough that no Wednesdayite who was alive to see it will ever forget.

Playing over 500 games for one club is a feat in itself, but to do so in a modern game where players move left, right and centre is genuinely incredible. He has had chances to leave, and he’s had to fight his way back into managerial plans on many occasions, but he’s always pulled it off. With professionalism and dignity, too.

Monday saw him go level with Alan Finney in joint-third, and in four games’ time he’ll overtake Brown on 507. Here at The Wednesday Word we thought we’d take a look at some of the crazy numbers behind Mr. Sheffield Wednesday’s long spell at S6.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

38, 398 - Total minutes played in a Sheffield Wednesday shirt. And counting.

242 - The amount of Wednesday players he’s shared a pitch with in a competitive fixture.

23,236 - Minutes playing alongside Barry Bannan

639 - Successful league tackles since the start of 2013/14

181 - The games played with Atdhe Nuhiu. More than any other Owl except Barry Bannan (315).

12, 809 - Minutes on the field with Tom Lees. Only Bannan is higher.

34 - Goals and assists, including at least one in every competition he’s played in. The Championship, League One, the FA Cup, the EFL Trophy and the EFL Cup.

786 - Clearances Championship and League One clearances since the 2013/14 season began.

46 - Games played for Tranmere Rovers - his only time spent away from the Owls.

17 - The amount of active players with 500 appearances for one club. Igor Akinfeev (817 - CSKA Moscow) is top, and Palmer is only one of six in the UK.

17, again - Matches against Middlesbrough, more than any other club.

6-0 - Biggest win in a Wednesday shirt. It came against Leeds United in 2014.

2 - Player of the Year awards - 2013/14 and 2022/23.

1 - Play-off semi-final goal in the final seconds of injury time