Report: Chris Nokes

Snapshot: Cardiff couldn't find the net to prevent Sheffield Wednesday from taking maximum points at Hillsborough on Saturday - the Owls win lifting them from the bottom three while denting any Bluebirds play-off aspirations at the same time.

The win was sealed in the first half from Marcus Tudgay's close range strike, and despite Cardiff's dominance throughout, the home side maintained their lead to collect an important three points.

Cardiff came close via continued Hasselbaink pressure, Aaron Ramsey hitting the woodwork and a close Gavin Rae header that beat Lee Grant but flew over the bar. The loss was confirmed to notch four league games with no win for City, meaning a poor February for the City squad and no wins despite the FA Cup fun.

Team News: The Bluebirds made one change in their starting line up from the team that faced Wolverhampton Wanderers last Saturday. That change is the inclusion of Captain Darren Purse, replacing the suspended Glen Loovens in the heart of the Cardiff defence. An injury to Darcy Blake before the game meant that he could not take his place on the bench and Dave Jones was unable to get anyone to fill that fifth spot.

Chronological Report

The start of the game marked a spell of early pressure from Cardiff, most notably after five minutes when a good through ball from Aaron Ramsey was only just smothered by Wednesday's goalie Lee Grant. Wednesday responded with a spectacular overhead kick from Wade Small on the edge of the area went straight to Peter Enckelman in the middle of the Cardiff goal. A lot of early balls were pumped long and over the top of the Sheffield Wednesday defence with no end product - Cardiff choosing to play the ball over the top instead of on the deck with the pitch being as poor as it was. On the near side the pitch was very boggy and this made playing good football that much harder.

The pressure continued with an excellent interchange by Paul Parry and Aaron Ramsey that resulted in an excellent chance for Ramsey. His pace got him away from his marker and his resulting shot was blocked allowing Sheffield Wednesday to scramble the ball clear. Cardiff were clearly on top but unable to convert their dominance in possession to good chances, while Sheffield Wednesday were unable to string many passes together and flowing football was hard to find from the team in blue and white, much to the home crowd's annoyance. A shot from Graham Kavanagh kept Enckelman on his toes as he saved at his near post.

Cardiff's best chance in the first half occurred after 25 mins when Aaron Ramsey found space in the centre, just outside the box. His low drive struck the wood of the post and flashed across the goalmouth, but could not find its way to the net. The ball went straight up the other end and Sheffield Wednesday forced some pressure of their own. As the Cardiff defence cleared they managed to put Paul Parry through, thanks to a neat pass by Aaron Ramsey. His shot, however, dribbled past Grant's far post for a goal kick. Graham Kavanagh was then able to fashion his own chance which sent Enckelman sprawling across the goal, but he was able to collect the ball at the second attempt.

Cardiff were suddenly becoming able to create chances that would test Lee Grant. Two excellent shots followed from the Bluebirds, one from Dutchman Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink that forced Grant to action with an excellent save. The second was an excellent curling shot from Peter Whittingham in which Grant would have been relieved to see the ball hit the advertising boards behind his goal. In between the two shots, Sheffield Wednesday had a penalty decision turned down by Referee Deadman. The calls came after a jinking run from tricky Jamaican Jermaine Johnson, which ended with the winger on the deck.

The game got its first goal five minutes before the break when, against the run of play, Sheffield Wednesday took the lead. From the right hand side the ball was lofted up to the imposing Nigerian Enoch Showumni. The ex-Bristol City man cleverly headed the ball across the box to his strike partner Marcus Tudgay. The Bluebirds defenders had been sucked in by Showumni and Tudgay was unmarked to half volley the ball past Peter Enckelman and into the back of the net. Darren Purse then vainly attacked the ball from a corner in search of an equaliser but his header ballooned into the stand behind the Sheffield Wednesday goal.

HALF TIME: SHEFF WED 1 - 0 CARDIFF

The first chance of the second half fell to former Bluebird Graham Kavanagh when his long range free kick was blocked by Darren Purse, which got the crowd on their feet. Sheffield Wednesday started the second half as the better side with a period of sustained pressure on the Cardiff goal. Cardiff were struggling to match the fluidity of their play in the first half. They did however, create a few half chances. Ramsey was put through in the box, but the 17 year old could not get the ball out of his feet and it was cleared. Hasselbaink was then to create a chance of his own, when he took the ball on the right hand edge of the penalty area. He cut inside, however his resulting shot was poor and it flew over the bar.

A bizarre scenario then took place when Sheffield Wednesday played the ball through to Tudgay. The assistant's flag was raised on the far side to signal offside, however the referee overruled the linesman and play continued.

Luckily for Cardiff, Enckelman and his defence hadn't switched off and Tudgay's shot was blocked for a corner. Graham Kavanagh's confidence had started to grow and he showed this with a very long range effort which, although was well struck, Enckelman always had covered.

By now though, Cardiff had started to find a foothold on the game and were pressurising the Sheffield defence. The Bluebirds had some scrappy chances in the box which included shots from Gavin Rae and Aaron Ramsey, both shots were blocked by the resilient home defence. Darren Purse was then presented with an excellent chance from a Peter Whittingham corner. The ball was glanced to the far post where Purse was unable to get his header on target and Sheffield breathed a sigh of relief yet again.

The pressure on the 'Wednesday goal was immense as Cardiff searched for that equaliser that, on the days proceedings, they deserved. A Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink shot from close range could not find the net as the frustration from the Cardiff team grew.

The home crowds' nerves were starting to show as they edged towards a vital three points in their battle to avoid the drop into League 1. The last chance of the game fell to the head of Darren Purse as he struggled to get enough power on the ball to beat Grant.

The former Derby keeper was able to claim the ball from Purse's header and his boot up field signalled the end of the game. The roar of the Sheffield crowd told the story, as Sheffield Wednesday got a victory to claw themselves up the table. Cardiff would be disappointed that they could not take the advantage and win the game to boost their play off hopes and ultimately promotion to the Premiership.

FULL TIME: SHEFF WED 1 - 0 CARDIFF

Sheff Wed: Grant, Bullen (Hinds 26), Gilbert, Beevers, Wood, Kavanagh, Johnson (Sahar 73), Small, Bolder, Showunmi (Burton 86), Tudgay. Subs Not Used: O'Brien, Wallwork. Booked: Johnson. Goals: Tudgay 41

Cardiff: Enckelman, McNaughton, Capaldi, Purse, Johnson, Rae, Ramsey, McPhail (Thompson 74), Whittingham, Hasselbaink, Parry. Subs Not Used: Oakes, Sinclair, Brown. Booked: Purse

Att: 18,539

Ref: Darren Deadman