Barry Bannon celebrates scoring a wonder goalGetty Images

Barry Bannan's superb goal drew Sheffield Wednesday level with Derby at Pride Park

Dan Wheeler
BBC Sport England

Jamal Lowe's injury-time goal after a wonderous strike from Barry Bannan sealed a stunning comeback for Sheffield Wednesday, who beat a shocked Derby County at Pride Park.

Challenged to start games with more urgency by boss Paul Warne, the Rams duly delivered as Ebou Adams swept them into a ninth-minute lead from Marcus Harness' fizzing cut-back.

Returning on-loan top scorer Jerry Yates was then denied superbly by Owls goalkeeper James Beadle early in the second half before the striker flicked a close-range header on to the bar from a corner.

But the Rams' failure to extend their lead cost them as Bannan, on his 35th birthday, curled a sensational left-footed effort from the edge of the box into the top right-hand corner just past the hour to peg his old club back.

In a much more even last 20 minutes, Bannan whistled another left-foot effort inches wide before Lowe slid home Callum Paterson's drilled pass from four yards to cap a brilliant recovery.

The win - Wednesday's fourth in their past six games on the road in all competitions - lifted them into the top half of the Championship table, while the Rams' stuttering home form continued, leaving them 15th.

After defeat by Swansea in midweek, Derby boss Warne wanted to see faster starts from his team and he would have been happy with the way they popped the ball around with real purpose in the opening stages.

The manner of their opener epitomised that confidence as Yates drifted to the edge of the box, fed the overlapping Harness down the left, whose cut-back was clinically converted by Adams from six yards.

Nathaniel Mendez-Laing then went close to doubling the lead four minutes later only denied by a fully-extended Beadle as the Rams continued to ooze self-belief.

Craig Forsyth and the industrious Mendez-Laing could not make more of decent half-chances as subdued Wednesday struggled to pose any real threat for the rest of the half - ending it with an expected goal (xG) ratio of 0.01.

Owls head coach Danny Rohl changed things at the break, throwing on striker Josh Windass and tweaking the formation to a back three, but it was the home side who continued to look more dangerous.

Yates should have notched his fifth of the season, and fourth in as many games, but was brilliantly denied by Beadle from eight yards after another flowing one-touch Rams move.

He then saw a header come back off the bar after a corner caused mayhem in the Owls box.

But Derby's failure to go further ahead came back to bite them on 64 minutes.

With the danger from a right-wing cross seemingly dealt with by the defence, the ball fell to the feet of Bannan 20 yards out, who took a little look up before curling a collector's item into the top corner.

Bannan, who had a 10-game loan with Derby in 2009 during his Aston Villa days, almost put the visitors ahead with nine minutes to go, caressing another left-footed effort just wide of the post from 20 yards.

As the gap between the sides continued to close, Wednesday won it when two other substitutes combined - Lowe sliding in to stab home Paterson's cut-back on the turn ahead of defender Kane Wilson.

'To lose it like that hurts' - reaction

Sheffield Wednesday midfielder Barry Bannan told BBC Radio Sheffield:

"We found it hard to turn the game in the first half and I had a word with myself at half-time because I knew I had to do something special.

"I'm just glad I got the goal to get us back in the game, to get three points is amazing.

"The Derby fans were battering me in the first half and I got booked. I had a personal vendetta to come out and do something.

"The ball fell to me - it happened so quick - and I capitalised.

"I enjoyed my spell here when I was younger so it was a bit weird they were booing me. I thought I'd be alright here but I got the last laugh.

"The win shows you the mentality we have in the dressing room. It's a big thing for us going forward."

Derby defender Kane Wilson told BBC Radio Derby:

"I feel physically sick, it's horrible.

"It felt like we were really, really good for large parts of the game and to lose it like that hurts.

"Goals change games and if we go 2-0 up it takes the wind out of their sails, but that's a team thing and we've got to do better.

"First half felt like one of the best we've played but, second half, we lost a bit of that control. It's disappointing."

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