Owls Duo Set To Miss Out

Wednesday duo Chris Brunt and Deon Burton are both set to miss the start of the new season after seeing red during the Owls' pre-season tour of Holland last week.

Owls boss Brian Laws was furious with the decisions to send both players off in the clashes with Groningen and Heerenveen respectively and has revealed to BBC Radio Sheffield that the decisions are unlikely to be overturned.

The news means both players could be absent from the Owls' opening two fixtures of the 2007-08 campaign, away at Ipswich Town for the opening fixture and away in the Carling Cup First Round to neighbours Rotherham United.

'It's an unbeaten tour but I'm just sick to the stomach at losing two players. I spoke to the referee before the game and said if there were any problems I would take players off,' Laws told the Sheffield Star.

'Brunty went in with a late challenge but it was nothing sinister. All the referee had to do was talk to me but he gave him a red card and then told the players 'I've been told about you from the last game'.

'To cap it all there were racist remarks made to our players in the corner by the fans which was absolutely disgusting. I'm dejected to think we could lose Deon and Brunty for the first few games.

'It has turned our pre-season into a nightmare because I thought it had been going really well. It became an exercise in defending and to get the goal at the end was what we deserved.

'It's not easy when the referee wants to be centre stage and is telling everybody how good he is not to get angry.

'Their manager apologised, for the second game running, but with the referees it seems to be a 'me show'. But you have to deal with things like this.'