'Owls' promotion will be harder than some think'

Walking into Hillsborough on Saturday felt a little bit like walking into a building site. The former 1867 Lounge, soon to be "Hirsty's", was closed off as work continues. The corridor leading to the former press room wasn't accessible. The post-game interviews were done pitchside, not in the usual room downstairs. You could see how much was going on as the new regime tried to cram a year's worth of work into three months, in an attempt to transform the club. On the pitch, there was a much-needed 1-0 win against Bolton in the EFL Cup first round. One fan said after the game as he left the stadium: "I enjoyed that today." It's something Owls supporters haven't been able to say very often over the past 12 months. There were also signs that it's a work in progress on the pitch, too. This wasn't a classic performance, but it was a necessary one after an embarrassing 4-0 friendly defeat to Oldham last week. So how should we view Sheffield Wednesday ahead of the league season kicking off? Everyone at the club seems to be working double overtime to get things ready as quickly as possible. It would benefit everyone to have some perspective. This isn't a quick fix. This is a club that has needed major infrastructure work for years. It has needed a chief executive and a sporting director. It has needed a coherent recruitment plan. There are going to be teething problems. Fans sent me pictures before the game of queues outside the South Stand, as fans struggled to get into Hillsborough before kick-off. The ticket pricing for Bradford City wasn't well received either and could've been handled better. The playing squad clearly has some holes. While there's now enough depth for the manager to make meaningful second-half changes - Jamal Lowe, a substitute, came on and scored the winner against Bolton - they still need more, as they work within EFL restrictions. Not everything is going to suddenly flow and be perfect simply because Dejphon Chansiri has been replaced. Remembering that, and having a degree of patience and understanding – to an extent – would be fair. There's an elevator in reception that is currently out of order. Someone had written a note on it on Saturday: "Lift's not going up, but Wednesday are." It's obviously a bit of fun, but it probably wouldn't be the worst thing to not set expectations at that level just yet. With the wave of positivity and optimism that the new era has brought in, you do get the sense some people genuinely believe the club will now waltz to promotion. I think it'll be a lot harder than those people anticipate. That doesn't mean it can't happen. It could. But adjusting expectations might be best for everyone's sanity. Nobody ever wants advice from a journalist, but I'm going to recommend some anyway. Celebrate a fresh start for the club. Carry the summer excitement into the season. Hope for the best but prepare for some frustrating moments. Try and enjoy the journey for now and not worry too much about the destination. A lot of good has been achieved so far - especially re-connecting the club to the fans, as evidenced by the huge amount of season ticket sales. This is a big project, though. That comes with the territory when you have to rebuild a club from ground zero.