Sheffield Wednesday have advanced to the play-off final at Wembley after a 1-1 draw with Brighton, for whom Richie Towell remained on the bench throughout. Wednesday survived a Brighton onslaught, particularly in the first-half, but were consistently quelled by Irish goalkeeper Keiren Westwood, who continued his fine form this season.
Westwood's brilliance was so blatant, he avoided what we have discovered to be Glenn Whelan syndrome. Whelan is one of a select band of footballers with a surreptitious repeated consonant in his name. Others include Garry Monk and Sami Hyypia. Whelan gets a lot of flak from supporters and commentators alike, despite the fact he has been an ever-present in the Stoke and Irish midfield for almost a decade.
Whelan apologists point to the fact that the excels at the grubby and elements of the game in midfield; that his best work goes unnoticed. Our theory is that those who spell his name correctly pay sufficient attention to his performances in the middle of the park while those who do not are usually the ones who resort to slagging him off:
VS
Still love watching Glenn Whelan play… Does his job quietly and competently.
Nice to see him still doing well eight years after #SWFC.— Joe Crann (@YesWeCrann) January 26, 2016
Westwood's performance was so spectacularly brilliant tonight, however, that he attracted lots of praise despite the fact nobody knows how to spell his name.
Delighted for @KieranWestwood , top goalkeeper ,100% should be Martins No1 in France ⚽️
— Joseph Walshe (@walshe14) May 16, 2016
How good was Kieran Westwood? Just reminds me of the good days at @Coventry_City. Top keeper. #BHAFCvSWFC.
— Terry O'Brien (@terry_obrien86) May 16, 2016
Kieran Westwood is single handedly taking Sheffield Wednesday to Wembley! Another fine save to deny Brighton #swfc
— Reginaldo Rosario (@Regi1700) May 16, 2016
I hope Roy Keane and Martin O'Neil are watching Kieran Westwood tonight. He's been immense #swfc #Ireland
— MacGiollaChoille🍀 (@JonnyHoyle2) May 16, 2016
Kieron Westwood is Premier League quality without a doubt.. Great keeper!
— Joe Atkin (@JoeAtkin_95) May 16, 2016
How did The Great Wall of Kieren Westwood not get man of the match? #swfc
— shaq 🦉 (@shaqshah_) May 16, 2016
Keiren, lads.
