Sheffield Wednesday had a League One cheat code between 2021 & 2023 - he’ll never be forgotten | OneFootball

Lee Gregory was already a proven EFL goalscorer before he joined Sheffield Wednesday, and he helped the Owls return to the Championship

Lee Gregory already had a more than impressive résumé before he joined Sheffield Wednesday in 2021, and he would only go on to strengthen that during his time with the Owls.

The frontman had seven years of EFL experience behind him before he arrived at Hillsborough, with the majority of it coming in the Championship with the likes of Millwall, Derby County and Stoke City, whom he left to join Wednesday.

The then-32-year-old's experience in League One resulted in back-to-back play-off campaigns at the Den, with the latter resulting in Championship promotion, and now he was being tasked with leading the line for another side desperate to get back into the second tier.

The Sheffield-born striker would become a huge part of a popular Wednesday team in League One, and his contributions across the two full seasons he spent with the Owls are no doubt ones that both he and the fans at Hillsborough remember fondly.

Lee Gregory rediscovered his goalscoring form at Sheffield Wednesday

Gregory hadn't finished outside the League One play-offs in both of his prior seasons at the level, scoring 38 times across two campaigns whilst at Millwall as he helped the Lions return to the Championship in 2018.

Unfortunately, his career stagnated somewhat after he left the Den, with a dud couple of seasons at Stoke culminating in an uneventful loan spell at Derby, leading to his release from Staffordshire and his route back home to South Yorkshire.

Some questions may have been asked about Gregory's ability to cut it once more after scoring just 10 goals combined over his previous two campaigns, but he rediscovered his goalscoring touch at Hillsborough.

He scored 17 goals in his first season, 16 in the league and then Wednesday's sole goal in their 2-1 play-off semi-final aggregate defeat against Sunderland, which was the most he'd bagged in a single campaign since his days in League One with Millwall.

2021/22 was an incredibly competitive season in League One, and Wednesday had to battle to ensure a place in the top six. They won six of their last eight to confirm a play-off spot with a five-point cushion, and Gregory scored eight in eight to end the campaign, including a hat-trick in a 3-2 away win at Fleetwood Town.

Falling in the play-offs was frustrating, but Gregory ended his first season at Hillsborough in the form of his life and was raring to take that into the following campaign.

'The Miracle of Hillsborough' and Wembley assist solidified Lee Gregory as a Sheffield Wednesday cult hero

Everyone who played their part in that special night at Hillsborough in May 2023, where Sheffield Wednesday did the unthinkable and overturned a 4-0 first-leg deficit into a 5-5 draw after extra time to then win on penalties against Peterborough United, is heralded a hero, and Gregory most certainly played his part.

It was a frustrating second season for Wednesday in League One, who lost just six times and accumulated 96 points throughout the campaign, just to finish third. Then, it looked like more play-off semi-final heartbreak one year on from the loss to Sunderland.

Gregory wasn't as nailed-on to start games for Sheffield Wednesday in his second season at the club, starting just 25 times in League One, contributing 10 goals along the way.

He was a substitute in the 4-0 defeat to Peterborough in the first leg, but started the second, scoring the goal which began to make Wednesday fans truly believe, giving them a two-goal advantage after 25 minutes.

He was subbed off in extra time, so didn't take a penalty, but he wasn't subbed during the subsequent play-off final against Barnsley, despite the game looking like it was going to go the full distance.

In fact, it was his smart play on the left and a picture-perfect cross onto Josh Windass' head that sent Wednesday fans into raptures, and the club into the Championship once more.

Sheffield Wednesday fans will always remember Lee Gregory fondly

Lee Gregory was brought to Sheffield Wednesday to help the club return to the Championship, and he more than delivered on that, playing a huge part in the side's attacking output over those two seasons.

Unfortunately, the frontman, who turned 35 weeks into the following Championship season, fell completely out of favour when Danny Rohl was made Wednesday boss, making just one cameo appearance since his final start on October 25th 2023.

He was let go that summer and was allowed to finish his career at Mansfield Town, the club he started with, once more in League One, with a goal a game in the third tier, showing that he still has what it takes to score in the third tier.