Mansfield Town developments may surprise Sheffield Wednesday faithful but shouldn't: View | OneFootball

The striker has been exceptional for the Stags in League One this season after making the switch from the Owls in the summer.

Mansfield Town have been excellent since securing their promotion to League One last season, and have been the surprise package in the third tier so far in 2024/25.

Currently third in the table, only Birmingham City and Wrexham sit above Nigel Clough's side, as they look to maintain this excellent start to the new campaign against Stevenage on Saturday.

Firing them to this early play-off spot is Lee Gregory, with the former Sheffield Wednesday striker scoring six goals in his first eight appearances of the season, missing just one of the Stags' league games.

At 36, it was perhaps obvious that Gregory was going to leave the Owls in the summer after spending three years at Hillsborough, helping the team to promotion back to the Championship in 2023 through the play-offs. Nevertheless, he has already shown why he was held in such high regard during his time in Sheffield.

Gregory's exploits should not come as a surprise to Wednesday fans

While his career is drawing to a close, the Yorkshireman is in the form of his life, and is already showing signs of his former self after struggling for minutes at Sheffield Wednesday last season.

Gregory made just 13 appearances for the Owls in 2023/24, scoring only once, but it was his time in League One that he will be most fondly remembered for, proving to be prolific for Darren Moore's side in their two campaigns in the third tier.

He found the back of the net 26 times in League One for Wednesday, netting twice in the play-offs in both years, including in the unbelievable 5-1 win over Peterborough United in the 2022/23 season, before he was brought off for Jack Hunt who scored the winning penalty in the shootout.

His six goals so far in 2024/25 have only added to the 61 he had scored previously in the third tier, a division that he has proven to be a master of.

With an xG rate of 4.04 from his opening eight appearances of the campaign, Gregory has proven just how clinical he is, and if he can keep his fitness up, he will continue to be vital for Mansfield.

The Stags may also be a club that Sheffield Wednesday supporters are keeping an eye on following the forward's success with their club in the past.

A surprise promotion could be the perfect way for Gregory to end his career

Gregory has three promotions to his name already throughout his career with Halifax Town, Millwall and Wednesday, but securing a fourth and final one with Mansfield could be the perfect way for him to retire.

Although it is still very early days, if the Stags can continue their form under Clough, it would not be a surprise to see them end the season in the play-off places, something that Gregory is a master of. All of his promotions have come through the play-offs, and he is also prolific in them, particularly in League One.

The 36-year-old has scored five goals in 11 appearances in the third tier's play-offs across four different campaigns. His ability to find himself in the right places at the right time in the box has served him well throughout his career so far, and once again, he is proving to be that fox in the box for Mansfield.

Continuing to score at the rate he currently is will only serve himself and his team well, and it should not be surprising for Sheffield Wednesday fans to see Gregory score the goals to fire his team to promotion.