Nicky Weaver
The hugely popular Weaver was City’s No.1 for four years before injury and the arrival of Carlo Nash limited his appearances. He enjoyed a loan spell with the Owls during the 2005/06 season before later going on to complete a permanent move to Hillsborough in 2010.
A boyhood Owls fan, he joined City in 1997 and was part of the team that beat Gillingham to earn promotion from Division Two in 1999. After 207 appearances, ‘Weaves’ moved on loan to Wednesday before later signing for Charlton, Burnley, Aberdeen and Dundee United and is now back at Hillsborough as the goalkeeper coach.
Andy Hinchcliffe
Capped seven times by England, Hinchcliffe began his career with City before enjoying successful spells with both Everton and Wednesday.
He made the left back berth his own while at Maine Road and scored a thumping header in the famous 5-1 Manchester derby mauling of United in September 1989. A move to Everton materialised after leaving the Citizens and Hinchcliffe went on to win international honours while on Merseyside.
Injury curtailed his time at Goodison Park, and he later joined the Owls where he featured for four seasons before calling time on his career in 2002.
Jérémy Hélan
The youngster made his loan move to Wednesday permanent a year ago after earning rave reviews for his performances with the Owls. The versatile French youngster moved to City from Stade Rennais in 2009 and made 28 appearances on loan during the 2012/13 campaign, though he made just one substitute appearance for City – a League Cup tie against Aston Villa – and had further loan stints at both Carlisle United and Shrewsbury Town.
Gary Megson
Manchester-born Megson played for both clubs before later going on to manage the Owls during the 2011/12 season. Megson signed for Wednesday from Everton and was an ever-present in the Owls line-up, missing only three games during his time at the club.
He was a part of the team that gained promotion to the top-flight in 1983-4 and had spells at Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United before returning to Yorkshire with Wednesday. In January 1989, he moved to Maine Road, where he spent three and a half seasons, and helped City finish fifth in his final two seasons. Megson was appointed Wednesday manager in 2011 but was sacked 12 months later with the Owls third in League One.
Trevor Francis
Trevor Francis, England’s first £1million player, joined City from Nottingham Forest and scored twice on his debut against Stoke City. Injuries played a part in his career with the Blues and upon returning from the 1982 FIFA World Cup he was sold to Italian side Fiorentina.
Wednesday were the last club Francis appeared for after signing from QPR in 1990, and he helped the team to League Cup success and promotion back to the top-flight during his time at Hillsborough.
Like Megson, he later went on to manage the Sheffield club after Ron Atkinson’s departure, initially combining his role with playing, and guided them to third place in his first season. The Owls lost to Arsenal in both the FA and League Cups the following year and Francis was sacked in 1995 with Wednesday 13th in the Premiership.
Brian Marwood
Marwood, one of the First Divisions’ most-feared wingers due to his pace and close ball control, signed for Sheffield Wednesday from Hull City in 1984.
In his first two seasons with the Yorkshire outfit they finished in eighth and fifth positions respectively, however their success wasn’t fully rewarded as English were banned from European competition as a result of the Heysel Disaster. Marwood move to Arsenal in 1988 and also played briefly for Sheffield United, Middlesbrough, Swindon and Barnet before retiring from the game. The one -time capped England international is now Managing Director of City Football Services.
Imre Varadi
Of Hungarian origin, Varadi appeared for a host of professional clubs in a career spanning 18 years and enjoyed fruitful spells with City and Wednesday. He first signed for the Owls in 1983 in what turned out to be one of his longer stays of a nomadic footballing career. A move to West Bromwich Albion followed before making the switch north to Manchester for two seasons where his goal-scoring feats made him something of a cult hero, however Varadi returned to Hillsborough for a second, less successful stint.
Paul Warhurst
Warhurst started out with City as a trainee but found life difficult at Eastlands and failed to make a single appearance before signing for Oldham Athletic. His performances for the Latics prompted the Owls to make a move for his services in 1991 and he signed for £750,000 and played in the club’s FA and League Cup Final games.
Although not known for his goal-scoring exploits, Warhurst was used an emergency striker for a time and netted an incredible 12 goals in as many games for Wednesday and ended with 18 overall which earned him a call-up to the England squad as a striker.
Lee Bradbury
Frank Clark signed Bradbury for a club record £3million deal from Portsmouth in 1997 but the striker struggled in his new surroundings, scoring six goals as City were relegated. A move back down south to Crystal Palace helped, but it was back at Fratton Park where his career started to take off once again. He made over a 100 appearances in his second spell at Pompey but lost his place in the team and went on-loan to Sheffield Wednesday where he made a handful of appearances before moving on again.
Dalian Atkinson
Atkinson’s career was on an upward curve after he signed for Sheffield Wednesday in 1989 for £450,000. After establishing himself as one of the country’s most exciting prospects at Ipswich, Atkinson forged a lethal partnership with David Hirst but despite the front pairing, the Owls were relegated and Atkinson was sold on for £1.7m to Real Sociedad. Six years later he arrived at Maine Road on loan from Turkish side Fenerbahce and was a popular figure during his eight games with the Blues.
There is only one way to watch Wednesday night’s Capital One Cup third round clash with Sheffield Wednesday live.
The first step towards defending our trophy won at Wembley in March will not be shown live on TV anywhere in the UK, so make sure you’re at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday 24 September.
Prices start at £5 for under-16s and £15 for adults, so no excuses: get your ticket now and make sure you don’t miss out!
