Injury to Everton striker major blow but these two Sunderland players will be key against Sheffield Wednesday - Stephen Elliott

If we are honest, since the dip of form in January, which resulted in some really poor results and the sacking of manager Lee Johnson, this is the best that we could have hoped for.

Since new manager Alex Neil has come in, there has certainly been an upturn in form and results.

The team may have lost a little bit of that attacking carefree style of football but the team certainly look a lot more secure in the defensive areas and that has to be seen as a good thing.

Now I know finishing in the League One play-off positions certainly wasn’t the remit at the start of the season for this club because while this club is playing at this level the aim has to be finishing in those top two positions.

However, now is not the time to start analysing where, how and why the club didn’t gain automatic promotion.

Over these next three weeks everyone associated with this club has to do everything they can to help this club finally get out of this league.

It’s definitely not going to be easy, that’s for sure.

Sheffield Wednesday stand in front of Sunderland and a place at Wembley in the play-off final.

I’m sure Sheffield Wednesday supporters, similar to our own, will not be happy that their club are also dwelling in the third tier of English football.

If anything this fixture tells you that no club has any given right to be in the top leagues, no matter how big and well supported they are.

The two games between the two clubs could not have gone any different this season.

At Hillsborough, in November, Sunderland got a bit of a lesson and never really got a foothold in a game which the home team ran out easy 3-0 winners.

At the back end of last year in the reverse fixture at the Stadium of Light, Sunderland arguably put in one of their best showings of the season.

It finished 5-0 to the home team and probably could have been more.

We all know what happened in the following weeks for Sunderland but like I mentioned earlier, that is a discussion for another time.

I fully expect there be a huge crowd at the Stadium of Light for the first leg on Friday and no doubt in the return leg at Hillsborough next Monday.

Play-off games are usually electric and more often than not the bravest teams and managers come out on top.

It was a body blow to lose Nathan Broadhead on Saturday after him scoring another goal too.

I do believe, though, there are players in this Sunderland squad who are going to have big moments in the next couple of games.

Alex Pritchard and Patrick Roberts come to mind.

They have experience of playing in high pressure games in front of big crowds.

If Sunderland are to continue to Wembley, then this experience will be the key.