Sunderland defender moves on loan to Spennymoor as Ipswich Town midfielder braced for ‘huge’ upcoming games while Sheffield Wednesday suffer injury blow

Here, we round up all the latest stories that have emerged today from the Stadium of Light and beyond:

Spennymoor sign Sunderland defender

Spennymoor Town have confirmed the signing of Black Cat Kenton Richardson on a 28-day loan deal.

Richardson completed 90 minutes in the Papa John’s Trophy clash with Bradford City on Tuesday and joins the National League North side on a short-term basis.

Ipswich Town midfielder braced for ‘huge’ run of games

After the international break, Sunderland’s next opponents are promotion rivals Ipswich Town.

After a slow start to the season for Paul Cook’s side, Ipswich have hit form recently, picking up three wins from their last four games and sit just five points behind Sunderland in the table, albeit having played a game more - which will turn into two games when the sides clash next Saturday.

Ipswich’s clash with Sunderland is sandwiched between league games against Oxford United and Rotherham United - a period which could define how the League One table will look come the business end of the season.

Midfielder Scott Fraser recognises the immediate task facing Ipswich and describes the games as ‘huge’:

"Our next three games are huge," Fraser said.

"We're only four points behind Oxford, so Saturday's game is huge. We just need to concentrate on ourselves and keep doing what we're doing.

"We have been on a good run. Even the Plymouth game, I felt we should have won that with the chances we had. It's a positive place at the minute and we need to keep it that way."

Sheffield Wednesday injury blow

Darren Moore has confirmed that Dominic Iorfa will not feature for the Owls until the new year after sustaining a hip-injury against Lincoln City.

Moore described Iorfa’s injury as a ‘bitter blow’, saying: “It’s a bitter blow for us in terms of a player of his class and dominance.

“It’s a disappointment but the positive news is that he’s back on the mend, but he will be out for some time. He’ll be out until the new year.”

Sunderland face Sheffield Wednesday on Thursday December 30 during a busy period which sees the Black Cats play three games in just six days.

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