On-loan Norwich City striker Gary Hooper continued his fine scoring run for Sheffield Wednesday on Tuesday night.
Hooper's brace secured the Owls all three points, with the Yorkshire club defeating Bolton Wanderers 3-2 in a highly competitive contest at Hillsborough.
Wednesday midfielder Fernando Forestieri opened the scoring with a rasping 30-yard strike from Hooper's lay-off in the 14th minute but that stunning strike was soon cancelled out through former Owls hit man Gary Madine who responded five minutes later.
After missing a pair of chances, Hooper put his side ahead in typical striker's fashion seven minutes into the second half. Daniel Pudill drilled a ball across the face of goal where Hooper awaited, slotting home past Wanderers keeper Ben Amos to put Wednesday back in front.
Following a Wanderers equaliser from David Wheater, Hooper showed some of the goal scoring prowess, which saw him net 82 times in 138 appearances for Celtic, when he calmly controlled a Ross Wallace cross, flicking the ball past Wheater and thundering into the back of the net to give Wednesday an eventual 3-2 victory.
Following his successful stint at Celtic, and prior to his loan with Wednesday, Hooped moved to Norwich in 2013 for a reported £5million.
Despite a successful Championship campaign in 2014-15 in which the Englishman contributed 12 goals, his inability to produce the same form in Norwich's Premier League campaign saw him shipped out to Wednesday in an emergency loan deal in October.
With the loan deal ending on the 17th of January, it is likely that Wednesday will attempt to secure a permanent move for 27-year-old Hooper.
The Owls are currently sitting 7th on the Championship table, one spot outside of the playoff positions, and Hooper's goals will undoubtedly help their Premier League ambitions.
Wednesday boss Carlos Carvalhal said after the triumph: “I know Gary Hooper very well and he's doing well but I think he can do even better in the future."
Time is running out for Hooper to stay at Wednesday permanently but with four goals in his last five appearances, there is no doubt his coach and the fans would be ecstatic to see the Englishman remain at Hillsborough as they chase a return to the Premier League.
Time is also running out for the former Scunthorpe United ace to win over Canaries boss Alex Neil and prove he has a future in the Premier League.
Check out the highlights below:
ACTION SHOT: @HOOP588 scores his first goal of the evening #swfcpic.twitter.com/OXcPBeht7M
— Sheffield Wednesday (@swfc) January 12, 2016CELEBRATIONS: Owls go 12 unbeaten on home soil #swfcpic.twitter.com/PV2P7DcZIh
— Sheffield Wednesday (@swfc) January 12, 2016
By Andrew Maclean
