Collin Quaner’s memories of that night at Sheffield Wednesday
- Collin Quaner recalls that special night at Hillsborough
- Forward details what David Wagner said to him before he came on
- Quaner on his best moment at Huddersfield Town so far
“IT WAS A CRAZY NIGHT AT HILLSBOROUGH… NO-ONE COULD HOLD BACK THEIR EMOTIONS AND IT WAS A GAME I WILL NEVER FORGET”
Wednesday 17 May 2017… the Sky Bet Championship Play-Off Semi-Final second leg… two games away from Premier League football.
After an intense 0-0 draw at the John Smith’s Stadium, David Wagner’s side came to Hillsborough – a ground the Terriers hadn’t won at since 2013 - knowing a win would take them to the Play-Off Final and play a massive part in making their dream a reality.
One player who played a particularly important role on that cold night at Hillsborough was Collin Quaner.
Super Col joined the Club in January 2017, taking Andy Booth’s infamous ‘23’ shirt, and was ready to write his own chapter.
“When I was warming-up, they scored to make it 1-0, we were under the lights and everyone was singing. You could see that the team was quite shocked,” said Collin.
“On the outside warming-up, I tried to stay focused and thought, ‘it doesn’t matter that they’ve scored, if I come on, I have to make a difference’.”
In the 72nd minute, it was Collin’s time to make his mark. As he stepped on to the pitch, the only thing that rang through his mind was the words of Head Coach David Wagner.
“I was quite confident that I could make a difference and I remember David Wagner saying to me: ‘We need you now, we need your abilities to change the game’.
“My teammates said to me that when I came on, they could see that I was pushing them, trying to get the focus back into the team and trying to keep their belief.”
Just a minute later… Collin made the desired impact.
“I took up a good position and Izzy (Brown) saw me running and played a great ball into the space. I was thinking ‘get into the area’ and then ‘can I score myself?’.
“I saw Nahki (Wells) running inside, so I tried to get the ball to him and set him up. I think it hit the defender and went in, but I’m sure if it hadn’t then Nahki would’ve scored.
“That goal was massive for us.
“Everyone knows how a goal can change a game. It can bring back the confidence to a team. In this moment, it was exactly what we needed, after you could see we had so much confidence.
“After that goal, the whole team knew that now this was going to be our game. I think that Sheffield Wednesday thought at 1-0 that they were over the line maybe, but we kept believing until the end.”
The match finished 1-1 and went into extra-time, and then penalties.
“The penalty shoot-out was crazy,” smiled Collin. “I had never been in a penalty shoot-out in such an important game.”
“It’s a big deal for everyone who stepped up there, whether you scored or missed. I have a lot of respect for all the lads who stood up and took a penalty.
“I was actually set to go but then Forestieri missed and we won! It was a really big thing winning that shoot-out!”
After the momentary realisation that Huddersfield Town were in the Play-Off Final, iconic scenes were sparked at Hillsborough.
“All the emotions were coming out from everyone. I think all the emotions from the whole season came out, all the work we did, how far we came.
“Everyone just went crazy and Danny Ward ran like Usain Bolt! It was unbelievable, nobody could hold back their emotions.
“This was, for sure, one of the best nights, games, moments I’ve had at Huddersfield Town.
“Yes, Wembley was incredible for us all, but this game was different for me. At their stadium, in that atmosphere, under the lights, coming from a goal behind; it was insane.
“For me, it’s moments like that night at Hillsborough that makes me love football.”
