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• Sheffield Wednesday hit a new low as Sunderland ease to victory at Hillsborough

  Sheffield Wednesday have now made the joint-worst start after nine games in Championship history after Sunderland beat them 3-0 at Hillsborough on Friday night.

  A Dan Ballard header and two Jack Clarke goals, one a penalty, had the Black Cats in cruise control before half-time.

  Wednesday are a club in disarray off the field, with chairman Dejphon Chansiri releasing a statement earlier in the day stating he would be putting no additional money into the club.

  Owls boss Xisco Munoz made two changes to the team that lost 3-0 at Swansea, with George Byers and Callum Paterson joining the starting XI.

  Sunderland manager Tony Mowbray made just the one switch after the 1-0 defeat at home to Cardiff, with Patrick Roberts coming in for Abdoullah Ba.

  The first two chances of the game brought goals for the away side.

  First, Ballard rose highest to meet Alex Pritchard’s corner after five minutes and just three minutes later Sunderland doubled their advantage when Clarke drove towards goal from the left and arrowed a beauty into the bottom corner.

  On-loan Wednesday man John Buckley had a go from outside the box but his effort was put past the post by goalkeeper Anthony Patterson, then Anthony Musaba chanced his arm moments later but saw his curling attempt fly over the bar.

  The third goal came in the 31st minute after Bambo Diaby brought down Mason Burstow in the box. Clarke stepped up to send Devis Vasquez the wrong way – it was the Championship top scorer’s second of the night and seventh of the season, six of them coming away from the Stadium of Light.

  Home fans who had not already headed for the exits chanted for both manager and chairman to leave the club.

  In the second half, Pol Valentin made a mazy run down the right-hand side and his cross found Paterson, who saw his shot saved by keeper Patterson.

  Jobe Bellingham nearly made it four but his effort from distance went just wide.

  Despite bringing on forwards Ashley Fletcher and Djeidi Gassama in the closing stages, Sunderland comfortably dealt with the majority of Wednesday’s attacks for the remainder of the game, having done the damage in the first 30 minutes.

  The result lifts the Wearsiders to fourth ahead of Saturday’s fixtures, while Wednesday remain bottom, with just two points from their opening nine games.

• Five-star Hamilton too hot for Annan

  Hamilton thumped Annan 5-0 to continue their push for an immediate return to the Scottish Championship.

  Accies have now won seven of their eight League One matches and needed only two minutes to make the breakthrough here, Jamie Barjonas running on from midfield and firing in a shot from the edge of the box.

  It took until three minutes into the second half for Hamilton to score their second, Reghan Tumilty netting from a corner, and 10 minutes later Euan Henderson smashed in a third.

  It was all too easy for the hosts, and they scored twice more through Connor Murray and Joe McGlynn, while Michael Hewitt was denied a sixth by the post.

• Jonathan Thomas says Wales ‘reset’ after break and ready to resume World Cup bid

  Jonathan Thomas says that Wales have hit “reset” after four days off as they set about trying to make a memorable Rugby World Cup campaign into something unforgettable.

  Wales’ World Cup squad returned to the training pitch on Thursday with a public session watched by more than 1,000 people at Stade de Porchefontaine in Versailles.

  Players and coaches were given time off to spend with their families after last weekend’s record 40-6 win against Australia that secured quarter-final status for the fourth successive World Cup campaign.

  But minds have now switched to next weekend’s final Pool C appointment with Georgia – then a quarter-final against Argentina or Japan.

  “Professional sport can be relentless,” Wales assistant coach Thomas said.

  “Winning that Australia game was a huge moment for us in terms of qualifying, and having those days off was good to have that feel-good factor heading into time off.

  “Professional sport is about being humble and hitting reset. For me, confidence comes from preparation and the work you do in the week.

  “You can’t look back and say we are confident because of that victory. Confidence comes from preparation and the hard work.

  “We need to hit reset, as the boys have done today. We’ve got a tough game next week, and we will be completely focused on that.

  “The amazing thing I’ve seen with this squad is you have that edge in training, but as soon as they walk off the training field, there’s laughing, joking and they are taking the mick out of each other for what has just happened in the session.

  “Getting that balance of a competitive edge and having really close relationships off the field is very difficult to strike.

  “That is one of the real highlights of this campaign, going back 14 weeks since we came in for mini-camps. That chemistry is really powerful, and the balance between the edge and the family side of things.”

  Thomas, meanwhile, has no doubt that an ability to strike the right balance comes from the top with the example set by head coach Warren Gatland.

  “I played under Gats, and I take my hat off to him,” he added.

  “He is probably one of the best I have come across in terms of being able to drive the players hard. He is very open and honest with them, with a no-nonsense attitude. The expectations are really clear.

  “But he has also got this nurturing, kind side to him which is all about family and if players need to go home or need help.

  “It’s quite a remarkable thing to have both abilities in your character. It all starts with him, and everything flows downstream.

  “It flows through the coaching staff and the players, and eventually you end up with quite a content playing group. One, because they are fit and they’ve worked hard, but they are also happy because their families are happy.”

  Local schoolchildren turned out in their hundreds to watch the Wales squad put through their paces, with players signing autographs and posing for pictures afterwards.

  “Our whole experience in Versailles has been awesome,” Thomas said.

  “Obviously, it’s a beautiful place, first and foremost, but we are here to train and train hard. The facilities have been great.

  “The people have been incredible, really, and none more so than today. We really appreciate it. It has made a massive difference to us, how welcome we’ve been made to feel since being here.”