Leeds United youngster Harry Gray handed unusual reunion after shock Sheffield Wednesday decision
It’s been a rollercoaster few months for the out-on-loan Leeds United teenager.
Out-on-loan Leeds United striker Harry Gray played under a familiar face on Tuesday night as Sheffield Wednesday drew 1-1 at home to Cambridge United.
Gray joined the Owls on a season-long loan in the summer but has endured a mixed start to life at Hillsborough. The 18-year-old scored one goal in nine appearances under Henrik Pedersen but was dropped from the squad for last weekend’s 2-0 defeat against Doncaster Rovers.
That loss, a second in five days, spelled the end for head coach Pedersen who was sacked with Wednesday eighth in the table at the time. Assistant coach Matt Hamshaw took interim charge and, intriguingly, is well-known to Gray.
Before joining Wednesday in August, Hamshaw was manager of Rotherham United during the 2025/26 campaign and managed Gray during his first ever loan move away from Leeds. The teenager scored three goals in 20 games across all competitions but couldn’t keep the Millers from relegation.
And now Gray has been given another chance to play under Hamshaw, starting at right-wing during Tuesday’s meeting with Cambridge, a 1-1 draw. The on-loan Leeds youngster played 73 minutes out wide as Mason Burstow’s opener was cancelled out by Cambridge’s Sullay Kaikai.
Much of Gray’s minutes at Wednesday have been cutting in from the left but Hamshaw opted to switch things around. And after the draw, he explained that it was a deliberate ploy to try and get more crosses into the box.
“I think Harry can play on the right, he can play on the left and he can play as a No.10,” the interim Owls boss told The Star. “I just felt like Davis [Keillor-Dunn] coming off left did give us a bit more.
“We went with two strikers, but there's flexibility to play all systems and shapes with the personnel we've got. So, yes, that was a real reason. I felt like he got into good positions in the first half. I feel like we need to put more crosses in the box. So, I felt having a right-footer going on the outside and putting crosses in the box [was what we needed].”
Hamshaw is currently second-favourite to take over at Wednesday on a permanent basis, with former Stockport Country boss Dave Challinor the frontrunner. Whatever the decision, Leeds will hope Gray can continue to play regularly and develop.