Sheffield Wednesday manager Alan Irvine has reflected positively on a productive week in the transfer market that saw four new recruits commit to the Owls.

Chris Sedgwick, Jon Otsemobor, Paul Heffernan and Daniel Jones each agreed S6 deals and Irvine is delighted that the many hours of ground work ultimately came to fruition.

He said: "It's not just been this week, of course, all the initial discussions and finding out about players that might be available has been going on for some time. A lot of the work of this week was actually done while I was on holiday so I'm delighted the fact that I did have my phone on while I was on holiday proved to be beneficial.

"It would have been very galling if I'd had it on every single day for different periods of the day and not had any rewards, so I'm pleased these signings have all happened. Now I am trying to get some more players in.

"I said we needed eight and that's four done, now I will look at the budget and see what else we can do. Like I have said many times before, we have to deal within the constraints of the budget. The club have worked very hard to give me the budget they have given me, which I appreciate in what are very difficult times for clubs. I am happy with the way it's gone so far."

Irvine has strengthened all outfield areas with his four signings so far and highlighted the need to bolster his options for what is sure to be a demanding campaign ahead in League One.

He reasoned: "It's vitally important we have strength in depth. Not just in terms of competition but having the right kind of cover if there's an injury or a suspension and we certainly were vulnerable in certain areas last season.

"We were fortunate in that we didn't get players in certain positions out injured for any period of time because had we done, we'd have ended up with square pegs in round holes."

While the hunt for more new players continues, the clock counts down to the first day of July, when the revamped squad's preparations kick off in earnest. And Irvine is eagerly anticipating the start of pre-season training as he looks to banish the gloom of last term's relegation.

He concluded: "I'm eager to get started and very keen for 1 July to come around, when we can start to shape things for the new season. Pre-season is a time I always look forward to, it's a time when a lot of managers and coaches are at their happiest because you can get some proper work done on the training ground without worrying about the outcome of games.

"Whereas once the season starts you always have to bear in mind what impact training has to the outcome of games. It's certainly not a case of forgetting about what happened last season, I don't know if I will ever forget that, but I'm looking forward with a lot of enthusiasm to getting started on 1 July."