Sheffield Wednesday veteran Steve Watson is hoping to secure a regular place in the Owls team next season and weigh in with a significant contribution of goals for Brian Laws' team.

The Owls utility man was limited in terms of first team appearances this season due to niggling hamstring problems but firmly believes Wednesday can compete at the top end of the Championship in 2008/09.

"I think that we have proved that on our day we are capable of beating anyone in the Championship," he told Wednesday World.

"In the two derby games, we beat Sheffield United comfortably at home and the second was probably one of the best derby games I have ever played in. We ended up conceding an equaliser from a world class free kick late in the game but it shows that when we play well and have players fit we are a match for anyone in the division."

Watson wants to forget about the recent season and focus on the future after six straight defeats led to a season-long scrap against relegation.

Ironically, following the 4-1 final day defeat of Norwich City, Wednesday finished only seven places behind the previous season's ninth, which saw the Owls eliminated from the play-off race at the penultimate match of the season.

"We have to put this last season out of our minds and think about where we were at the end of the previous season," Watson stressed. "There is no reason why we can't push and get a play-off spot because we are good enough but we have to go out every week and prove that."

The popular Geordie will be busy on a family holiday to Disney World this summer but he is determined to come back in good shape and make up for a frustrating personal campaign.

"This old body needs a few weeks away from running," he joked. "But I have to go away and make sure I do a lot of strength work on my hamstrings and get ready for pre-season.

"I want a lot more from myself next season, I want a consistent run and I would like to play in the same position for a while. I prefer playing in the midfield but I feel I can add goals to my game. I scored three this season but I feel that if I played consistently I could score a lot more than that and we need to score more goals as a team."

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