Owls fitness coach Tom Little has revealed the players' endurance levels have increased by 25 per cent since the summer.

With Wednesday having no game this weekend given the international break, Little has been putting the lads through their paces in fitness test terms with extremely encouraging results.

He told swfc.co.uk: "We've done all the fitness tests and they have proved very successful. All the fitness levels are up and in particular the endurance. Those results show a 25 per cent increase since pre-season so I'm obviously delighted with that."

Little welcomes the imminent domestic shutdown, reasoning the timing is exactly right for players all over the country to take a short break and return recharged.

He said: "The players had a busy pre-season. There's been plenty of games between then and the first few weeks of the season so this is a good time for them all to take a couple of days off and recharge the batteries.

"We're not taking as much time out as some clubs, so this week we're concentrating on mainly fitness work and then it will be business as usual when we regroup next week ahead of playing Watford."