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Howard 'could come good with vital goals'
BY HIS own admission, Brian Howard is still carving a niche for himself at Bramall Lane.
But Sheffield United manager Kevin Blackwell, who has deployed the former Barnsley midfielder in a number of different roles since his transfer from Oakwell, remains confident he can make a significant contribution during the final stages of the Championship campaign.
"Everyone has had a great input," Blackwell said. "Howie has come in and played a fair amount. With our record how can I not be pleased with him?
"He has played in little different areas at times and, as far as I'm concerned, he's been terrific.
"If Brian had come in and we'd done absolutely nothing then it would've been a disaster. But we haven't."
With Howard acknowledging that he has yet to hit the heights which convinced United to spend £500,000 prising him away from Oakwell, Blackwell's decision to shower the 26-year-old with praise signals a change of approach behind the scenes.
Speaking before the draw with Blackpool, a game which Howard didn't figure in and a result which moved his side up to fourth in the Championship table, Blackwell also encouraged David Cotterill, who has enjoyed something of a renaissance of late, despite making a slow start to the season.
Unlike the Wales international, Howard's career is not at the development stage.
The range of passing Howard displayed on his United debut against Bristol City in October when he replaced Cotterill during the closing stages of a resounding 3-0 win underlined why Blackwell is right to persevere.
He believes Howard could yet exert great influence over the remaining nine matches of the campaign. "Howie is one who can go on a run and end up getting a glut of goals.
"We've got (Arturo) Lupoli, Brian, (Craig) Beattie, (Danny) Webber, Jamie Ward and Darius Henderson here too who are all capable of chipping in and that's a good position to be in.
"If I look at my options on the bench I can see there's plenty of firepower there which gives you the option to change things. "