Cambridge United once again showed they are a match for anyone in League One after they came from a goal behind to record a 1-1 draw at Sheffield Wednesday tonight.

The U’s had been beaten 5-0 and 6-0 in their two previous visits to Hillsborough, but this crop of players under Neil Harris are a very different animal.

They trailed for the eighth time in their last nine outings, but once again their character and never-say-die attitude shone through as Sullay Kaikai came off the bench to rescue a share of the spoils.

Cambridge, who welcomed back Callum Perry and Shane McLoughlin back from injury lay-offs, have had a habit in recent weeks of starting games slowly, but that is certainly not an accusation that could be aimed at them this evening.

There was less than a minute on the clock when the visitors had their first clear opening. Cathal Heffernan’s header from Ben Knight’s inswinging corner was kept out by Wednesday goalkeeper Ashley Maynard-Brewer, only for the rebound to drop kindly for Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu six yards from goal. A goal looked a certainty, but Ernie Weaver had other ideas, and the Wednesday defender got back on the line to make the block.

In the ninth minute, Cambridge’s Knight had his first sight of goal after being played in by Isaac Heath. However, the angle was against the visitors’ number 10, and his effort drifted well wide of Maynward-Brewer’s goal.

Eight minutes later, another Heffernan header caused more problems for Wednesday. On this occasion, he picked out Liam Bennett towards the back post, but the touch off his chest was on the heavy side, and it afforded Maynard-Brewer the opportunity to race off his line and make the save.

Wednesday offered little in the way of an attacking threat during the opening exchanges, and it was not until the 24th minute that U’s goalkeeper Jake Eastwood was called into action when he dived to his left to parry clear Reece James’ left-footed effort from 20 yards out.

James was also involved in Wednesday’s next meaningful venture forward on the half-hour mark. It was his cross that was headed on by Mason Burstow for Harry Gray, who volleyed wide at the far post.

The hosts were much more prominent in the contest from that point onwards, yet, as the first half drew to a close, it was Cambridge who went close to breaking the deadlock when Mpanzu’s strike from the edge of the box drifted just over.

Having created the better of the chances, the worry among the 1,200 Cambridge fans that had made the trip to Yorkshire will have been that their side was going to be punished for converting any of them – and that came to fruition just five minutes after the restart.

A quickly taken free-kick on halfway from Wednesday’s Callum Slattery caught out U’s centre-back Kell Watts and sent Burstow through one-on-one with Eastwood. The striker had the choice between precision or power, and he went for the latter as he lashed his shot into the top corner.

With Wednesday now firmly on the front foot, it was a case of weathering a bit of a storm for Cambridge. Boss Neil Harris looked to help his side stem some of the tide on the hour mark when he made a triple change, which saw the triple introduction of Shayne Lavery, Sullay Kaikai and Zak Bradshaw.

And Lavery’s impact was almost instant with a looping header that from Bennett’s right-wing cross that forced Maynard-Brewer to tip the ball over.

At the other end, Burstow had a glorious chance to double his and Wednesday’s tally in the 64th minute. Barry Bannan’s cross from deep eventually for the 23-year-old six yards from goal, but on this occasion power was not his friend as Eastwood instinctively threw out a right arm to make the block.

And that proved to be a crucial moment because, just three minutes later, Cambridge were level as two substitutes combined to clinical effect. Lavery had scored in each of his previous three appearances off the bench, but he turned provider for the equaliser, sprinting clear down the left and then squaring a pass for Kaikai to emphatically drill home from the edge of the area.

The game then started to resemble basketball as the two teams traded attacks. In the 73rd minute, Wednesday captain Bannan curled an attempt against the post with Eastwood rooted to the spot, while Lavery’s clever dinked effort from Knight’s through ball was smartly thwarted by Maynard-Brewer.

It was Cambridge that ended the contest looking the more likely to score a winner, and they were agonisingly close three minutes from time. Heffernan’s downward header from Knight’s corner was well kept out by Maynard-Brewer, and then pinball ensued, with both Heffernan and Owen Moxon both having goalbound shots blocked inside a crowded six-yard box.

Sheffield Wednesday: Maynard-Brewer, Valery (Palmer 82’), Weaver (Swinkels 90’), Lowe, James, Bannan (Al Hamadi 82’), Mitchell, Gray (Morrison 74’), Slattery, Keillor-Dunn, Burstow

Cambridge United: Eastwood, Bennett, Heffernan, Watts, Perry (Bradshaw 60’), Hoddle (Bangura-Williams 82’), McLoughlin (Lavery 60’), Mpanzu, Heath (Kaikai 60’), Knight, Appere (Moxon 74’)