Former Bristol City defender Adrian Mariappa given ultimatum by Sheffield Wednesday

Central defender Adrian Mariappa will have to decide today whether he is to join Sheffield Wednesday after leaving Bristol City earlier this year.

A deadline of 5.00 pm this evening has been set on the former Robins defender by his potential new manager as he considers his next move.

It is believed that the League One club are in competition with a team in the Championship for his signature, as well as a team from abroad who are offering a lucrative contract.

Commenting on the matter, Wednesday boss Darren Moore said to The Star: “I am drawing that line on it come five o’clock on Monday on whether he chooses to come to join us. If not we will move on.

“I don’t want to give much away, but come Monday we’ll have some news. If not, if we get to the game on Tuesday and there’s nothing happening, it means that there’s nothing happening.”

The 35-year-old defender joined City in November 2020 last year on a short-term deal whilst Dean Holden was in charge.

Despite a change in management, the experienced defender saw out the campaign, eventually making 27 appearances across all competitions.

Current first-team manager Nigel Pearson previously worked with Mariappa at Watford, but despite building up a centre-back partnership with Tomas Kalas, his services were not retained.

City decided to go in a different direction and instead brought in George Tanner and Robert Atkinson from Carlisle United and Oxford United, respectively.

Despite his exit from Bristol City, Mariappa has been playing international football for Jamaica and has made six appearances this season. He played in their most recent fixture, a 1-1 draw with El Salvador last week.

As well as potentially signing Mariappa, former Bristol City defender Jack Hunt is also amongst the former players who now ply their trade up in Yorkshire.

Hunt at least, will be hopeful of an immediate return to the Championship, following the Owls' relegation to the third tier. They are currently seventh in the table, having won seven, drawn eight and lost three times.