West Bromwich Albion's newly appointed head coach James Morrison has issued a stark warning to his players: the hard work doesn't stop now. Fresh off being handed the job on a permanent basis, Morrison watched his side stumble to a disappointing 2-1 defeat against bottom-placed Sheffield Wednesday on the final day of the Championship season—a result that handed the Owls just their second league win of the campaign.

The Baggies had already secured their Championship safety with two games to spare, riding a wave of momentum after losing just once in 11 matches under Morrison's interim guidance. That run followed Eric Ramsay's departure in February, and the club's board moved quickly to reward Morrison's steady hand with the full-time role this week. But Saturday's loss served as a harsh reminder that complacency has no place in the dugout or on the pitch.

"I don't want to get away from what we've achieved, but obviously we've set standards now and we didn't meet them today from the first 10 minutes," Morrison told BBC Radio WM, his frustration evident. "It's the first time I've had to get angry again at half-time. We huffed and puffed in the second half, but we didn't value the ball how I would like."

The defeat was a reality check for a team that had grown accustomed to Morrison's calm, collected approach. But the former Scotland international made it clear that the standards he's instilled cannot slip—even against the league's weakest side. "The stuff that's brought us success wasn't there today, so I'm a bit disappointed. But the bigger picture is where we were at Oxford to where we are now—that's the positive."

Looking ahead, Morrison knows that maintaining that upward trajectory requires relentless focus. "We felt their occasion today and we didn't rise to it. That's the thing I've learnt—we've got to be on the players every day, and we can't come off the gas."

For Baggies fans, it's a message that resonates: the fight for survival is over, but the battle for consistency has only just begun. And as any good coach knows, the best teams are built not on one good run, but on a culture of daily accountability.