Skipper Happy To Be Back In Starting Line-Up

Peter Clarke has expressed his delight to be back in the starting line-up for tomorrow's game against Birmingham City. The central defender has become a fans favourite over the last couple of years due to his passion, belief and commitment that is shown each and every time he puts the blue & white stripe shirt on. However, Clarke has suffered a couple of setbacks in the last few weeks as he became an unused substitute on the terriers bench against both Sheffield Wednesday & Leicester City before helping Town secure a clean sheet against Charlton in the FA Cup.

Captain Ready For Blackpool Test

Clarke not fearing a tough away trip to Blackpool

Peter Clarke has been impressive in The Championship so far and he is aiming to carry on the terriers recent good form when he leads his team out at Bloomfield Road. The skipper has played for the seaside club in his career and he is looking forward to returning to the West Coast on Monday night;

"I had the best part of two years with Blackpool and have some very fond memories from my time there. When I first signed for the Club it was struggling, but we managed to stabilise matters. Players and clubs move on though and I moved to Southend to better myself and play at a higher level."

Peter Clarke is yet to miss out on a game for Huddersfield Town this season and the 'heart on his sleeve' defender is hoping that he can keep a clean sheet against Blackpool in order to continue Towns unbeaten run to six games;

"We are carrying good momentum at the moment and we are doing ok. We have made a decent enough start and we will go into the Blackpool game full of confidence. They are a very good side and we will show them the respect that they deserve; they are up near the top end of the league on merit and have been for the past couple of years. We will go there with the belief that we can get something out of the game. Blackpool has aspirations to be in the top league, so it will be a tough game. Whether it will prove as a marker of where we are at, I don’t know - it is still early days and the League is only just starting to take shape. Collectively we have given a good account of ourselves and personally I am very happy with how things are going as I am playing well – long may it continue on all fronts."

Clarke couldn't resist but express his delight with the midweek victory over Sheffield Wednesday where the terriers managed to overturn the Owls on their home turf, Hillsborough, emerging 3-1 victors at the final whistle;

"It was a terrific win, thoroughly deserved. It was a very workmanlike performance at times and although they had a lot of possession we made it difficult for them to break us down. After we had weathered their early storm we got the ball down, played some football and got our noses in front. We were disappointed with the goal that they scored, but overall very happy with the victory."

Skipper Excited With Championship Test

Peter Clarke has expressed how much of a test this upcoming season is going to be for Huddersfield Town but sounded excited to be going into the first match against Cradiff with a host of new signings & the captains armband to his name. Before they travel to the Welsh club a trip to Deepdale to play against Preston North End in the first round of the Capital One Club will see Grayson & his team tested with a weakened squad due to international call ups;

"I think the whole experience of promotion was still surreal up until the fixtures for the Championship came out last month. I think then the realisation set in that we are a Championship club and will be playing against some of the biggest clubs in English football, in some fantastic venues. As with any team that gets promoted into a new league the first objective is to secure your place in it for the following season, but we don’t want to be battling down at the wrong end of the league - we want to be surprising a few people and giving a good account of ourselves."

"The Manager is very shrewd and he has made several acquisitions over the summer. The lads that have come in have fitted in great and through playing games and from training day, in, day out you begin to build an understanding and I think that is beginning to happen, which is a good sign."

Clarke has already played alongside two of the new signings made by the manager, Anthony Gerrard & Keith Southern, and the skipper is delighted to have been reunited with them once again;

"I played with them both before in my career – Keith far more than Anthony. I can certainly say on behalf of the lads that they are wholehearted players who will give you everything that have got out on the field. Keith has a terrific engine and gets around the pitch well; he breaks things up and gives it nice and simple – he can also weigh in with his fair share of goals. Anthony is a tough lad, a no-nonsense type of defender. He is very competitive and he can play a bit from the back."

The skipper stated that The Championship is going to be very tough and having four games in just the opening two weeks is a real challenge for the terriers;

"As in any league, or competition, there is a never any easy game. You have to earn the right to win football matches and that will be no different this season. The start is going to be very tough; we are away twice in the first week and we will do our best to give good accounts of ourselves. Pre-season is always tough and the workload is always long and hard, but it is about getting ready and match fit. When you get to the back-end of pre-season all you want to do is start playing competitive football. It is the first time in my career where the League Cup starts before the season proper, so it is a little bit odd, but it makes no difference and it is a game that we want to do well in."

Clarke Retains Armband For Championship Campaign

The defender has today been confirmed to remain the captain for Huddersfield Town for the fourth consecutive season. It has been rumoured that the skipper would be stripped of his title after promotion was gained into the Championship but Grayson has confirmed today that this is not going to be the case.

Clarke is a natural leader and has shown this in every game and regardless of the occasion, he will always put his heart & passion into playing for the terriers. The 30 year old received high praise from Grayson when he spoke about the skipper;

"Peter is a good player and a good leader. He's done the job for a while now and he has the respect of the other players, so there is no need to change anything."

So that confirms another small part of how Huddersfield are going to line-up when they open up the Championship against Cardiff City on August 17th. The question is, who will line up next to the skipper in the heart of defence?
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Pre Match Comments From Grayson

Huddersfield Town boss Simon Grayson has spoke ahead of tomorrow second leg clash against MK Dons. He focused on talking about how Town can and will play better as well as how well his players did perform in the 2-0 victory on Saturday;

"At the start of the second half on Saturday we didn't pass the ball well and didn't do one or two of the things that we had worked on, so I still believe that we can play better."

"I will set the team out to be positive as we were on Saturday and our intention will be to play from the shape of the team and win the game. If we get the first goal it will give us a massive boost, but if we don't then everybody has to stay strong. It is still game on - as we saw on Sunday things can change dramatically change in football."

"The performance was very pleasing because the players stuck to the game plan. As a manager, when the players carry out your instructions it is very rewarding. I thought we worked extremely hard, passed the ball around well and created a number of good chances. We also defended well when we had to and we have to do exactly the same thing on Tuesday night. We can't rest on our laurels; we did what we needed to do on Saturday and need to finish the job off on Tuesday night."

Grayson then went on to talk about how important the first goal shall be tomorrow night but emphasised how his team will not worry even if that goal goes against them;

"The first goal is important, but it isn't defining. If MK Dons get the first and we get the second goal then we are still in a good position. Without being big-headed, we believe we are good enough to win the game and finish off the tie."

Grayson and the squad that went down to MK Dons were delighted with the amount of travelling fans that made the trip and he emphasised how imprtant the fans shall be tomorrow night;

"It is going to be a cracking atmosphere on Tuesday night. I am fully focused on my team and looking at what we can do to hurt MK Dons. Hopefully at the end of the game we will be going to Wembley, but we know we have got work to do."

The terriers picked up a few knocks in the first leg including skipper Peter Clarke and Grayson gave us an insight into how they were coming along;

Peter (Clarke) finished the game which at one stage looked unlikely; I think he was in a bad state but he came through it. He saw the doctor on Sunday and he will see him again on Monday, but we are hopefully that he will be fine for Tuesday night."

"I think Peter should take knocks more often because he played better afterwards! 'The Skip' leads by example; I have played alongside him and I'm now managing him and he inspires the other players. Lee Novak showed the same amount of desire when he put his body on the line to block a shot in the box. We showed a desire and will not to concede so that we could take a clean sheet into the second leg."

"Calum Woods has a toe injury which is heavily bruised so we will have to see where he is. Scott Arfield went over on his ankle and we had one or
two others who could have also come off during certain parts of the game. It was 'all hands to the pump' at certain periods in the game, but we came through it and we will give every player time to be fit for tomorrow night. Everyone has to be 100% fit though, because we can't carry any passengers on Tuesday night"

We have already got our tickets for the vital match so make sure you get yours as soon as possible!

Grayson's Reaction To First Leg Victory

Huddersfield Town manager Simon Grayson was thrilled with the away victory against MK Dons yesterday but warned everyone that they had achieved nothing yet;

We are delighted that we have won and with the level of performance that we showed today. We have worked extremely hard over the last ten days on the game plan and our individuals stuck to it. As a team we broke quickly, passed the ball around very well and did the players did what we asked them to do, which is great as a manager.

There was pressure on the players today, but they have carried out every instruction that we asked of them.

We are still very wary of the opposition, which we have to be because MK Dons are a good team. We need to be focused physically and mentally in our preparation because we haven't achieved anything yet. Given the circumstances I would say that this is the best performance of my short rein at the Club; it follows on from a good performance against Yeovil. We had some good opportunities today and at the other end Ian Bennett pulled off a brilliant save at the death to keep a clean sheet.

The players are totally aware of what we need to do. The two lads in midfield dictated the game for much of it, got in and amongst them when we had to and passed the ball very well. Jordan showed good movement and finished the cross well and Jack normally swings those left foot efforts high and wide, but today it went in the back of the net.

We wont allow the players to be complacent on Tuesday and we will try and replicate what we have done today. I said to the players before the game to do what they have done throughout the season, as it has put them in the position they are currently in. I thought on occasion, when we got into the final third, we sometimes over-hit our pass which could have maybe got us one or two more goals.

Grayson emphasis its still all to play for in the second leg

Grayson talked about the injuries that a few players picked up in the match including Scott Arfield, Callum Woods & Peter Clarke;

Scott Arfield got a knock on his ankle; Calum Woods got a bang on his toe and then Lee Novak started to struggled as did Danny Ward. Peter Clarke was like Lazarus to recover from his knock. The lads who got injured will have an opportunity to get ready for Tuesday nights game. Full credit has to be given to the players who came on and affected the game for us. Peter's injury did look serious and we were considering options to play Tom Clarke at centre back and Danny at left back, but thankfully he came through it and I thought him and Sean Morrison were outstanding today.

Close to 4000 faithful Town fans descended upon Stadium:Mk for the game yesterday and Grayson acknowledged their support;

"The fans were fantastic today; I think there were about 4,000 in the away end and they never stopped signing from the first whistle to the last. It is a two-way thing because we want the supporters to back us, but we have to give them something to cheer about. They have shown today what the Club is all about and I imagine the atmosphere on Tuesday night will step up to another level and hopefully we will finish the job off.

Match Report: MK Dons 0-2 Huddersfield Town

The play-off semi final first leg is over and what a game it was. Outclassing the other two teams first leg (Stevenage & Sheffield United) who played on Friday night, Huddersfield Town & MK Dons represented League One with some much needed terrific football.

How Huddersfield Town lined up for the game

The terriers fanbase didn't disappoint and brought an estimated 4000+ crowd to turn Stadium:MK into a sea of blue & white. However it was the Dons who started off well and put pressure on the terriers by obtaining a corner just 40 seconds into the game. The corner was too long and shortly after, the ball was up at the other end with Jack Hunt who's low cross was fired straight into the hands of the Dons keeper.

Alan Smith was playing as a lone striker for the Dons and was looking surprisingly sharp and got the first, half chance but he smashed it wide of Ian Bennett's goal to the applause of the Town following. A few minutes later it was Town who were on the attack with Damien Johnson who worked the ball out to left back Woods who managed to find him self in some space. His cross went agonisingly out of reach of forward Lee Novak who could only watch it go out for a goal kick.

Town continued to put the pressure on the home side and soon enough Jordan Rhodes found himself the goal side of his defender but his cross was denied to go any further than the front post by Dons defender Shaun Williams. Moments later the ball was back up in the terriers half as the game continued to go from end to end. Callum Woods managed to get the danger away and then Arfield intercepted a pass and immediately started to look for the counter attack. He fed the ball to Jordan Rhodes who waited for Arfield to continue his run and overlap himself only to feed the ball back into his path with a inch perfect pass. Arfield unleashed a cross into the box where Novak was waiting but a Dons defender yet again managed to get a nick on the ball and deny any threat upon their goal.

Both sides started to become more comfortable as the game went on and they were both creating half chances for themselves but it was the Dons who looked the more threatening on the attack. Captain Peter Clarke had to stay alert and block the edge of the area effort by Powell who's pace was obviously starting to cause Huddersfield some problems. From that vital block, a clearance was made that found the head of Lee Novak who knocked it into the path of winger Danny Ward who found himself all alone in the box. He unusually hit it tamely and it more or less trickled into the Dons keepers hands and the first clear cut chance of the match went begging for the terriers.

Scott Arfield then had to be replaced as he picked up a knock and Grayson went with Kallum Higginbotham to be his replacement. Danny Ward switched onto the right wing as the substitute took up his usual left wing position.

Town's midfielder Damien Johnson was having a good game by this stage and he managed to nick the ball from opponent Gleeson and drive forward towards the MK Dons penalty area. Johnson pulled the ball back for Jordan Rhodes who let it run for substitute Higginbotham who's close range shot was superbly turned away by Dons keeper Martin. The ball was kept in play by determined Lee Novak who sent in a beautifully weighted back post cross only for it to be deftly headed goalwards by that man Jordan Rhodes. The Dons goalkeeper was at full stretch but the header was too good and it rippled the back of the net as the away fans were sent into blue & White heaven as the terriers took the lead!

Jordan Rhodes celebrates his clinical headed goal

The goal had really given Town that fighting spirit and they went looking for more as Johnson battled hard in the middle of the park to win possession and push forward only to smash his shot wide of the mark. The second half ended on a massive high for Huddersfield Town and they went in at the break with a vital one goal lead.

The second half started off predictably with MK Dons immediately trying to push forward and grab that equaliser especially with them being at home. Kallum Higginbotham conceded a free kick on the edge of the area which was whipped in by Shaun Williams and after some scrappy play in the box the ball fell to the feet of Dons captain Dean Lewington who's snap shot was expertly saved by Ian Bennett. More chances came and went for MK Dons as Town held strong defensively under immense pressure.

Callum Woods then had to be substituted as the terriers were once again hit with an injured player. Tom Clarke was the like for like replacement and he had to be immediately up to the pace of the game as the Dons were starting to look more and more dangerous down the right hand side with pacey Powell.

Both set pieces and corners were constantly bombarding the terriers box at the beginning of the second half and it looked likely that Huddersfield would possibly concede if things were to carry on. However, Town slowly but surely started to regain control of the ball and by doing so the game. Pressuring the Dons into passing quickly put the home side off their game plan and soon enough Huddersfield were on the attacking foot. Karl Robinson responded with an interesting substitution which saw the rather impressive Alan Smith replaced by winger Jay O'Shea.

The problem for Huddersfield Town at this stage of the game was that their final pass was letting them down and giving back possession to the Dons rather than creating those vital chances to finish this first leg tie off. Another corner for the Dons saw Powell being denied by a resilient Lee Novak who was doing his own fair share of defending.

Moments later came the first one on one chance of the game and it fell to the on form striker Lee Novak for the terriers. He peeled away from both centre halves and beat the offside trap as strike partner Rhodes slotted him through to set up the chance. Novak continued to bear down on the Dons goal and looked to steady himself before smashing the ball agonisingly wide of the post as the away fans groaned at the missed opportunity of going two goals up away from home.

Huddersfield Town did indeed manage to get that two goal lead a few minutes later as they caught the Dons on the counter attack down the wing with Jack Hunt. He played a smart one two with Kallum Higginbotham who managed to cut inside from the right wing and as it looked like he was just about to cross, he fooled everyone by smartly playing the ball back inside to Hunt who took one step before neatly placing the ball in-between Martin and his left hand post. The away fans were once again in ecstasy and it even looked like Grayson was massively pleased as he celebrated on the touchline.

Jack Hunt doubles the lead with a neat finish

Looking like he game was now beyond them, Karl Robinson tried to install some extra attacking threat into the game as he brought on big striker Jabo Ibehre for Charlie MacDonald. MK Dons did indeed start to push forward in numbers looking for a route back into the game and indeed the tie itself. Set pieces is where the Dons had looked most dangerous from and when a corner was floated in and cleared , Huddersfield Towns captain Peter Clarke was worringly left out cold on the deck. The paramedics rushed on to the field whilst Clarke remained on the floor crowded by players who looked worried about the defender. Three minutes later, Clarke rose to his feet and to the applaud of the travelling fans he continued to play regardless of being unconscious just minutes beforehand.

With just five minutes to go Simon Grayson used his last sub to give goalscorer Jordan Rhodes a rest by bringing on Alan Lee. Seven additional minutes were added on in stoppage time an these were played out mainly in the Dons half in the corner as the terriers looked to finish the game with the two goal advantage. However, MK Dons did create the last chance of the game through substitute Ibehre who's glancing header was superbly saved by Ian Bennett who remained unbeaten in goal for the whole of the 90+ minutes.

The match finished 0-2 to Huddersfield Town and we shall take the lead back to The Galpharm on Tuesday night for the second and final leg of this semi final play-off tie. Its not over yet but half of the job has been completed outstandingly well !