Match Report: Huddersfield Town 2-0 Yeovil Town

Huddersfield ended the season on a massive high with a confident win against Yeovil Town. Town controlled the game from the off which was surprising to see especially with the current form they are on, yet today things seemed to click into place finally under Simon Grayson. Huddersfield Town enjoyed excellent possession of the ball whilst also creating dangerous chances and even the midfield put a decent shift in today.

Simon Grayson bravely named an unchanged starting eleven for the final regular league one campaign game and top goalscorer Jordan Rhodes remained on the bench yet again.

The first chance of the match fell to Kallum Higginbotham who expertly made his way past two Yeovil players only to shoot tamely into Sam Walkers (Yeovil's goalkeeper) hands from the edge of the box. Yeovil had also been attempting to grab the first goal but it was immediately obvious that they were trying to catch the terriers on the break.

Peter Clarke was having a solid game at the back for Huddersfield and just 16minutes into the game he managed to get the ball to Jack Hunt, who was also having a great game going forward, who in turn played the ball inside for Arfield who could only manage to hit the side netting with his shot. Thirty-four minutes into the first half, Danny Ward made the Yeovil keeper work with his 25 yard effort that he could only parry away.

Jack Hunt and Scott Arfield were performing extremely well for Huddersfield and on the stroke of half time they combined together which ultimately ended with a dangerous Hunt cross only for on-form striker Lee Novak to send a glancing header into the back of the net from 12 yards out. The lead could of easily been doubled just seconds later as Higginbotham beat his marker to force Walker into a splendid diving save from 20 yards out. The terriers went into the dressing room at half time with a deserved goal advantage in a game that was slowly becoming more and more one sided.

Lee Novak celebrates his 3rd goal in 3 games

With the restart, Yeovil tried to get themselves back into the game and should of equalised through striker Andrew Williams who got past Clarke, Morrison and Hunt before having his effort superbly saved by Ian Bennett who was trying to cement his place as the terriers number one goalkeeper. Kieran Agard then threatened the home sides goal as his 18 yard shot just whistled past the wrong side if the post.

Jack Hunt continued to impress Grayson and the fans but it was on-loan defender Morrison who's header had to be cleared off the line to deny his team a clear two goal lead. However, it didn't take long before the game was killed off by the terriers as Danny Ward doubled the lead when his shot rifled into the bottom corner after a neat little flick on by Higginbotham. With the game all but wrapped up, Grayson changed things by bringing on Rhodes, Robinson & T.Clarke at the expense of Novak, Johnson & Hunt. Ward came close to making it three but his late effort didn't beat Walker who had a solid game for Yeovil and kept Huddersfield at bay for longer than expected.

With Walsall beating MK Dons it means that Huddersfield Town have leapfrogged them into fourth place and by doing so have gained the second leg home advantage in the play-offs. Massive performance from Huddersfield Town today and they were very impressive for the first time under Simon Grayson. Maybe we are peaking at the right time for the play-offs but more of the same and we shall be heading to Wembley!

Grayson Not Interested In Released Leeds Players

Rumours have been floating around linking Huddersfield Town with a few of the players which Leeds United have released under new manager Neil Warnock. Simon Grayson has however stated that he is not interested in any of the players yet but is focusing on the current squad he has aswell as promotion through the League One play-offs. This is what he had to say about the situation:

"Obviously we are at the stage of the year when players are being released, but what is happening at other clubs is really not my problem. I have to look to my group of players and focus the Yeovil game tomorrow and then our two big games against Milton Keynes Dons and try to ensure that we are playing against the likes if Leeds in the Championship next season."

Simon Grayson Only Concentrating On Promotion

Of the eleven players to leave Leeds United, five are to be released with their contracts not being renewed. These are Alex Bruce, Lloyd Sam, Mikael Forsell, Danny Webber & Maik Taylor. Any of them will undoubtedly be able to fit into any League One side and so it wouldn't surprise us if Grayson wasn't tempted to bring any of them to Huddersfield Town.

Jordan Rhodes To Be Rested Again

Simon Grayson has hinted that top goalscorer Jordan Rhodes may well be rested for the game against Yeovil. He was an unused sub on the bench for the away tie against Walsall which ended 1-1 and it may well be the same situation this week.

Jordan Rhodes Being Rested For The Play-Offs

Grayson has already said that the play-offs are the only things which matter bow but he still wants to see a strong performance from the terriers to end the regular League One campaign on a high. This is what he had to say about Rhodes:

“He has had a long hard season and has looked a little tired over the last few games, Jordan was quite happy with that decision because he has carried the goal-scoring burden for the club this season. We gave him a breather (against Walsall) and we may do the same (against Yeovil). Then he will be ready for the play-offs.”

We personally would like him to feature in the weekend clash between ourselves and Yeovil but can understand where Grayson is coming from. Would you like to see Rhodes back in action or see him rested for the play-offs against MK Dons?

Match Report: Walsall 1-1 Huddersfield Town

Another disappointing game for Simon Grayson and his men who had to leave the Banks's Stadium with just a point after once again letting a goal lead slip away. Going into the match it's a result which, under the circumstances ain't a hugely bad result at all. Just because Walsall are near the bottom of the league didn't mean that it would be an easy victory especially when playing away from home. Walsall battled hard and deservedly got something out of the game as they had the chances to take all three points in the second 45 minutes.

It all started off amazingly for Huddersfield Town as Lee Novak slotted home the first goal in just 1 minute and 32 seconds. The recalled Kallum Higginbotham played a major part in the goal as he played the ball to Scott Arfield who neatly lobbed it over into Novak's path who's first touch, followed by a neat finish meant the terriers were off to a flyer. A few half chances were then created by the home side who looked for an equalizer and thought they had got a penalty when Alex Nicholls went down in the area under a tackle from Jack Hunt. The referee however thought differently and waved play on as the terriers cleared their lines.

Lee Novak celebrates his early goal for Huddersfield Town

Injury then hit the terriers as Calum Woods had to be taken off by Simon Grayson to be replaced by Tom Clarke. This didn't slow down Huddersfield Town who were improving as the half went on and came close when Scott Arfield tried to curl one past Walsall's goalkeeper only for it to take a slight deflection and clip the upright. Ex Huddersfield Town defender Andy Butler was causing the terriers problems especially from set-pieces where twice he came close to scoring by beating his marker only to head agonizingly wide or straight into Bennett's hands.

As the teams emerged for the second half Danny Ward had been replaced by winger Gary Roberts and later  we have found it it is due to Danny Ward occurring an illness. Huddersfield Town started off the second half just like the first and looked dangerous from the off but Walsall were having none of it and turned the tables with their first attack which lead to the equalizer. Florent Cuvelier found the ball at his feet after a cross from Sadler and he made no mistake by smashing it past Ian Bennett after taking on two Huddersfield Town defenders. 

Things went downhill for Huddersfield Town after being pegged back and Damien Johnson had to be subbed after picking up a slight knock. He was replaced by Oscar Gobern with less than 30 minutes to play.  The remaining half an hour saw Huddersfield Town struggle to create any threatening chances but Walsall were bouncing forward and keeping the pressure on whilst looking for the winner. Walsall came close with a header from Olly Lancashire than narrowly missed the target. Huddersfield Town did manage to get themselves back into the game with a few minutes left on the clock and Gobern had a half chance to secure three points for the terriers when Walsall failed to clear Roberts cross. Then, deep into stoppage time, Ian Bennett heroically dived at the feet of Ledesma to deny the striker any sort of chance on goal.

All in all, a drew and a share of the spoils for both teams was a fair result in the end but the second half performance was extremely disappointing for Huddersfield Town especially since they played half decent in the first 45 minutes. Grayson rested Jordan Rhodes ahead of the play-off semi final against MK Dons but the starting line-up for Huddersfield Town is still a mystery as players seem to not be able to perform when given the opportunity. A lot of work still to be done by Grayson and his squad as time is running out as the season draws to a close.  

Simon Grayson expresses his frustration after the game
by stating Huddersfield Town need to be more consistent.