Terrier Spirit

May12024 by Terrier Spirit16 Comments

Should they stay or should they go? Trying to predict Town’s summer squad overhaul

Transfers

It’s likely to be another summer of change at Huddersfield Town, as we prepare for a new life in League One and hopefully a more positive season after a pretty dire run of results in 23/24. Before we get to next August there will have to be some work done to build a squad that is up to the challenge of League One, which will be a tricky job, particularly if the club needs to cut its cloth according to the reduced revenues that relegation brings. With that in mind, I’ve had a go at trying to predict what might happen to Huddersfield Town’s squad over the summer. There are likely to be some high-profile exits, hopefully some of our better players will stick around too and a few fringe players may step out of the shadows to take on more prominent roles at a lower level. The retained ...

Apr302024 by Terrier Spirit19 Comments

Notes on Huddersfield Town’s 1-1 draw with Birmingham – A relegation special

Matches

Unless Huddersfield Town beat Ipswich next weekend by more than a dozen goals AND other results go in our favour, Saturday's draw with Birmingham has confirmed our relegation to League One (though I suppose a more modest victory would be OK if Plymouth lose their game by seven or eight goals). My dad made the point that a 1-1 draw was a fitting result to virtually seal our fate, as it's the result Town have all too often ended games on this season, often in games where they should have won. This game was their fourteenth 1-1 draw of the season and like the thirteen before, Town had the chances to win the game but not the quality in front of goal to finish them off. So can we really complain about going down? I'm not sure we can, despite all the bad luck and injustices, we've also been...

Apr132024 by Terrier Spirit4 Comments

Predicted Huddersfield Town XI to take on Bristol City

Matches

Andre Breitenreiter said the team needed fresh legs and a fresh mentality following the bruising 4-1 defeat to Preston in midweek, so expect a few changes ahead of today's game with Bristol City. He's not wrong either, as Town ran out of both steam and ideas as Preston ran riot in the closing stages on Tuesday night. Hopefully, a few new faces today might help to produce a more convincing performance from the Terriers, as they dangle precariously above the relegation zone with just four games left in the season. It's still early in Breitenreiter's time at Town but his approach to selection is starting to become apparent and he seems to like tinkering with his lineup. Most of the time there's common sense to the changes he makes so I suspect he'll look to solve the most obvious problems...

Apr82024 by Terrier Spirit3 Comments

A dirty win, an odd take on 4-4-2, a sneaky elbow, blustery conditions – Notes on Huddersfield Town v Millwall

Matches

Huddersfield Town scrapped away in blustery conditions to knick a last-gasp winner against Millwall that they just about deserved on Saturday. It was an ugly, ugly game where neither team covered themselves in glory but Town applied the most pressure and in the 94th minute they achieved their reward when Matty Pearson's excellent header was saved and Rhys Healey nodded in the loose ball. While Town's Championship status is far from secure, if they do stay up, this will be the game we'll look back on as the turning point where we went from likely relegation to having a chance of survival. Not only did Healey's goal give us all three points, it also gave Town belief, momentum and some good feelings at just the right time in the season. A dirty win - as promised Andre Br...

Apr62024 by Terrier Spirit3 Comments

Huddersfield Town v Millwall – predicted Town XI, opposition preview and guessing the score

Matches

Must-win is an overused term in football these days but I think Huddersfield Town’s match against Millwall today is one that has potential to define their season. Victory could set them on course for survival and anything else leaves them with a very tricky task with five games remaining. It probably isn't over for Town if they lose but negative results elsewhere and the morale sapping impact a home defeat to a fellow struggler could mean League One would beckon. On a positive note, victory would give Town a decent chance of pulling out of the relegation zone given Birmingham face Leicester today and either way it will leave them with a more achievable points target from the remaining fixtures in the season, not to mention the fact it keeps Millwall within touching distance too. ...

Apr32024 by Terrier Spirit4 Comments

Huddersfield Town falter in the Potteries – Notes on Town’s draw against Stoke

Matches

Town experienced their 12th 1-1 draw of the season against Stoke on Monday. It seems incredibly unlikely that one scoreline would turn up with such regularity in a season (the next most common scoreline is a 4-1 defeat, which has happened four times). Whether drawing so frequently is a good or a bad thing will depend if Town can scrape themselves over the line by the end of the season. Just like yesterday’s game against Stoke will either be a valuable point away from home or two dropped against poor opposition depending on which side of the dotted line we finish. After domestic complications forced a hiatus from blogging for the last few months (practical rather than anything more worrying) I'm now back and hopefully will be able to post more often during Town's attempts to stave...

Jan32024 by Terrier Spirit4 Comments

Sloppy goals, upward curves, dull but talented Foxes, and transfer needs – notes on Huddersfield Town’s defeat to Leicester

Matches

Huddersfield Town were soundly beaten by Leicester City yesterday, and I'm not sure there's a lot we can draw from a 4-1 scoreline against a team that are in the wrong league and are certain to be promoted as champions unless they implode between now and May. While Town were far from perfect, particularly in the individual moments that led to the goals, this game was such a mis-match that it's not much of a concern compared to other defeats we have suffered. A bit too easy for Leicester Having tried to keep some perspective in the introduction, it was a bit galling to watch Leicester toy with Town in much the same way that my cat plays with the half-dead mice it brings through the cat flap. My cat will disinterestedly bat around his prey for a while, bored and hoping to see a bit of...

Jan32024 by Terrier Spirit3 Comments

Who is Alex Matos and will he be a good signing for Huddersfield Town?

Transfers

I was just about to publish my article about Town's defeat to Leicester on New Year's Day when I saw Town are on the verge of making their first January signing, so I've decided to write about that first and will put up the post about Monday's game later today. Apparently we're about to sign 19-year-old Chelsea winger, Alex Matos on loan for the rest of the season. I wouldn't usually write about unconfirmed transfer rumours but this one has been put out by Fabrizio Ramono on Twitter (or X if you prefer) who is usually fairly reliable. Or at least, I doubt someone who typically breaks stories of ginormous transfers would bother making up stories about a Chelsea youth player going to a struggling Championship side, so it seems likely to be true. It's also been picked up and reported by t...

Dec292023 by Terrier Spirit6 Comments

Huddersfield Town made Blackburn look bad, the positives of negative football, Rudoni’s influence, Chapman’s debut – Notes on a great win against Blackburn

Matches

Huddersfield Town gave their fans an expected Christmas present of not just three points but a resounding 3-0 victory and a convincing performance that few fans saw coming. It was a welcome relief from the gathering gloom that had settled around the club to see the team effectively dismantle an (admittedly poor) opponent and execute a gameplay with ruthless efficiency. One win might not be enough to undo all the memories of recent failings at Town but it was certainly a welcome break from the dreary and depressing fare that has recently been served up. This win also gives optimists and dreamers the chance to wonder what this win could lead to. Maybe not much but there's always a chance it could be the start of things finally picking up for Town. Blackburn were rubbish but only becau...

Dec232023 by Terrier Spirit6 Comments

Predicted Huddersfield Town XI, Norwich preview and pessimistic score prediction for today’s game

Matches

Huddersfield Town are in Norwich today where they'll be hoping to give fans the Christmas gift of three points but David Wagner and his band of former Town coaches will be trying to make sure that the Terriers leave Carrow Road with little more than a lump of coal in their stocking. To stretch this Christmas themed introduction to breaking point, Town fans are also still making their minds up about whether Darren Moore is on their Naughty or Nice List - with a growing number finding his style of football, uninspiring press performances and failure to register enough wins making him a prime candidate for Santa's naughty list and an imminent P45. A hectic pre-Christmas week meant I didn't get time to do a dedicated article to reflect on the Millwall game, so I'll share a few of my ...