Terrier Spirit

Aug192025 by Terrier Spirit8 Comments

Predicted Huddersfield Town XI to take on Doncaster Rovers

Huddersfield Town take on Doncaster Rovers tonight in a game that now feels more important to Town after their defeat to Blackpool at the weekend. And success feels less likely after Doncaster have started their return to League One in style, picking up seven points from their first three games. Lee Grant will have to decide whether to stick with his players that started against Blackpool or bring in new players to freshen up the lineup. I talked about this dilemma, among other things, in my pre-match talking points article, so read that next if you want to hear more of my thoughts on this match. Otherwise, here's my predicted lineup for tonight…. Goalkeeper: Owen Goodman While Goodman wasn’t to blame for any of the three goals we conceded against Blackpool, I think he c...

Aug192025 by Terrier Spirit6 Comments

Pearson’s revenge, almost a derby, shuffling the pack and bouncing back – 4 talking points ahead of Huddersfield Town v Doncaster Rovers

Matches, Talking points

Huddersfield Town take on Doncaster Rovers tonight, where they'll be hoping to shake off Saturday's defeat against Blackpool. Doncaster Rovers come to the Accu Stadium in good form, unbeaten in their opening three games and a point ahead of Town in the embryonic league table (which no longer interests me now Town aren't top). After a positive start to the season, the loss at Blackpool and the struggle to break down ten men didn't feel like it was part of the Huddersfield Town script. Tonight's game should be a chance for Town to return to their pre-Blackpool way of doing things. Though Doncaster will not be an easy opponent. Can Town brush off the Blackpool performance? After seeing a less pleasant side to this new Huddersfield Town team on Saturday, it feels vitally important to ...

Aug182025 by Terrier Spirit2 Comments

Toothless – Notes on Huddersfield Town’s defeat to Blackpool

Matches, Notes

Huddersfield Town lost their first game of the season against Blackpool on Saturday afternoon. It was a game of three distinct parts, with Town dominating the opening stages, then losing their heads for a spell where they conceded three goals, and after pulling a goal back and a Blackpool red card, the game settled into a dismal attack and defence training exercise where Town repeatedly failed to find a way through Blackpool's defence. While Town's toothless attacking play was a concern, the three quick goals they conceded is just as worrying. After talking so much about how things feel different at Town, this game was eerily similar to the type of football we saw last season. A blistering opening The first few minutes of this game were brilliant to watch from a Town p...

Aug172025 by Terrier Spirit17 Comments

“Got a lot wrong” – Player ratings for Huddersfield Town’s 3-2 defeat to Blackpool

Matches, Player ratings

Huddersfield Town tasted defeat for the first time this season after losing 3-2 to Blackpool despite playing against ten men for the best part of an hour. A calamitous period in the middle of the first half saw Town go from 1-0 up to 3-1 down and the red card that ended Blackpool's period of dominance led to an unpleasant finish for Town as they huffed and puffed but couldn't break down Blackpool's impressive defence. This defeat may be useful to bring down the skyrocketing expectations that our first three wins brought (including my own) but will hopefully only be a blip rather than anything more concerning. Here's what I made of each performance… Owen Goodman - 5 out of 10 Looked like he should have done better with the first goal, even accounting for the deflection. Th...

Aug162025 by Terrier SpiritNo Comments

Predicted Huddersfield Town XI to take on Blackpool

Matches, Predicted lineups

Huddersfield Town take on Blackpool later today in a game that sees Town, with a record so far this season of three wins in three, take on Blackpool with the opposite form to Town, having lost all three of their games. It's possibly a good time to take on Steve Bruce's team before they've properly hit their stride but Lee Grant warned in his pre-match press conference that they could be more dangerous because of their bad start. Here's how I think Town will line up… Goalkeeper: Owen Goodman Lee Nicholls was the penalty shootout hero on Wednesday night but his kicking was noticeably more reserved than Goodman's has been, which often put Town on the back foot when building up from the back. Goodman has looked like an accident waiting to happen so far but has yet to co...

Aug152025 by Terrier Spirit2 Comments

Wounded animals, winning runs, stinky fans, and extra rest – 6 talking points ahead of Huddersfield Town’s trip to Blackpool

Matches, Talking points

The games are coming thick and fast now the new season is properly underway and Town have a trip to the seaside to take on Blackpool on Saturday afternoon. The game follows quickly in the wake of Town’s impressive penalties victory over Leicester in the League Cup on Wednesday night but Lee Grant will want to make sure there’s no hangover for this game. Huddersfield Town fans are less likely to be avoiding hangovers, as a boozy do on the coast is almost certain for many in the sold out away end. With Town winning their opening three games of the season and Blackpool losing all three of theirs, the omens look good on paper but the reality is likely to be different. Here are a few of the main talking points ahead of this fixture… Can Town keep their winning start going? ...

Aug152025 by Terrier Spirit9 Comments

Control vs Chaos, winning with kids, enjoying penalties and rival manager remarks – Notes on Huddersfield Town’s cup win against Leicester City

Matches, Notes

Going to midweek cup games can be a real gamble with your time. It’s very easy to come away from these games feeling like you’ve wasted your evening, particularly if you get the impression that the players cared even less than you did. The fact the attendance was around a third of a typical league game tells you that many fans are not up for the cup. Thankfully, those fans that did turn up to watch Town play Leicester on Wednesday night were treated to an excellent evening’s entertainment. Town fought back from behind to draw the game 2-2 in normal time and then went straight to penalties and won 3-2 thanks to some heroics from Lee Nichols. While the competition might not be a priority, seeing a youthful Huddersfield Town team go toe to toe with one of the bigger Championship teams show...

Aug142025 by Terrier Spirit8 Comments

“Like a glitching video game character stuck in celebration mode” – Player ratings for Huddersfield Town’s penalty win against Leicester in the League Cup

Matches, Player ratings

Huddersfield Town came from behind twice to take Leicester to penalties on Wednesday night in the first round for the League Cup. The game was a tense tactical battle in the first half before opening up into a genuinely exciting and well matched game. Despite making a raft of changes to the team, Lee Grant managed to get another good performance to maintain his 100% win rate with the Terriers for a third game. Or can you call it a 100% record if we won the game on penalties? Technically the game was a 2-2 draw at full time, so maybe he's won two and drawn one. It doesn't really matter, as Town won the penalty shootout 3-2 with a kick to spare and created a huge buzz in the stadium. Here's what I made of each player's performance… Lee Nicholls - 7 out of 10 Looked uncomfortabl...

Aug132025 by Terrier Spirit7 Comments

All change! Predicted Huddersfield Town XI to take on Leicester in the League Cup

Matches, Predicted lineups

Huddersfield Town face Leicester in the League Cup tonight and will most likely be making a raft of changes to the eleven that started the game against Reading at the weekend. These sorts of games would be a nightmare to predict the lineup if I cared about being accurate but I actually enjoy the challenge of cup fixtures even if it is a fool's errand. Here's how I think we'll lineup but if I get 7 out of 11 right I'll be pleased with myself… Goalkeeper: Lee Nicholls Jacob Chapman's injury means Lee Nicholls is the only experienced pro who can replace Goodman. This could be Nicholls’ last game for the club, as he seems too good a keeper to play second fiddle to a loanee keeper. It'll be interesting to see how he behaves at full time, an emotional farewell to the fans is...

Aug122025 by Terrier Spirit4 Comments

Does Grant care? Poor atmosphere? Sticking or twisting? Fringe players stepping up? 4 talking points ahead of Huddersfield Town’s cup game against Leicester

Matches, Talking points

After back-to-back wins in the league, Huddersfield Town's attention now turns to the League Cup, where they'll host Leicester on Wednesday evening. While I'm sure many fans will hope to see a strong first team fielded by Town, I can't remember the last Town manager that played a full strength lineup in the early rounds of any cup competition. The good thing is that Town have a relatively deep squad and the players not currently starting league games are capable of stepping in and doing a good job for Town. Leicester were relegated from the Premier League last season but will be aiming to yo-yo themselves back up there this year, starting that project with a win against beleaguered Sheffield Wednesday at the weekend. Having said that, they've shipped out a host of players and only...