“His killer instinct has abandoned him and his time at Huddersfield is up” Player ratings for Town’s defeat to Watford

Town were well beaten in the end by Watford, although they put up a decent fight for at least half an hour they ultimately couldn’t cope with the quality, strength and speed of their opponent. It wasn’t a complete hammering but the scoreline perhaps flatters Town as Watford has a clear penalty shout turned down in the first half and spurned some glorious scoring opportunities. 

It wasn’t all gloom though, as Town showed some nice moments against a strong opponent that hints at the possibility that we might look a bit better when we’re up against teams with fewer superstar (for the Championship) players.

Here are my ratings for each individual player in yesterday’s game.

Lee Nicholls – 8 out of 10

Stopped what looked like a certain goal as well as pulling off some other more routine saves. Continues to keep us in games when we don’t deserve to be. Nothing he could be expected to do for either of the goals that went in. 

Tom Lees – 6 out of 10

Did a decent job of covering Sarr when Thomas pushed up field and made some decent challenges. Was a bit shaky at times too but overall pretty solid.

Michael Helik – 6 out of 10

Very strong in the air and made some good challenges against a potent front line. Very lucky to get away with an obvious penalty shout but that was partly due to the ability of his opponent. 

Will Boyle – 5 out of 10

I thought he looked solid early in the first half but looked to lose his head when Watford saw more of the ball later in the game. Jumped into a few challenges he didn’t need to and his lack of pace was exposed on one occasion. On the other hand, he made a great last ditch tackle in the box at one point too. 

Sorba Thomas – 6 out of 10

A fairly typical performance for this season, promise without end product in open play alongside excellent set piece deliveries. There were a couple of duffers from corners and free kicks but the ones he got right were excellent and were our biggest threat of scoring (as usual). 

Brahima Diarra – 5 out of 10

After impressing from the bench, it’s not unusual for youth prospects to be underwhelming when they start games. It’s harder when you’re not coming up against tired legs and have to sustain your efforts over a longer period. So it wasn’t a huge surprise that Diarra failed to shine, with most of his time on the ball ending in lost possession even though you could see the ambition behind what he was trying to do. He wasn’t helped by own do the most ridiculously harsh bookings I’ve ever seen. Sorba Thomas also wasn’t that kind to him, repeatedly selling him short with passes or sending him down blind alleys. He’ll have better days and will learn a lot from these experiences. I just hope he learns quickly as we desperately need him to come good quickly.

Jonathan Hogg – 6 out of 10

Town’s excellent start to the game was partly due to the calm control Hogg applied in the middle of the pitch. He wasn’t his usual hustle and bustle self but still managed to control things and influence the game enough to limit Watford’s opportunities. He faded as the game went on and so did Town’s control of the game. He probably should have come off after an hour but a lack of alternatives meant he had to play the full 90.

Etienne Camara – 5 out of 10

A poor game for Cqmara. He wasn’t too bad in the early stages when Town were on top but Watford soon realised his tendency to linger on the ball a fraction too long and he was repeatedly caught in possession or pressed into sloppy mistakes. He also has a bad habit of passing to marked teammates, which he did plenty of in this game too. There are still all the signs that justify the rumours linking him with a £10m move to a Premier League club too, he’s got class. But any scouts watching this game will have concluded that he’s a player that still has a lot of rough edges that need knocking off. The Championship is the perfect place for him to do that. Moving to the Premier League too early would risk stifling his development and see him wasting away in reserve football for years and years.

Jack Rudoni – 5 out of 10

Had some nice touches and flashes of skill in the build up of moves but couldn’t quite apply the finishing touch. His fullback always seemed able to cut out the cross or block the shot in the final moment. That’s been the story of Rudoni’s season unfortunately. He also made an unfortunate error with a sloppy pass to give away possession high up the field that set up Watford’s opener. Like most of the team, he looks low on confidence and could do with a boost.

Josh Ruffels – 6 out of 10

Grafted but didn’t get much for his efforts as a left wingback. Didn’t offer as much of an attacking threat as Thomas but was more helpful to the back three as he was less willing to bomb forward.

Danny Ward – 6 out of 10

Seems to be fitter than he was before the break and more able to make a nuisance of himself. Sadly he wasn’t much of a goal threat though and his chances were all speculative ones from a long way out.

Substitutes

Ben Jackson – 5 out of 10

Struggled to get into the game off the bench and mistimed a few challenges. Looked rusty, which is understandable after not playing competitive football for a while. Very nearly scored a beauty when he cut inside and shot with his right foot but sadly couldn’t keep it down.

Tyreece Simpson – 7 out of 10

I might be being a bit generous with my rating here but it’s mostly because Simpson came off the bench and gave us something we’ve not had, and I don’t mean rippling muscles though it is related to that. His physical presence caused problems for Watford in a way that Ward and Rhodes are far too nice and lightweight to do. The size and strength of Simpson gave another dimension to our play and created space for others around him. The reason I say 7 might be generous is that his touch looks a bit League One still but hopefully he’ll adjust quickly.

Jordan Rhodes – 5 out of 10

The one thing Rhodes is expected to do is finish the chances that are laid on for him. That quality is why you can forgive his lack of other attributes. If you score the chances that come your way then you’re forgiven most other sins. So the fact he’s now not tucking away decent chances is deeply concerning. The chance Simpson set up for him late on would only have been a consolation as Watford were 2-0 up at the time and it was deep into stoppage time but it was the kind of chance Rhodes has been buying 99 times out of a 100 throughout his career, but lately his killer instinct seems to have abandoned him and his time at Huddersfield Town is up. Mark Fotheringham as food as confirmed it in a recent press conference and the rumour mill suggests ambitious League One clubs will be interested in him.

Kaine Kesler-Heyden – 5 out of 10

Didn’t do much, but facilitated the switch to 442 and allowed Sorba Thomas to be pushed further upfield.