Wholesale changes – Predicted Huddersfield Town XI to take on Exeter in the FA Cup
Huddersfield Town launch their FA Cup campaign on Saturday afternoon when Exeter City visit the Accu Stadium. With Town currently topping the League One table, the cups may feel like a distraction from our main mission but I’m actually looking forward to seeing Town’s fringe players get a run out and I’m hoping we can add a cup run to our good form in the league.
Huddersfield Town haven’t won an FA Cup game since Carlos Corberan was in charge, which shows how little previous managers have cared about progressing in the cup. My impression is that Martin Drury wants to win every match his team plays in and will pick a team he thinks can win. That will most likely involve resting some of the players that have played a lot of minutes so far this season but the players that get a run out will be expected to keep the standards high and maintain Town’s good start to the season.
Drury’s team selections in the league have become boringly predictable with very few changes game to game (good for the team’s prospects but not as interesting to blog about). In the cups I expect him to make wholesale changes and we’re likely to see the fringe players and academy lads given a chance to push their way into Drury’s thoughts for selection in league games. Here’s who I think he’ll pick…
Goalkeeper: Alnwick
Jak Alnwick looks like a decent backup keeper on paper, with plenty of experience in League One, the Championship, the Scottish Premiership and even a handful of games in the Premier League for Newcastle at the start of his career. You can probably sense a “but” is coming and it’s true, there’s something about him that I don’t rate. The few times he’s played for Town, I’ve been pretty unconvinced of his abilities as a keeper. Maybe that’s been rustiness from so rarely seeing competitive games but I worry that he’s not good enough to provide proper competition for Matty Young. With Young having a few wobbly moments in the first few months of his loan at Town, I’d feel more comfortable if Alnwick felt like a viable alternative if Young’s form dips. Maybe this game will be Alnwick’s chance to prove me wrong.
Defence: Sorensen, Low, Wallace, Sway
I can imagine that Lasse Sorensen is feeling a bit miffed at the moment as he’s looked pretty decent in all his outings this season but Bronkhorst has played every minute of every league game. So he’s gone from competing with Gooch last season to be the first-choice rightback to competing with Gooch this season to the second choice right-back without particularly playing badly. With Gooch able to play further forward and cover areas where we’re weak, I suspect Sorensen will get the nod at rightback.
Joe Low scored an incredible goal against Bradford City and put in an excellent defensive shift but still found himself relegated to the bench against Luton. I’m sure he’ll be brought back into the backline for this match and will be wondering what he has to do to convince Drury that he’s worth starting in league matches.
I originally had Wallace down to start this game until Friday’s press conference confirmed he’s out until mid-December, as is Jack Whatmough. With those two out, it’ll be a choice between a regular starter in the league or a kid from the academy. With Balker having only recently come back from injury, I’d guess that Bowat will be seen as the least in need of a rest of the two and therefore get the nod.
Town are a bit short on options at leftback, so Drury may opt for regular starters Mumba or Roughan but I have a suspicion he’ll give Jay Sway a run out in this role. Sway tends to play on the wing or in the number ten slot when he’s playing youth football but he’s filled in at leftback pretty regularly in preseason and cup matches for the first team, so I think it’s worth giving him a bit more time to get to know this role in case injury strikes and we need him to fill that position later in the season.
Midfield: Gooch, Ledson, Kasumu, Harness
I think Lynden Gooch is good enough to start every week for most other League One teams but he’s unlucky to be second choice in a variety of different positions but first choice in none. With our lack of experienced options on the wings, I think he’s probably better pushed up to play as a winger rather than the more defensive roles we’ve typically played him in. He played on both wings pretty regularly for Sunderland earlier in his career and I think he can do a job for us. He doesn’t have the pace or trickery of Fernandes but can deliver a decent cross from wide areas and always gives everything when he’s on the pitch.
Ryan Ledson’s weird elbow injury kept him out for weeks and then the equally odd ban he picked up in a game that he was merely spectating extended his spell out of the team. I believe he’s fit and available for this match so will surely return to the central midfield and pick up the captains armband again. He’ll have something to prove in this game, as Town’s form has improved since he’s been unavailable and it seems unlikely that he’ll get picked over either Collins or Humphreys unless he’s playing at his absolute best.
I’d guess it’ll be a toss up between Brierley and Kasumu as to who will partner Ledson in the middle of the park. I’d like to see more of Brierley and Kasumu is only just back from injury but I think Kasumu will get the nod because he always seems to be a bit of a favourite with the managers he plays under. I suppose he’s always commended for his work rate off the ball, whereas Brierley has been flagged as a player that needs to improve on this side of his game. So in a game that may lack fluency and skill, having a grafter like Kasumu does have a logic to it.
Marcus Harness has played in just about every position in the midfield and forward line this season, popping up in central midfield, the wings and as a sort-of striker at times too. I’d guess his preferred position is a tucked-in winger just behind the striker and he’ll be able to play that role if Drury’s selection is anything like the one I’ve suggested here. I’m expecting him to be in the area of the pitch Joe Taylor has made his own but Harness is likely to play as more of a link man rather than trying to run in behind the defence.
Forwards: Tovide, Fletcher
I’m not completely convinced about Samson Tovide. His signing felt like a consolation prize because we didn’t get the player we actually wanted in the transfer window. I’ve no evidence to support this theory but the fact we signed him as a free agent the day after the transfer window closed backs up my opinion. He’s got the right physical attributes to be a powerful player but his first touch and mobility have seemed questionable in the bits I’ve seen of him so far. In his defence, I’ve also seen a video of him scoring a long-range screamer in a reserve match but I’m dubious about whether we’ll ever see him really shine in a Town shirt.
Ashley Fletcher could do with a good game to build his confidence up a bit. He’s putting in good shifts regularly but not scoring many and is usually the one facilitating others good play rather than being the main man himself. He scored twenty goals for Blackpool last season, so he knows where the net is but he’s been reduced to the Danny Ward role of putting in a lot of work but rarely being there when the big chances arrive. Against average League Two opposition, he should get the chance to enjoy himself and hopefully get on the scoresheet.
Luton draw reaction
Apologies for the lack of article about Town’s draw with Luton. We talk about players struggling to keep up with Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday fixture pileup but I’ve fallen victim to it myself.
I felt pretty satisfied with the point on balance. We looked a bit leggy at times and the things that have been working in previous games didn’t work quite so well but I thought we were more than a match for Luton.
I enjoyed watching both teams going for the win, the interesting clash of styles and the way Town managed to create some decent chances. Luton looked like a strong team though and are probably the best team I’ve seen Town play this season. Their build up play was slow at times and sapped the life out of the game when the tapped it about for too long but they’ve got some good players and I expect them to be right up at the top end of the league next spring.
It will be interesting to see how accurate you are and the make-up of the bench.
I wrote this a long time ago, but I thought I’d stick it in. A fairly even entertaining and interesting game, the draw was a fair result, maybe we were the likelier victors but could have gone either way. I felt our passing regressed, from a respectful if not outstanding level, to adventurous and far worse, simple balls going wayward, which didn’t help, especially when handing the ball straight back to the oppo. I was puzzled by the lack of variety in our corners, admittedly they often look dangerous repetitiveness did not yield success.
Although Taylor and DSF combined nicely to give us the draw they were probably more guilty than most of losing possession for a variety of reasons, trying too hard may have been the main one.
The change in personnel mattered little. except perhaps Bowat’s clearing header being, strangely, sent to the centre of the penalty area together with Roughan’s poor tackle leading to the concession. Fletcher, disappointing even anonymous when he came on, maybe the mighty Low would have been a better alternative up top? Substitutions late or very late; how often do replacements beyond 90 minutes ever affect the outcome?
Most were at the minimum competent, including the much-maligned Young.
Totally agree about late subs. Drury gave various excuses/reasons why he didn’t bring on subs earlier but to bring on subs at 90mins is pointless, even foolhardy. Even a sub needs time to warm up on the pitch and get into the pace of the game. I think most observers thought that many of the Town of players were starting to look a bit leggy by 70mins. That was when the team should have been freshened up.
My theory is that late subs – towards added time – risk disrupting things – and giving away late goals – as has happened several times. Best to try to keep defence as it is if it has been working as a solid coherent unit.
If that’s the team selected we’ll lose. Glad your not picking the team.
I would rather have kept George Sebine at the club rather than bring in Tovide. The way things have turned out,with Radulovic prone to injury and Fletcher struggling, I think he could have made a big contribution.