Huddersfield Town take on Preston North End yet again today, this time in the FA Cup third round. Having already played them in the league cup and twice in the league, it’s safe to see we’ve seen enough of Preston. While it’s not exactly likely, it is technically possible that we could break some sort of record if we finish in the playoffs and end up playing them twice more in the playoff semi finals. Chuck in an FA Cup third round replay that nobody wants and there’s the possibility of playing Preston seven times in one season, realistically though, today should be the final time we face them unless the game ends in a draw, which neither team will want.
Predicting today’s team is a fool’s errand as Mark Fotheringham is almost certain to make wholesale changes to rest his first teamers and give his fringe players a run out. I’ll be that fool today and make a stab at guessing who will be given a chance to impress the head coach and possibly even force their way into first team contention for a start in the league.
Here’s my best guess at how we’ll line up:
Goalkeeper: Bilokapic
My confidence is low on many of my predictions today but on this one I’m certain, as Fozzy Bear has already confirmed his goalkeeper selection as Nicholls is ruled out with a shoulder issue. From the sounds of it, if this game mattered then they’d have patched our main stopper up and not risked our youngster but as it’s tradition to give your second choice keeper a run in the cup anyway, why not give Bilokapic a go?
It’s not clear if he’s ready for senior football but we’ve trusted him as our number two all season so we should give him some experience in a low-stakes game in case we need to call upon him later in the season when survival could be on the line. I expect his shot stopping will be good, as most young keepers master this skill quickly, but it’ll be interesting to see how he commands his area and copes with high balls in crowded areas as these are skills that tend to come with experience.
Defence: Lowton, Ayina, Helik, Jackson
The FA Cup is a chance to kick the tyres on new signings, so I hope that Matt Lowton is given the chance to show what he can do. Given his lack of game time at Burnley, he may not be deemed match fit enough to go straight into the starting team but I feel like the FA Cup (despite all the “it’s the world’s greatest cup competition” talk in press conferences) is little more than a friendly to clubs these days and therefore he may be chucked in at the deep end.
Similarly, Loick Ayina may be given a start to gain some experience in this game as he’s been on the bench for most games lately and clearly has caught Fotheringham’s eye in training. His full throttle attitude to training was the reason Danny Ward picked up his back injury and I think I’ve heard elsewhere he doesn’t take any prisoners, so expect crunching tackles and the potential telling off from the red if he does get a chance to play today.
If we have a young lad in central defence then it’s likely there’ll be an old head to steady the ship too. Whether that’s Boyle (the oldest looking head), Helik or Lees is anyone’s guess but I’d personally go with Helik because he’s younger than Lees, so likely to be able to cope with an extra game and Boyle isn’t nearly as good as the other two.
Ben Jackson has been unavailable for a while due to illness and there hasn’t been an update on him lately but if he’s fit then he should come in. Ruffels has been a bit suspect in recent games and it may be that Jackson is a better option as the left wingback anyway once he’s fully fit. This game will help him regain some sharpness after a while out of the first team, providing he’s well enough to play.
Midfield: Diarra, Camera, Kasumu, Thomas
There’s less scope to change things around in midfield because we have fewer options in this department. The good news is that Jonathan Hogg received a clean bill of health after hobbling off injured during the Luton game. He’s going to be rested for this game as a precaution anyway which makes complete sense given his age and injury record. It does, however, leave very few options in the middle of the park.
In theory this would be a good game for Jon Russell to come back in and redeem himself but I think he’s long past redemption and instead we’ll see Camara starting and Kasumu partnering him. This isn’t ideal as both are potential starters but neither have played a crazy number of games this season so fatigue shouldn’t be an issue.
On the wings it’s harder to know who will be rested. Usually this would be a game for Sorba Thomas to be given a break but as he’s lost his place in the starting eleven in the league it may be that he actually starts this game. Likewise, Diarra isn’t a regular starting player, so may be given the nod so he can prove he’s more than just an impact sub. (In fairness, Diarra turned the game in Town’s favour last time we visited Preston so they’ll be very worried if they see his name on the team sheet.)
Attack: Simpson, Kamberi
After slowly playing more and more minutes from the bench, this could be the game where we see Tyreece Simpson finally start a game after his long recovery from injury. I’m looking forward to seeing more of him as he looks to bring something to the pitch we’ve missed for years: physical presence. He’s a wall of muscle and he knows how to use his body to make life hard for defenders and to make space for his colleagues to exploit. I’m less sure about his ability to control the ball and whether he can operate in tight spaces but he does have a fairly cultured left foot when the ball sits up nicely for him.
Kamberi is another new signing that I’m hoping we’ll get a chance to see in action today. He’s received international clearance so there’s no reason he can’t play but it’s possible Fotheringham may fear he isn’t match fit. Though he’s been training with the squad since November, so he should be ready to hit the ground running.
Kyle Hudlin came back from his Wimbledon loan this week but almost certainly won’t start as he played 45 minutes for the B Team yesterday. Kian Harratt didn’t feature for the stiffs though, so is very likely to feature either from the bench or even from the start. I think the club have moved on since his legal trouble for animal cruelty related offenses after fining him and making him do some awareness courses, so he is eligible to play if he’s deemed good enough. (I’m a bit conflicted about the whole thing, as what he did was disgusting but young men make mistakes and if he’s been punished, maybe it’s OK to move on? I’m really not sure. I know some fans aren’t bothered at all and other fans think he should have been sacked. I worry a telling off and a fine might not feel like enough.)
Danny Ward’s back injury has led to him picking up a hamstring injury, so he’s now out for a good while, so Rhodes is the only other striker likely to feature. He’ll most likely be rested though as he played a lot of minutes over Christmas and deserves a rest.