Stoke – Terrier Spirit – Huddersfield Town FC blog

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...

Sep222023 by Terrier Spirit3 Comments

Shuffling the pack, was it fair?, testing the depth, Warnock Way suggestion, and more – Notes on Huddersfield Town’s draw with Stoke

Matches

Huddersfield Town were forced to share the spoils with Stoke on Wednesday night in Neil Warnock's final game as Huddersfield Town manager. (it was actually his third "final" game but this time he really means it!) In this article I'll talk about how I think a draw was probably just about fair, pay some backhanded compliments to Stoke, consider how the fringe players fared when given a chance in this game, reflect for a moment on Warnock and Jepson's time at Town through misty eyes and then look ahead to what's coming next now we know Darren Moore is taking over… Draw a fair result At half time I would have snatched your hand off if you offered me a draw, as Stoke had bossed the game and could easily have been ahead by a couple of goals by that stage. But a decent set piece goal h...

Sep202023 by Terrier Spirit13 Comments

Thoughts on Warnock leaving Huddersfield Town, who might be next, the upcoming Stoke game and the win over Rotherham

Matches

In an ideal world, our manager leaving, last weekend's victory over Rotherham and tonight's game against Stoke would all get their own individual article. But we don't live in an ideal world, so time limitations mean I'm having to consolidate these three topics into one easy-to-swallow package. I'll start by looking at the biggest news, which is Warnock's departure, as it's hard to talk about anything else without first covering that. Then maybe speculate a bit about what we might expect to be coming next, manager-wise before sharing my thoughts on the win against Rotherham and looking ahead to this evening's game. Warnock: a true Huddersfield Town legend These days it's easy to over use the word legend. If someone gets you a timely cup of tea you'll thank them by saying, "You're...

Aug142022 by Terrier Spirit7 Comments

“He’s going to be a new fan favourite” Player ratings for Huddersfield Town’s 3-1 win against Stoke City

Matches

I've never felt more confident of a Town defeat going into a game but thankfully the team that emerged onto the field against Stoke were a completely different proposition to the limp and ineffective ensembles that have capitulated in all three of our previous games. After three consecutive false starts, it felt like this was the first time that Danny Schofield got the team selection and his tactics right and his good judgement was backed up by players that put in, on the whole, a decent shift. While not perfect, it was a dramatically improved Town performance and the fans showed that they are willing to heap praise on their team when they see enough effort being put in. Here are my individual player ratings. Lee Nicholls - 8 out of 10 I've not seen a replay at the time of ...

Aug132022 by Terrier Spirit2 Comments

Predicted Huddersfield Town XI to take on Stoke

Matches

Huddersfield Town play Stoke at home on Saturday at three o'clock today. What a novelty to finally be playing a game of football when it should be played instead of being shunted about at the whims of Sky’s producers, the organisers of the Commonwealth games and the Rugby League fixtures. Today’s game has a lot riding on it as Danny Schofield seeks his first victory as Huddersfield Town manager at the fourth time of asking and Stoke City will be doing everything they can to stop that from happening. “Must win” is a term that gets used too often in football but with a daunting away trip to Norwich on Tuesday night (our last few trips there have been horror shows) Schofield will be hoping his dysfunctional Terriers will pull it together for this game. He probably isn’t going to ...

Sep132021 by Terrier Spirit4 Comments

Plan B, basic mistakes, unknowns and terrace sexism – Notes on Town’s defeat to Stoke

Matches

Huddersfield Town were beaten 2-1 at Stoke in a tight game which was decided by set pieces and individual errors. A draw would have been a fairer result but we can’t really complain after riding our luck in the recent wins against Sheffield United and Preston. The good news is that this wasn’t the kind of defeat that suggests the wheels are falling off for Town. There were obviously things that could have been better but the optimism that came with three consecutive wins has only been slightly dented after another disciplined performance from the Terriers. Here are a few of my thoughts on the game: Town now have a way of playing against better teams Phil Hodgkinson talked in his recent interview about how all the bad eggs have now been weeded out of the club and we’ve got a gr...

Sep112021 by Terrier Spirit6 Comments

Predicted Huddersfield Town XI to take on Stoke

Matches

After an international break that seemed to last forever, Town are finally back in action this afternoon when they take on Stoke in the Potteries. This game represents a tough test for Town but our opponents won’t relish playing us either, after we’ve won our last three games. It’s still too early to get over excited about Town’s good form lately but there are signs that Town are now much stronger at the back and are able to score goals even in games where there aren’t many clear cut chances. Carlos Corberan admitted in his prematch press conference that he has a few selection headaches this weekend, so there are going to be some tough choices to make. Here’s how I think we’ll line up. Goalkeeper: Lee Nicholls I’ve been very impressed with Nicholls so far despite him not...

Jan312021 by Terrier Spirit22 Comments

“His dip in form has plumbed new depths” – Player ratings for Huddersfield Town’s draw with Stoke

Matches

Huddersfield Town drew with Stoke yesterday despite playing against ten men for all of the second half. Familiar frustrations returned when Stoke sat deep and Town were unable to find a way through. Most fans would have been happy with a point before kickoff but the circumstances of the match make this feel like a defeat. After going ahead early then getting pinned back after a sloppy mistake led to a penalty, the red card incident should have given Town an advantage that made victory inevitable. Sadly we continue to struggle to break down unambitious but organised defences and that cost us once again. Here's what I thought of each player. Ryan Schofield - 6 out of 10 Hard to really give a rating as he had a very very quiet afternoon. Couldn't do anything to stop the penal...

Jan302021 by Terrier Spirit8 Comments

5 questions that will be answered when Huddersfield Town play Stoke later today

Matches

Huddersfield Town take on Stoke this afternoon at the John Smith's Stadium and will be hoping to break their five-game losing streak and register their first points of 2021. Stoke present an intriguing challenge as their recent form isn't great but they've got some quality players in their squad. The previous meeting, earlier this season ended in a 4-3 defeat for Town in an entertaining but infuriating encounter at the Bet 365 Stadium. Here are five questions that will be answered this afternoon… Will Carlos play the same starting eleven? My opinion is that we'll see an unchanged lineup today. That's why I'm writing a more general match preview rather than a post dedicated exclusively to predicting the team. Duane Holmes is likely to make the bench b...

Nov222020 by Terrier Spirit11 Comments

“Not good enough for a player of his experience” – Player ratings from Hudersfield Town’s defeat to Stoke

Matches

Huddersfield Town lost to Stoke in an entertaining game that saw a clash of footballing philosophies where the more direct and physical team won over Town’s possession-based approach. The defeat was mostly the result of silly defensive mistakes and poor decisions in our own third but there were also plenty of positives to take from Town’s attacking play. There were some varied performances yesterday, with some players looking great and others struggling to find a rhythm. Here’s what I made of each individual player. Joel Pereira - 4 out of 10 Not the best debut for a keeper that had a lot to prove before he's even pulled on the shirt after the less than glowing references he received from Hearts fans who watched him last season. Could have done better with at least one but more likely t...