Huddersfield Town A.F.C.

Huddersfield Town

File:Hudcrest.gif
Full name	Huddersfield Town Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Terriers
Founded	1908
Ground	Galpharm Stadium, Huddersfield
Capacity	24,500
Chairman	Ken Davy
Manager	Peter Jackson
League	League One
2005-06	League One, 4th
Home colours Away colours

Huddersfield Town Football Club are an English football club based in the town of Huddersfield in the county of Yorkshire. They were formed in 1908 and are nicknamed The Terriers. Their crew HYC are pussies and lik out their mums also their real hard boys r in the the crazy corner of the john smiths stand if you want some come get it!! WE HATE BRADFORD!! entered the Football League in 1910 and went on to win the First Division Championship for three consecutive years 1923-24, 1924-25, and 1925-26 under manager Herbert Chapman. They were the first club to achieve this success, which is sometimes called the Treble. After being losing finalists against Aston Villa, they won the FA Cup 1-0 against Preston North End on 29 April 1922 at Stamford Bridge. They also won the Charity Shield in 1922. The club traditionally plays in a vertical blue and white striped shirt. They are currently in Coca-Cola League One.

Notable players in Huddersfield Town's history include Jimmy Glazzard, Jimmy Nicholson, Denis Law, Ray Wilson, Trevor Cherry and Frank Worthington.

Famous managers include Herbert Chapman (later of Arsenal), Bill Shankly (later of Liverpool), Neil Warnock (now of Sheffield United) and Steve Bruce (now of Birmingham City).

Famous supporters include Prime Minister Harold Wilson and actors Patrick Stewart[1], Chris Fountain and Reece Dinsdale who made the video 'Beyond the Touchline' that went behind the scenes at the old Leeds Road ground.

Modern Times

Huddersfield Town moved into the new Alfred McAlpine Stadium (now called the Galpharm Stadium) for the 1994-95 season, which they share with the Rugby League side Huddersfield Giants.

Settling In

In August 1994 the Terriers christened their new home with a 0-1 defeat to Martin O'Neill's recently promoted Wycombe Wanderers. However, things were soon to get much better for Warnock's team as they adapted to their new surroundings. Fired by the goals of strikers Booth and Jepson, Town soon reached the top of the league, where they would battle with Birmingham City and Brentford for the one automatic spot that season. The Terriers challenge started to fade around Easter with solitary points gained in Yorkshire derbies against Hull and Rotherham and a defeat in a match played in farcical conditions at Shrewsbury signalled the end of Town's automatic hopes. Warnock's men limped over the finish line in 5th place (one of their lowest positions in months) and signed off with home defeat by newly-crowned champions Birmingham. Somehow, Warnock managed to inspire the side to their early season levels of performance in two thrilling Play-Off ties with Brentford and they progressed to the final with Bristol Rovers after triumphing in a penalty shoot-out at Griffin Park, both legs having finished 1-1. Promotion to Division One was secured after a 2-1 victory over Bristol Rovers at Wembley Stadium, the winner coming 9 minutes from time scored by local boy Chris Billy. But manager Neil Warnock resigned just days after the playoff final to join 3rd Division Plymouth Argyle and was replaced by former Oxford United and Manchester City manager Brian Horton.

The Horton Era

Huddersfield finished 8th in 1995/96 and the closed season saw the departure of the hugely successful strike partnership of Andy Booth and flame-haired veteran 'Rocket' Ronnie Jepson, both of whom had been instrumental in the 1994/95 promotion success and subsequent consolidation in the First Division. Booth left for Premiership Sheffield Wednesday in a club record £2.7m deal while Jepson left to 2nd Division Bury for a more modest sum. Horton invested the money in the prolific Bristol Rovers striker Marcus Stewart (for a club record £1.2m), Barnsley's Andy Payton (£350,000) and Blackpool defender Andy Morrison (£500,000). Following such an outlay, much was expected of the Terriers in the 1996/97 season but, despite a bright start from Stewart, Horton was unable to improve on the team's consistently poor away form that had hindered the side's Play-Off aspirations the previous year. Long-term injuries to Stewart and Morrison did little to help things and, with the previously strong home form becoming increasingly patchy, the Terriers struggled at the wrong end of the table. It was perhaps the least celebrated summer signing Payton who notched an impressive tally of 20 goals and helped staved off the threat of relegation as the side scrambled to 20th.

The Great Escape

After a closed season of little activity in the transfer market, Town started the 1997/98 season disastrously and, after some questionable signings and tactical decisions, Horton was sacked in September 1997 as the club lay at the foot of Division One. 36-year-old former Huddersfield, Bradford City and Newcastle central defender Peter Jackson was drafted in as Horton's replacement and turned the club's fortunes around drastically. He immediately installed the experienced former Wales manager Terry Yorath as his assistant. Given a generous transfer budget by the board, Jackson captured experienced pros such as former Welsh internationals Barry Horne, Dave Phillips in addition to powerful local-born striker Wayne Allison from Division 1 rivals Swindon. He also managed to rejuvenate players like Marcus Stewart and, particularly, the previously inconsistent Paul Dalton to the extent that the club finished a respectable 13th in the final table.

The Rubery Takeover

Huddersfield did even better in 1998/99. Jackson recruited winger Ben Thornley (a popular loan signing under Horton) from Manchester United and in September, they beat Tranmere to top the early Division 1 table, thanks chiefly to the goalscoring prowess of Stewart and Allison. The team attracted the attention of local businessman Barry Rubery and, after protracted takeover talks, he took over the running of the club promising significant investment as the club sought Premiership status. The takeover rumours had a negative effect on the side as they fell away from the promotion race despite Jackson investing in the likes of Craig Armstrong and Jamie Vincent and they never seriously looked likely to reach the Play-Offs finishing 10th in the final table. Jackson was hoping to mount a promotion challenge the following season, but he was suddenly sacked after the end of the season and replaced by former Manchester United captain Steve Bruce, whose first season in management with Sheffield United had brought little success. It was rumoured that the only reason for Bruce's appointment was Rubery's desire to have a big-name manager at the club, with Jackson being offered the role of academy director (which he declined).

"The Best Town Side in 30 Years"

Rubery and managing director Ian Ayre talked up the side's chances of promotion the following year pointing to the acquisition of the high-profile Steve Bruce as a clear indication of their ambition. More serious investment brought the likes of Clyde Wijnhard, Chris Lucketti, Giorgios Donis, Scott Sellars, Kenny Irons, Ken Monkou and Dean Gorre to the club. The Terriers tore up the Division for the first few months playing attractive attacking football in the 7-1 annhilation of Crystal Palace, plus notable wins over rivals Ipswich, Manchester City and Nottingham Forest. The side even scored a famous 1-0 victory over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the League Cup and were widely considered to be "the best Town side in 30 years". At the turn of the year, with the side suffering a blip in form, promotion rivals Ipswich bid for leading scorer Marcus Stewart. To the astonishment of everyone, the club accepted and Stewart condemned his old side to defeat in their meeting at Portman Road a few weeks later. Stewart's replacement, the capable but injury-prone Martin Smith signed from Sheffield United and, though he proved a more-than-useful replacement, the malaise around the club had set in, his striker partner Wijnhard had become a profligate shadow of his early season self and the Terriers collapsed, missing the Play-Offs altogether after a final-day 0-3 hammering at Fulham. Despite missing out on automatic promotion, Ipswich gained promotion through the Play-Offs with Terriers old boy Stewart playing a critical role with his goals in the Play-Off games.

The Rot Sets In

The optimism that had surrounded the club just a year early had completely dissipated and manager Bruce's ability to turn the tide was seriously in doubt given the side's finish to the previous season. After some less than inspiring signings and more gutless displays, Bruce was sacked in November 2000 after a terrible start to the season had seen Huddersfield slip into the drop zone. Lou Macari, the former Stoke, Birmingham, West Ham and Celtic manager, was given Bruce's job and made some shrewd signings on a limited budget. Particularly noteworthy was the loan signing of Zimbabwean striker Peter Ndlovu who kickstarted a revival that brought Macari the Manager of the Month award for December 2000 and helped push the Terriers out of the bottom three. However, Town's old manager Warnock (now of Sheffield United) snapped him up before a permanent deal could be agreed. Despite this major setback, Macari turned the side into a rugged, disciplined outfit and, aided by the best efforts of emerging talent Delroy Facey, Town put themselves in with an excellent chance of survival with only two games of the season to play. However, a sudden last week rally from both Crystal Palace and Portsmouth and final outcome of 1 point from the final two games against Wimbledon and Birmingham saw the Terriers relegated to Division 2.

Macari and Wadsworth

Macari remained in charge for the 2001/02 season and again he did an admirable job in trying circumstances, promoting the then 18-year old Nathan Clarke to the first team, who would go on to be a mainstay at the heart of the Terriers defence. As the top six challenge faded, he made another canny loan signing, gifted young striker Leon Knight (from Chelsea). Knight's combination of pace, trickery and his eye for goal saw him bag 17 goals in only half a season and form an effective partnership with the returning crowd favourite Andy Booth. However, Knight received a red card during a league game with near neighbours Oldham Athletic and ended up missing the Play-Offs he had been mainly responsible for getting the team to. Without him, Town battled well but lacked cutting edge and ended up being defeated by Brentford at the semi-final stage. Macari's contract was not renewed that summer. His successor was Mick Wadsworth, a manager whose last notable success was with Carlisle some eight years earlier. Wadsworth attempted to play a neat passing game with a flexible 4-3-3 formation but his lone striker system completely failed to offer any real threat to opposition defences and, allied to a leaky defence and a lightweight midfield, Town were again in real trouble. Despite the best efforts of Martin Smith (17 goals), one of the least memorable Huddersfield Town sides of recent years was relegated to the basement league for only the second time in their history. With the club sinking into administration and unable to pay its players, Wadsworth was sacked in March as Huddersfield floundered near the foot of Division Two, and interim manager Mel Machin was unable to save Huddersfield from the drop into Division Three, despite a slight improvement.

The Revival

Peter Jackson began his second spell as Huddersfield manager in the summer of 2003 as the Terriers came out of administration under the new ownership of Ken Davy. He again wasted no time in installing Yorath as his assistant. With only eight players turning up to his first training session and star player Martin Smith defecting to Northampton, many supporters would have been happy to see the side consolidate and not slip any further down the league. But some shrewd signings, the emergence of a talented group of youngsters and the prolific form of previously toothless Jon Stead made Town among the early pace-setters for the Division. As winter approached, Jackson's young side became more inconsistent and seemed to be fading but a change of formation tightened up the defence and new goalkeeper Paul Rachubka was brought in as the side found a new resilience and ability to grind out narrow victories. Stead's form saw him snapped up by Premiership Blackburn for around £1.2m in January and he was replaced by Polish U21 striker Pawel Abbott (Preston). Though Abbott was initially not quite as prolific as Stead, the side kept their good run going and with one game to go were on the verge of sealing the third automatic promotion spot when an out-of-form Abbott squandered possession that led to opponents Cheltenham equalising with 15 minutes of the final game left. This, and Torquay's win at Southend condemned the Terriers to a Play-Off spot after automatic promotion had looked so likely. The semi-finals saw Town escape two bruising encounters with Lincoln with goals from Danny Schofield and Rob Edwards staving off a spirited Lincoln fightback in the second leg. The final saw Town ride their luck against a Mansfield side who had hit three in each league meeting of the sides. A penalty shoot-out saw Town home and out of Division Three at the first attempt, securing their place in the newly-named Coca Cola League One. At the start of the 2004/05 season, the stadium was renamed the Galpharm Stadium, to reflect the sponsorship of this local healthcare company [2].

The Young Guns Start To Shine

The 2004/05 season proved a rollercoaster for Jackson's young side with impressive early season victories away at eventual champions Luton and at home over runners-up Hull. However, a disastrous mid-season spell of form (including 7 successive away league defeats and having Efe Sodje stripped of the captaincy after his red card against Blackpool in the LDV Vans Trophy) saw the side slump and in real danger of a relegation battle before the shrewd loan signing of striker Luke Beckett. Beckett's goals halted the slide and injected Jackson's young side with the confidence that led them to a formidable late run of form (9 wins and 1 draw from 10 matches) that saw them miss out on the final Play-Off spot by a single point, despite Beckett departing to join local rivals Oldham Athletic before the transfer deadline. During the season, many graduates from Town's own academy started to cement first-team places, such as Andy Holdsworth, David Mirfin, Nathan & Tom Clarke, Adnan Ahmed & Michael Collins.

2005/06

Despite losing to Nottingham Forest on the opening day of the season, Huddersfield started the 2005/06 season brightly and were top of the table by mid-October. During the season they got the chance to show their pedigree by playing Blackburn Rovers in the Carling Cup, which they lost 3-1. Then they had a big money-spinning F.A. Cup match with Chelsea in January. They showed superb spirit to only lose 2-1, but many predicted it could be the turning point in Town's season, as they hadn't won a game since being drawn against them, a month earlier. With the season heading towards its climax, Town had to prepare for the play-offs after a disappointing April, which saw them lose out on automatic promotion to the Championship. The goals of Pawel Abbott, Gary Taylor-Fletcher, Andy Booth, Danny Schofield and Sheffield Wednesday loan signing David Graham helped Town to have the joint-second best scoring record in the division behind Swansea City.

Huddersfield beat Barnsley 1-0 at Barnsley in the playoff semi-final first leg but lost 1-3 (2-3 on aggregate) in the return.

On May 18, 2006, Jackson signed a two-year extension to his contract that will see him managing Town until May 2009.

Recent notable players for Huddersfield Town include Jonathan Stead, Andy Booth and Pawel Abbott.

Popular Chants

Huddersfield Town have many chants and songs sung regularly at matches. "Those Were The Days My Friend" (to the tune of the song of the same name by Mary Hopkins) is one popular in times of success:

Those were the days my friend,

We thought they'd never end,

We won the league three times in a row,

We won the FA Cup,

And now we're going up,

We are the Town,

Oh yes we are the Town.

(The last two lines may repeat the first, depending upon the temperament and memory of the crowd)

The club anthem is "Smile a while", a song originating in the 1920s.

Current Squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	USA	Paul Rachubka
2	DF	ENG	Andy Holdsworth
3	DF	ENG	Danny Adams
4	MF	ENG	Mark Hudson
5	DF	ENG	David Mirfin
6	DF	ENG	Nathan Clarke
7	MF	ENG	Chris Brandon
9	FW	POL	Pawel Abbott
10	FW	ENG	Gary Taylor-Fletcher
11	MF	ENG	Danny Schofield
12	MF	ENG	Adnan Ahmed
14	DF	ENG	Tom Clarke

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
15	FW	EIR	John McAliskey
16	DF	SCO	Martin McIntosh
17	DF	ENG	John McCombe
18	MF	ENG	Jonathan Worthington (Team Captain)
23	FW	ENG	Andy Booth
24	MF	EIR	Michael Collins
25	MF	ENG	Matthew Young
26	MF	ENG	Aaron Hardy
32	MF	EIR	David Walls
33	MF	EIR	James Hand
34	GK	ENG	Simon Eastwood

2005/06 results to date

League One

Date	Opponents	Home/ Away	Result F - A	Scorers	Attendance	League position
6 Aug 2005	Nottingham Forest	A	1 - 2	Abbott [64 (pen)]	24,042	16th
9 Aug 2005	Bristol City	H	1 - 0	Abbott [89]	11,138	12th
13 Aug 2005	Swansea City	H	3 - 1	Booth [27], Abbott [41], Schofield [76]	10,304	3rd
20 Aug 2005	Southend United	A	1 - 1	Abbott [45]	5,567	5th
27 Aug 2005	Hartlepool United	H	2 - 1	Abbott [12], Schofield [17]	11,241	2nd
29 Aug 2005	Doncaster Rovers	A	2 - 1	Brandon [2], Worthington [40]	7,222	1st
2 Sep 2005	Scunthorpe United	H	1 - 4	Abbott [66 (pen)]	14,112	2nd
10 Sep 2005	Oldham Athletic	A	3 - 0	Schofield [27], Taylor-Fletcher [37,72]	6,803	3rd
17 Sep 2005	Brentford	H	3 - 2	Abbott [34], Schofield [90], Booth [90]	11,622	2nd
24 Sep 2005	Colchester United	A	1 - 1	Taylor-Fletcher [65]	3,415	3rd
27 Sep 2005	Tranmere Rovers	H	1 - 0	Schofield [87]	10,640	3rd
1 Oct 2005	Bournemouth	H	2 - 2	Schofield [14], Taylor-Fletcher [21]	13,522	3rd
10 Oct 2005	Bradford City	A	2 - 1	Hudson [21], Booth [79]	12,285	2nd
15 Oct 2005	Walsall	H	3 - 1	Booth [15], Abbott [34,78]	11,642	1st
22 Oct 2005	Chesterfield	A	3 - 4	Hudson [80], Worthington [87], Holdsworth [90]	6,206	2nd
29 Oct 2005	Swindon Town	H	1 - 1	Brandon [54]	11,352	3rd
12 Nov 2005	Yeovil Town	A	2 - 1	Booth [11], Hudson [39]	6,742	2nd
19 Nov 2005	Bradford City	H	0 - 0		17,331	2nd
26 Nov 2005	Nottingham Forest	H	2 - 1	Schofield [21], Booth [26]	17,370	2nd
6 Dec 2005	Milton Keynes Dons	A	2 - 2	Abbott [7], Booth [64]	4,832	2nd
10 Dec 2005	Bristol City	A	0 - 2		9,949	2nd
17 Dec 2005	Southend United	H	0 - 0		11,223	3rd
26 Dec 2005	Rotherham United	A	1 - 1	Taylor-Fletcher [90]	7,380	3rd
28 Dec 2005	Port Vale	H	0 - 3		10,824	3rd
31 Dec 2005	Barnsley	A	2 - 2	Booth [76], Taylor-Fletcher [90]	13,063	4th
2 Jan 2006	Gillingham	H	0 - 0		11,483	5th
10 Jan 2006	Scunthorpe United	A	2 - 2	Schofield [44], McIntosh [90]	4,450	4th
14 Jan 2006	Blackpool	H	2 - 0	T Clarke [9], Schofield [73]	11,977	3rd
21 Jan 2006	Brentford	A	0 - 2		7,636	5th
28 Jan 2006	Oldham Athletic	H	3 - 2	Branston [45 (o.g.)], Abbott [48], Graham [59]	12,973	3rd
3 Feb 2006	Tranmere Rovers	A	1 - 2	Graham [48]	8,300	4th
11 Feb 2006	Colchester United	H	2 - 0	Worthington [14], Graham [68]	13,515	5th
14 Feb 2006	Blackpool	A	1 - 0	Brandon [43 (pen)]	6,004	5th
18 Feb 2006	Milton Keynes Dons	H	5 - 0	McIntosh [19], Taylor-Fletcher [24], Worthington [36], Mirfin [77], Collins [90]	11,423	3rd
24 Feb 2006	Swansea City	A	2 - 2	McIntosh [70], Graham [82]	13,110	2nd
4 Mar 2006	Doncaster Rovers	H	2 - 2	McIntosh [8], Graham [40]	14,490	2nd
10 Mar 2006	Hartlepool United	A	1 - 3	Graham [22]	5,648	3rd
18 Mar 2006	Rotherham United	H	4 - 1	Booth [32,39,82], Taylor-Fletcher [83]	15,264	3rd
25 Mar 2006	Port Vale	A	1 - 1	Booth [81]	5,664	2nd
1 Apr 2006	Barnsley	H	1 - 0	Taylor-Fletcher [55]	19,052	3rd
8 Apr 2006	Gillingham	A	0 - 2		7,014	3rd
15 Apr 2006	Bournemouth	A	1 - 1	Taylor-Fletcher [71]	7,406	3rd
18 Apr 2006	Chesterfield	H	1 - 2	Graham [13]	13,368	4th
22 Apr 2006	Walsall	A	3 - 1	Graham [25], Abbott [83], Booth [90]	5,554	4th
29 Apr 2006	Yeovil Town	H	1 - 2	Graham [8]	14,473	4th
6 May 2006	Swindon Town	A	0 - 0		6,353	4th

League One Play-Offs

Date	Round	Opponents	Home/ Away	Result F - A	Scorers	Attendance
11 May 2006	Semi-Final 1st Leg	Barnsley	A	1 - 0	Taylor-Fletcher [85]	16,127
15 May 2006	Semi-Final 2nd Leg	Barnsley	H	1 - 3	Worthington [65]	19,223 Huddersfield lost 3-2 on aggregate.

FA Cup

Date	Round	Opponents	Home/ Away	Result F - A	Scorers	Attendance
6 Nov 2005	Round 1	Welling United	H	4 - 1	Booth [27, 69], Schofield [50 (pen)], Holdsworth [81]	5,518
4 Dec 2005	Round 2	Worcester City	A	1 - 0	Brandon [61]	4,163
7 Jan 2006	Round 3	Chelsea	A	1 - 2	Taylor-Fletcher [74]	41,650

League Cup

Date	Round	Opponents	Home/ Away	Result F - A	Scorers	Attendance
24 Aug 2005	Round 1	Chesterfield	A	4 - 2	Abbott [9], Taylor-Fletcher [56, 76, 90]	2,922
21 Sep 2005	Round 2	Blackburn Rovers	A	1 - 3	Abbott [79]	11,755

LDV Vans Trophy

Date	Round	Opponents	Home/ Away	Result F - A	Scorers	Attendance
19 Oct 2005	Round 1 North	Boston United	A	1 - 2	Mirfin [68]	1,593

League History

Division 2: 1910/11 - 1919/20

Division 1: 1920/21 - 1951/52

Division 2: 1952/53

Division 1: 1953/54 - 1955/56

Division 2: 1956/57 - 1969/70

Division 1: 1970/71 - 1971/72

Division 2: 1972/73

Division 3: 1973/74 - 1974/75

Division 4: 1975/76 - 1979/80

Division 3: 1980/81 - 1982/83

Division 2: 1983/84 - 1987/88

Division 3: 1988/89 - 1994/95

Division 2 (Division 1): 1995/96 - 2000/01

Division 3 (Division 2): 2001/02 - 2002/03

Division 4 (Division 3): 2003/04

Division 3 (League 1): 2004/05 - Present

Honours

Division 1 Champions: 1923/24, 1924/25, 1925/26

Division 1 Runners-up: 1926/27, 1927/28

Division 2 Champions: 1969/70

Division 2 Runners-up: 1919/20

Division 3 (Division 2) Play-Off Winners: 1994/95

Division 4 Champions: 1979/80

Division 4 (Division 3) Play-Off Winners: 2003/04

FA Cup Winners: 1921/22

FA Cup runners-up: 1919/20, 1927/28, 1929/30, 1937/38

Associate Members Cup (Autoglass Trophy) runners-up: 1993/94 YE Trophy Winners 1994/95

External links

• Huddersfield Town Football Club
• Down At The Mac - Huddersfield Town Fan Site
• HTFC-World - Huddersfield Town Fan Site
• HTAFC Cards and Stickers - Huddersfield Town as seen through cigarette & trade cards and stickers
• Terriers Mailing List
• Galpharm Healthcare - Stadium Sponsors