Category: Wigan

Huddersfield Town Are The Real Deal

Huddersfield certainly stepped up to the challenge of having two games in four days against other promotion contenders – they won both, with Sunday’s game against Leeds finishing in dramatic fashion:

What the clip doesn’t show is the fracas between David Wagner and Garry Monk after Wagner returned to the technical area. Both clubs face FA charges relating to being unable to control their players.

I’m also happy to admit that I wasn’t entirely convinced by Huddersfield’s early season form but I’m happy to change my mind. If either Brighton or Newcastle slip up, then the Terriers have proved that they can take advantage…it’s a big if though.

With three Yorkshire clubs in the playoff spots, we’re primed for a very exciting end to the season, but this weekend, our attention shifts to the bottom of the table. There are three games featuring four of the bottom six clubs:

Brighton v Burton Albion

The hosts haven’t lost at home since September and until last weekend Brighton hadn’t conceded more than two goals since December 2015, so it would be a real shock if Burton took three points at the Amex. The Brewers beat Wolves last weekend to record their second win in three games, but they’ve not won consecutive games this season and this looks beyond them.

QPR v Huddersfield Town

I’ve long been of the opinion that former players and/or manager that return to the scene of their former glories will inevitably fail to recreate them and it looks as if Ian Holloway is going to learn that the hard way – unlike Nigel Clough. Rangers nose dive down the table began before Ian Holloway returned, but his record since his re-appointment they’ve picked up 14 points from 14 games, which is a worse record than Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink compiled during his tenure at Loftus Road.

I don’t think I need to point out how good Huddersfield are at the moment.

Rotherham United v Blackburn Rovers

The Millers – who are now mathematically out of the playoffs – have lost their last four games without scoring, so I’m focusing on Blackburn here. There have been some signs of life recently – Rovers have only lost twice in their last half dozen outings – but despite wins at Derby and Newcastle earlier this season, they’ve been poor on the road and have already lost without scoring at both Bristol City and Wigan. One major positive for the visitors: they’ve beaten Rotherham in four of the last five league meetings.

Televised games: Sheffield Wednesday v Birmingham City (this evening, kickoff 7:45pm Sky Sports 1) would have been a good one before Gary Rowett was sacked, but with the Blues having apparently dropped out of playoff contention it’s not as much of a thrilling prospect. Wolves host Newcastle tomorrow (5:30pm, Sky Sports 1) but it’s in direct competition with Wales v England in the Six Nations and can’t really compete as a spectacle.

There won’t be a post about the midweek programme next Tuesday as it’s both Valentine’s Day and half term – and as my wife is a teacher, I think I’ve got a decent excuse.

 

 

A Busy Weekend For Huddersfield

Back to the league after last week’s disastrous showing in the FA Cup.

As I’ve got another family commitment this weekend, I’ve only got time for a short post – but the main issue is that Huddersfield have got to play twice in four days and both of their games are against promotion rivals.

Huddersfield v Brighton (this evening, 7:45pm, Sky Sports 1)

Town have a couple of games in hand over most of the other promotion contenders – except Brighton, who have earned 11 points over the same number of matches as the Terriers. Although the hosts have only lost twice at home this season, their next three scheduled games at the John Smith’s Stadium are against teams above them, starting with this one. Brighton shouldn’t expect to have it their own way this evening: they’ve only recorded three wins at Huddersfield in the last sixteen years and lost 7-1 in August 2009.

Saturday’s games include two that will have an impact at both ends of the table:

Newcastle v Derby

It’ll be interesting to see how Newcastle do after Ciaran Clarke’s late own goal earned QPR a share of the points at St. James’ Park last night. The Toon are still firm favourites to go up, but have only won half of their last six home matches. Last weekend’s win at Ipswich was Derby’s first away victory since mid-December: the Rams have only won one of their last 13 games at Newcastle.

Bristol City v Rotherham

Having seemingly steadied the ship against Sheffield Wednesday earlier this week, the hosts go into this one look for their first home win since the start of December. Rotherham have lost all but one of their away games this season and haven’t scored on the road since Joe Newell gave the Millers the lead at Fulham in mid-December.

Then on Sunday, it’s time for Huddersfield to entertain Leeds. Pontus Jansson’s dramatic late winner at Blackburn last night gave United their first away win sin Boxing Day and this season they’ve won both of the Yorkshire derbies where they’ve been the visitors. Leeds have only three of their last ten visits to Huddersfield for league games, but Huddersfield have only won once in the last five meetings.

Other televised games:

Wigan v Sheffield Wednesday (tomorrow, 7:45pm, Sky Sports Mix), Nottingham Forest v Aston Villa (Saturday, 5:30pm, Sky Sports Mix)

I’ll be back next week with a longer post, enjoy the weekend. I’m going to be in Stevenage for my sister in law’s 40th…

FA Cup 4th Round Preview

This weekend sees the remaining clubs from the Championship take their chances in the Fourth Round of the FA Cup, but with six of the eleven teams that successfully navigated the last round taking on Premier League opposition, it’s possible that interest will be down to a minimum next month.

Before we go any further, there are two Championship clubs playing League One sides, so if you want to read about the games involving Newcastle and Huddersfield you’ll have to visit Buzzin League 1 Football to read the previews. Otherwise I’ll break down the games in the usual format.

Televised games: Derby v Leicester (7:55pm this evening, BBC1), Liverpool v Wolves (12:30 tomorrow, BBC1), Sutton United v Leeds (2:00pm Sunday BT Sport 2), Manchester United v Wigan (4:00pm Sunday BBC1).

Championship v Premier League

Derby and Leicester meet in the FA Cup for the first time in almost 108 years, but despite their poor form in the Premier League Leicester have won eight of the last nine meetings between the clubs. Liverpool last met Wolves in the cup more recently – only 65 years ago – but Wanderers have only recorded one victory in eight games against Liverpool since the turn of the century. Wigan have only beaten Manchester United once in seventeen meetings, although they’ve never been drawn against each other in the FA Cup.

Non-televised games: Burnley v Bristol City, Chelsea v Brentford (both 3pm Saturday)

The theme continues: Bristol City have never played at Turf Moor in a cup tie of any sort. However, Brentford have played at Chelsea comparatively recently: in March 2013 they forced a 2-2 draw at Griffin Park before losing the replay 4-0 at Stamford Bridge.

Which leaves us with one possible surprise in this category – if you could call it that.

Fulham v Hull (Sunday 12:30pm)

The Cottagers have been on a decent run of at home recently (one defeat in eight) but they’ve not won an FA Cup tie in front of their own fans for three years. Having written that, the last time these sides met in the competition was in 1975, when Fulham reached the final after beating Hull in a second replay at Leicester’s old ground, Filbert Street. Could history repeat itself? Both clubs lost this week, but Fulham have had an extra day to recover.

Championship v League Two

Blackburn v Blackpool (tomorrow 3pm)

There have been some signs of life at Ewood Park recently. Rovers haven’t lost at home since before Christmas and are currently only in the bottom three on goal difference. The FA Cup probably isn’t a priority, but putting one over their Lancashire rivals could well be and although Blackpool have already knocked Barnsley out of the competition this season, the Tangerines haven’t beaten Blackburn in any of their three previous meetings in the competition. Last league meeting was a 1-1 draw at Ewood Park two years ago.

Championship v National League

Lincoln v Brighton (tomorrow 3pm)

The Imps dumped a very lacklustre Ipswich side out in the last round to reach this stage of the competition for the first time in over 40 years, when the late Graham Taylor was in charge at Sincil Bank. Brighton will be a much tougher task than the Tractor Boys, although Lincoln won the most recent FA Cup tie between the sides – despite being one division below Brighton.

Sutton v Leeds (see televised matches)

Only previous meeting: a Fourth Round tie in January 1970, which Leeds won 6-0. They went on to reach the final, which they lost in a replay at Old Trafford after a thrilling 2-2 draw on a Wembley in the last FA Cup final to be held in April – supposedly to help the England team have enough time to prepare for the defence of the World Cup in Mexico.

There are five league games tomorrow and a full midweek programme next week, but I’ll update as we go along and I’ll be back next Friday.

UPDATE

A ridiculous weekend. Derby began badly but nearly beat Leicester, Wolves lead for the entire game against Liverpool and recorded a memorable victory and Blackburn, Fulham and Huddersfield won comfortably.

Otherwise it was absolutely dismal. Brentford and Bristol City did as well as was expected, but the rest of the Championship teams were a disgrace. You know who you are: if promotion to the Premier League is your priority, perhaps you should just not bother playing at all and just pay a fine or similar.

Fifth Round Draw:

Blackburn v Manchester United, Fulham v Spurs, Huddersfield v Manchester City, Millwall v Derby or Leicester and Wolves v Chelsea

Game of the Week: Sheffield Wednesday v Huddersfield

Before I go any further, in case you haven’t heard, former Aston Villa, Lincoln City, Watford, Wolves and England manager Graham Taylor died today.

News of Mr Taylor’s death emerged as I was finishing this post, which is an early one as Reading are entertaining QPR this evening (8:00pm kick off, Sky Sports 1) although if the last ten meetings between them in Berkshire are anything to go by, the visitors won’t win and there won’t be many goals.

Looking back at Christmas, the following points are worth passing on:

  • Newcastle were in pole position on Boxing Day, but after two defeats in their last three games, Brighton have take over the lead and now have a two point lead at the top. Right now, I can’t see any outside those two for automatic promotion.
  • Reading, Huddersfield and Leeds have all made big improvements since last season whereas Sheffield Wednesday have maintained last season’s level. With three of the four playoff teams coming from Yorkshire, the rest of the season could be intense – starting with this weekend’s game of the week.
  • Rotherham were five points adrift of Wigan on Boxing Day and I think both clubs will continue to struggle. It’s not abundantly clear who else looks likely for the drop though: Blackburn look most likely to drop out of the section at the moment, but both Bristol City and Nottingham Forest are struggling badly at the moment and could end up flirting with disaster.

In managerial news, no-one got the chop over Christmas although Paul Warne still hasn’t been confirmed as manager of Rotherham despite having had a favourable impact on and off the field since he took over from Kenny Jackett on a part time basis.

On to the game of the week:

Sheffield Wednesday v Huddersfield (3:00pm Saturday)

With the clubs being separated by four points and 30 miles, the twelfth Yorkshire derby of the season should be a cracker.

Having only won two of the five games they’ve played against the teams immediately above them, this isn’t exactly a gimmee for Wednesday. Although they’re currently on a four game unbeaten streak at Hillsborough and haven’t conceded a goal for 278 minutes, Huddersfield haven’t lost on the road since mid-November and have conceded just two goals in their last four aways.

Head to head: the clubs have met eight times in the league at Hillsborough since the turn of the century, but Wednesday have only won two of those games including the last meeting in November 2015. Despite the recent defensive prowess of both teams, there’s a chance that this one could feature some goals, but you’ll have to read to the end of the next paragraph to understand why.

Bonus fun facts: none of the previous Yorkshire derbies this season have ended in a draw and there’s only been one undecided match between the protagonists in the last eight games at Hillsborough – when Jordan Rhodes scored all four goals for Huddersfield in a 4-4 draw just over five years ago. Also, only one of the fifteen games between the current top six has ended in a draw: Reading v Brighton in August.

Honourable Mention:

Burton v Wigan

After a solid start at the Pirelli Stadium, the wheels have come off recently. Burton have lost their last three at home and their lack of a proven goalscorer at this level should be something Nigel Clough addresses during what’s left of the transfer window. Wigan have only lost two of their last ten away games in the division but their home form has been bad enough to keep them in the bottom six for almost the entire season. The only other league meeting between the clubs at Burton took place last April when both sides were pushing for promotion and finished all square.

Other televised games: there are only five points between Leeds and Derby (tomorrow, 7:45pm, Sky Sports 1) so that looks like a decent game to watch. Remarkably, Wolves have never played Aston Villa at Molineux in a second tier game (Saturday, 5:30pm, Sky Sports 1) but the occasion will be overshadowed by the death of Graham Taylor, who managed both of the clubs during his career and was in charge at Villa Park when Aston Villa last played at this level. RIP.

FA Cup Third Round Preview

Just a quick look this time round as I’ve had some technical issues as well as a hacking cough for most of the last two weeks.

As I’ve been fond of repeating for the last few seasons, we’re lucky if half of the clubs in the Championship qualify for the fourth round and having not had a second tier winner for almost 40 years, there’s no point expecting one in 2016/17.

Championship v Premier League 

Considering that six of the eight ties in this category involve the Championship teams travelling to clubs in the Promised Land, I can’t see much hope for an early upset. Sheffield Wednesday visit Middlesbrough in what could be a very competitive game and the Midlands derby between West Brom and…errr…Derby should be worth keeping an eye on, but does anyone genuinely fancy Burton, Reading or Preston causing upsets?

All Championship

With only four guaranteed places in the next round, there’s a chance that whoever takes their opportunities now may stand a chance of reaching the last sixteen. For that reason, Birmingham v Newcastle is potentially the tie of the round in this category: on the other hand, neither Wigan nor Nottingham Forest will want to hang around in the FA Cup if they’re serious about avoiding the drop.

Championship v League One

In one of those quirks of fate that happens when the draw is made, all four of the ties in this category have the Championship clubs at home. I can’t see Brighton or Huddersfield having much trouble with MK Dons and Port Vale respectively, but there’s a possibility that Bristol City and Rotherham might find Fleetwood or Oxford too much to handle.

There’s only one game where a Championship club takes on one from League 2: Barnsley travel to Blackpool. On paper, both of the ties between sides from the Championship and non-league teams ought to be straightforward for both Brentford and Ipswich, although neither Eastleigh or Lincoln are mugs.

Televised games: Manchester United v Reading (BT Sport 1, 12:30pm tomorrow), Preston v Arsenal (BT Sport 1, 5:30pm tomorrow) and Spurs v Aston Villa (BBC 1, 4:00pm Sunday). The draw for the fourth round will be on Monday, I’ll probably update as the weekend progresses and I’ll be back next week.

Update: Leeds, Fulham, Brentford, Brighton, Huddersfield, Blackburn, Wolves, Derby and Wigan all won at the first time of asking over the weekend. Birmingham, Newcastle, Barnsley, Bristol City, Ipswich (against Lincoln!) and Norwich all face replays, so there are currently ten guaranteed places for Championship clubs in the fourth round.

So far the only confirmed fourth round ties involving Championship teams are:

Fulham v Hull, Chelsea v Brentford, Rochdale v Huddersfield, Derby v Leicester and Manchester United v Wigan. If Ipswich win at Lincoln in the replay, they’ll host Brighton in the next round and if Barnsley beat Blackpool in their replay they’ll travel to Blackburn.

I’ll be back on Thursday, in time for the Reading/QPR clash that evening.