Tag Archives: Terriers

Terriers to continue fine form

Posted on by
Reply

Successive promotions from the third tier to the top used to be something of a rarity but in recent seasons Norwich and Southampton have shown back-to-back promotions are possible, but few would have backed Huddersfield Town to continue the trend.

Admittedly it may be too early to suggest the Terriers can upset the odds and secure a place in the Premier League. However, Simon Grayson’s men have shown they are more than capable of holding their own in the Championship and can continue their winning run against Watford this weekend.

Town picked up an impressive win over previously unbeaten Blackpool last time out, while Watford ended a run of four successive defeats in all competitions by picking up a draw at home to Bristol City.

Huddersfield enjoy home advantage and Grayson is expected to field the same side that saw off the Seasiders, with Watford set for a tough afternoon in Yorkshire. The Terriers are priced at a very attractive evens to take all three points, Watford are 11/4 to pick up a third league victory of the campaign and the draw is 12/5.

If you think Huddersfield can maintain their form over the course of the campaign they’re 11/2 to secure promotion, although it remains to be seen whether or not they’re genuine contenders or still riding on the euphoria of last season’s promotion.

Unlike the Terriers, fellow newly-promoted outfit Sheffield Wednesday have found themselves in the midst of a sticky patch after a fine start to the season.  The Owls have lost four consecutive league games and face a tricky trip to Wolves, who remain unbeaten at Molineux, on Saturday.

Wanderers may have slumped to a heavy defeat at Chelsea in the Capital One Cup in midweek but their league form has picked up after a slow start and Wolves should be able to make it four consecutive league victories by seeing off Wednesday on Saturday.

Wolves are 10/11 to secure the victory and take all three points, the draw is 5/2 and Wednesday are 3/1 to end their losing run and pick up their first league win on the road.

Cardiff have a formidable record at the Cardiff City Stadium with three wins from three games, scoring six goals and conceding just twice along the way.  The Welsh side sit in seventh place in the Championship table and will be keen to push their way into the top six but they face arguably their biggest test yet on Saturday when Blackpool visit.

The showdown, a repeat of the 2010 play-off final, promises to be a close affair with little to choose between the two Championship heavyweights but home advantage could be a key factor.

Cardiff are 13/10 to grab the win and maintain their fine form on home soil, Blackpool are 15/8 to bounce back from defeat against Huddersfield and seal the win and the draw is 5/2.

If you agree with all of our selections a treble of Huddersfield, Cardiff and Wolves pays out at accumulated odds of 8.78, and we think three home wins could be on the cards in these particular Championship ties.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Tangerines to tame Terriers

Posted on by
Reply

Blackpool have the chance to reclaim top spot in the Championship table when they host Huddersfield Town in a roses clash on Monday night (Blackpool 4/6, draw 14/5, Huddersfield 4/1 Match Betting).

The encounter at Bloomfield Road will be a return for Simon Grayson to the club who he promoted to the second tier of English football before moving to Leeds United and now the Terriers.

Huddersfield make the trip across the Pennines on the back of two straight victories, over Derby County and Sheffield Wednesday, so confidence will be high in the side from West Yorkshire. The recent results have been all the more impressive after the side sold star striker Jordan Rhodes for £8m in the summer transfer window.

Grayson will be looking to strengthen his attacking options either in the emergency loan market or in the January transfer market, but for the trip to Bloomfield Road he will have to look to the likes of Lee Novak (8/1 first goalscorer), James Vaughan and Sean Scannell for goals.

The worry for the Huddersfield faithful is that only two goals have been scored between the three attackers, with the current topscorer being midfielder Adam Clayton, who followed Grayson from Leeds.

Huddersfield will be without John Lynch, as the defender is suspended for Monday night’s game having been shown a red card in the derby win over Wednesday in midweek. Lynch’s absence will see Anthony Gerrard fill the void alongside Peter Clarke in the heart of the Terries defence.

If those two players do start alongside each other they will certainly have their work cut out against a free-scoring Blackpool outfit, who have scored 15 goals in six games so far this term.

Tangerines boss Ian Holloway has the luxury of a full squad to select from and the tactician certainly has some talented players to choose from. Tom Ince (9/2 first goalscorer) has been the standout performer for the Seasiders and he will be a prime candidate for first goalscorer on Monday.

With the likes of Kevin Phillips, Gary Taylor-Fletcher and Nathan Delfouneso, who scored two goals in midweek, Holloway’s side have plenty of attacking options.

Huddersfield have performed above expectation in the Championship so far and Grayson has really been showing his experience at this level. However, the Terriers look like they need one or two extra players just to bring that bit of quality to a hard working side, who will have no problem in avoiding relegation this term.

But it’s that lack of goals which could be their undoing on Monday night, as the home side will have attacking threats in so many areas of the field and on the substitute’s bench.

Holloway managed to change things around in midweek and the fact he can bring Barry Ferguson and Stephen Crainey back in the team shows how far they have come. It should be a competitive game but the Tangerines should come out on top as they head to the top of the Championship table.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Terriers to get their teeth into Dons

Posted on by
Reply

The Football League play-offs continue on Saturday with two huge matches as in League One Huddersfield Town look to secure a positive result at MK Dons, while in League Two Southend United aim to do the same at Crewe Alexandra.

Simon Grayson takes his Terriers to Stadium MK in a 12.30pm kick-off on Saturday for a game which will bring together two sides who were separated by just one place and one point in the final league table.

The fact Huddersfield took forth spot means they will have home advantage in the second leg, so the emphasis is on picking up a result to take back to West Yorkshire on Tuesday.

Huddersfield are no strangers to the end-of-season lottery, having won promotion via this route in 1995 and 2004 respectively, while this is their third successive attempt to reach the Championship.

They travel south in good form against MK Dons having not lost to them in seven matches stretching back to August 2008, with six wins and two draws from their 12 League One encounters.

Grayson, who has pedigree in the play-offs having been a winner as a player with Leicester in 1994 and 1996, and then took Blackpool up to the Championship in 2007, will have the League One’s prolific top scorer Jordan Rhodes (15/2 – 2 Or More Match Goalscorer) back in the side after he was rested for the final two matches.

Lee Novak or Kallum Higginbotham will miss out, while fellow striker Alan Lee is back in contention after shaking off a knee injury.

MK Dons boss Karl Robinson is looking to lead the club to the Championship for the first time since the change from Wimbledon back in 2004.

His side were looking set to go into the play-offs on a real high, but a final-day defeat against Walsall scuppered their hopes of making it five successive wins.

The Dons are also in their second successive play-off bid and have lost all three they have been involved in so far at the semi-final stage, so the omens are not good.

Defender Gary MacKenzie could be back following an illness, while Alan Smith (10/1 – First Goalscorer), who is on loan from Newcastle, is set to retain his place behind a front two of Dean Bowditch and Charlie MacDonald.

Nothing could divide the sides in the two regular season fixtures as they both ended 1-1, but Huddersfield may have the slight edge and take a slender lead back home for the second leg.

Prediction: Huddersfield Away 90 Minutes @ 23/10.

Value Bet: Huddersfield To Win 2-1 Correct Score @ 11/1.

League Two

Southend United must pick themselves up at Gresty Road in the 5.30pm kick-off after narrowly missing out on automatic promotion last Saturday when Crawley Town snatched third place by just a point.

The Shrimpers finished three places and 11 points better off than rivals Crewe, while their final day 2-0 win against Macclesfield at Roots Hall meant they ended the campaign on a great run of four wins, a draw and five successive clean sheets.

They also have history on their side with 13 promotions via the play-offs which makes them the most successful side to be promoted via this route.

Boss Paul Sturrock has a near fully-fit squad to choose from, so will head north optimistic that his players can take their good run of form into the match.

Crewe will be no pushovers, though, as they ended the regular season on the back of a 16-match unbeaten run – seven wins and nine draws – which was enough to snatch the seventh and final play-off spot.

Ironically Alex’s last defeat was against Saturday’s opponent’s Southend as the versatile Bilel Mohsni (10/1 – 2 or More Match Goalscorer) scored the only goal at Roots Hall on February 18 to add to the brace he scored in the Shrimpers’ 3-1 win at Gresty Road in October.

Boss Steve Davis‘ hopes of gaining revenge for being doubled in the season will not be helped if skipper Dave Artell does not shake off a foot injury suffered in training.

But Ashley Westwood has not suffered any setbacks to his foot injury and is in line to feature as Crewe aim to improve on just one successful promotion in five previous attempts in the play-offs.

However, looking at the statistics, Southend were unfortunate to go up automatically and coupled with their excellent run of form, they should have too much for Crewe and come out on top in this one.

Prediction: Southend Away 90 Minutes @ 7/4.

Value Bet: Southend To Win 2-0 Correct Score @ 12/1.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Terriers to get teeth into O’s

Posted on by
Reply

Huddersfield Town travel to Leyton Orient looking to use their game in hand to keep their automatic promotion hopes alive and Brentford’s play-off aspirations could be bolstered by a victory over Oldham at Griffin Park in Tuesday’s League One games (totesport – League One).

Terriers chief Simon Grayson was left disappointed after the side slipped to the first defeat of his tenure on Saturday as play-off chasing Carlisle ran out 2-1 winners at Brunton Park.

As a result it is imperative that the west Yorkshiremen take advantage of their game in hand on the sides above them to seal a win at the Matchroom Stadium which would take them to within five points of Sheffield United in the second automatic promotion place (Huddersfield 7/4 Promotion).

Grayson has no fresh injury worries ahead of the trip to London as Calum Woods missed Saturday’s game at Carlisle with a slight groin niggle, while Gary Naysmith, Oscar Gobern and Damien Johnson are also still sidelined.

And, despite Orient enjoying a better head-to-head record on their own patch, Town have won three and drawn one of their last four games in the Capital so will travel in confident mood.

Russell Slade’s O’s need points for different reasons as they bid to extend the five-point gap between themselves and the bottom four relegation places following a run of just two wins in their last 10 games.

Defender Scott Cuthbert will miss out on Tuesday night after he injured his hamstring during their defeat against League One leaders Charlton on Saturday, but loan left back Ryan Dickson should return in his place after serving a suspension over the weekend.

Leon McSweeney missed Saturday’s game with a calf injury, whereas winger Jamal Campbell-Ryce was also out with an ankle injury and it is unlikely either will return to face the Terriers.

The O’s scored twice in the final five minutes as they stormed back from two-down to secure a point in the corresponding fixture earlier in the season and will look to get something from the game.

But with Huddersfield knowing that time is running out if they are going to reach the Championship without going through the lottery of the play-offs, we fancy them to nick the points in this one.

Prediction: Away Win 90 Minutes @ 11/10
Value Bet: Huddersfield To Win 2-1 Correct Score @ 8/1

Staying in London and Brentford can keep alive their slim play-off hopes with a fourth successive win against an Oldham side that is close to guaranteeing its League One status.

Uwe Rosler’s Bees looked set for mid-table obscurity after three successive defeats in early March.

But they have turned the form book on its head in the second half of the month with vital wins against Rochdale, Preston and MK Dons to move to within eight points of the top-six.

Their hopes of reaching the play-offs are not great even if they win all of their remaining games, but Rosler will no doubt want the players to keep their run going in order to try and hit the ground running next season.

Paul Dickov’s Oldham will arrive at Griffin Park on the back of an inconsistent month in which they started with a shock 3-2 win at Sheffield United, before losing four on the bounce.

The Latics recovered with wins against Hartlepool and Bournemouth, before slipping to successive 1-0 defeats at the hands of Leyton Orient and Notts County.

Boosted by the return of skipper Dean Furman from a lengthy lay-off at Notts County on Saturday, Dickov will be looking for a response from his players against the Bees as his side can move 10 points clear of the drop zone with a win.

Brentford ran out 2-0 winners at Boundary Park in September, but the omens are with Oldham down in London.

The Latics won this fixture 3-1 last season and picked up draws in their three previous trips to Griffin Park in the league, while Brentford’s last win on home soil came in an FA Cup replay back in December 2005.

Despite the visitors’ decent record at Brentford, we feel the Bees will be too strong and should notch up a fourth straight win.

Prediction: Home Win 90 Minutes @ 5/6
Value Bet: Draw/Brentford HT/FT @ 10/3

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Addicks can put down Terriers

Posted on by
Reply

It’s first versus third in League One on Monday night as Huddersfield prepare for what could be the biggest threat to their record-breaking unbeaten run in the form of Charlton Athletic.

The Addicks have been flying under Chris Powell this season and look on course for a return to the Championship. However, Huddersfield will be keen to pull them back into the play-off mix with a win in south-east London. Can the Terriers continue their remarkable run or have they finally bitten off more than they can chew?

These two clubs have been the success stories of League One this season, Huddersfield for their remarkable run of form and Charlton for the way they have taken the division by storm after a summer of drastic upheaval. Powell brought in 16 new players during the off-season, with 12 going the opposite way as he looked to make his mark on the Addicks. Having missed out on the play-offs last season the former Charlton defender looks as though he has finally turned around this sinking ship and is bringing it back from the depths.

Charlton are four points clear at the top of the table after 18 games, with 13 wins in that time. Their only defeat so far has come at the hands of Stevenage, who added the Addicks to their growing list of victims at Broadhall Way. At home, Charlton have been formidable, winning five and drawing three of their matches in front of their own supporters. The vastness of the Valley could have proven to be an issue for Powell, with some lower league clubs having struggled infront of big crowds in the past. However, the Valley has become a fortress, which in no small part is down to the goals of Bradley Wright-Phillips.

Reading must be kicking themselves after turning down the former Southampton and Manchester City goal-getter, Wright-Phillips having scored 14 in 17 appearances so far. Charlton are far from a one man team though, with Johnnie Jackson, Danny Hollands and Rhoys Wiggins all playing their parts in Charlton’s revival. However, the Addicks will have to do without Jackson on Monday due a hamstring injury, with new loan signing Hogan Ephraim poised to take his place.

Huddersfield look set to give a couple of new loan stars their first starts in the capital, with Jon Parkin and Alex Bruce part of Lee Clark’s squad for the trip south. Parkin could partner the Terriers top goalscorer, Jordan Rhodes, who has hit the back of the net 15 times already. The 21-year-old’s form has seen him called up to the Scotland squad, while Newcastle are ready to make a January bid for the young forward. Clark has already said Rhodes is going nowhere and will do well to keep him if Huddersfield are to finally escape League One.

The 2-1 victory over Notts County last week means Huddersfield have not lost in 43 regular league matches. However, the unbeaten run seems to been a millstone around the players necks and Clark might believe the sooner it is over the sooner they can focus on their number one goal, promotion.

Recent trips to the capital have been rewarding for Huddersfield, winning four of the last five. However, that run of results, along with their 43-game streak, could come to an end on Monday. Charlton are 11/8 for the win and that seems a great price, even given the quality of the opposition. If you fancy Huddersfield to cause an upset they are priced at 19/10, with the draw 23/10.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Terriers can edge past Posh

Posted on by
Reply

Sunday’s League One play-off final sees two of the brightest young English managers go head-to-head at Old Trafford but who will come out on top between Lee Clark and Darren Ferguson as Huddersfield take on Peterborough for a place in the Championship next season?

Reading the respective managers’ pre-match quotes, it is clear both are fully focused and determined not to fall at the final hurdle but, ultimately, it will be disappointment for one or the other come Sunday evening although everything points to a tight affair in Manchester.

The final sees the sides who finished third and fourth in the table take each other on and Huddersfield are viewed as slight favourites (7/5) – unsurprisingly as they finished ahead of Peterborough (15/8) by eight points and the Terriers are likely to have the more fans at Old Trafford – something which may just give them the edge in what could be a cagey affair such are the nerves of the occasion.

This is their fourth meeting this season and, again, a quick check of the stats shows they are two evenly-matched sides.

Peterborough won their home league clash 4-2, they drew 1-1 in West Yorkshire but Huddersfield won 3-2 in the second round of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy at the Galpharm.

Clark has said if his side win the achievement will beat anything he managed as a player – and that includes winning the Championship three times – so the 38-year-old is well aware just how big a game the final is for a side who have been out of the second tier of English football for 10 years.

They are a club with a proud history, however, winning the old First Division on three successive occasions – the first club to do so – in 1926, but, of course that counts for nothing on Sunday.

They look good value at 8/1 to win 2-1 in the correct score market and, with Jordan Rhodes and the on-loan Danny Ward set to lead the line, they will pose plenty of threat to the Posh defence.

Ferguson’s side are looking for an immediate return to the Championship after being relegated 12 months ago and will be very well organised and difficult to beat.

In Craig Makail-Smith they have a forward to worry any defence. He has been heavily linked with a move away over the summer and, if he does leave, will hope to finish on a high with a win. The striker will reach a 100 goals if he hits a brace on Sunday and is well worth a punt in totesport’s enhanced first goalscorer market (6/1).

So the stage is set for what looks like being a closely-fought contest but we see Huddersfield just edging it given their slightly better performance over the season although don’t rule out them needing extra time to do it (9/1).

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Terriers to savage Bournemouth

Posted on by
Reply

Huddersfield Town have been on the fringes of getting promoted for the past four seasons, three consecutive top-10 finishes before finally making it into the play-offs last season. While Millwall ended any hopes they had of reaching the Championship, manager Lee Clark has brought back a Terriers side with renewed hope this season (Huddersfield v Bournemouth).

Standing in their way is a Bournemouth side bidding to make it back-to-back promotions, only months after they nearly went out of business. Surely it will be a bridge too far for the Cherries to overcome a good Huddersfield side.

At the start of the 2008-09 there were question marks over whether Bournemouth would even be allowed to play in the Football League after entering administration with debts of nearly £4million. Since then it has been a backs to the wall job for the Cherries and they have thrived in adversity, reclaiming their place in League 1 last season after a fantastic campaign under Eddie Howe. While Howe left half way through the season Lee Bradbury has managed to carry the south-coast club over the line and secure a play-off spot.

However, things haven’t gone smoothly recently for Bournemouth, Bradbury’s side collecting just two wins from their last 12 matches as their season ended with a whimper. They maintained their place in the play-offs, but only by the skin of their teeth as Leyton Orient came within a point of overhauling them. Life on the road hasn’t been particularly good for the Cherries and they head to Huddersfield with just six away wins to their name all season. They haven’t enjoyed their trips to the Galpharm Stadium either, failing to win their since Huddersfield completed their move to their new ground. With that in mind you can see why the West Yorkshire club are 7/10 to beat Bournemouth in the 90 minute market, with the Cherries on at 19/5 and the draw at 7/2.

On paper things are pointing towards a Huddersfield win, even if they haven’t won a play-off game at the Galpharm or Leeds Road. Saturday’s 1-1 draw in the first leg extended the Terriers unbeaten run to 26 matches and their home form has one again been very good. They have lost three games at home all season and Huddersfield fans will rightly be expecting to see their team end their play-off hoodoo. The Terriers have been up twice through the play-offs in five attempts but will be keen to erase the memories of last year’s disappointment by at least reaching the final.

Huddersfield might count themselves as lucky not to have a deficit to overturn from the first leg after Ian Bennett’s penalty save at Dean Court. Clark won’t want it to be that close on Wednesday night and will hope Jordan Rhodes, Danny Ward and Benik Afobe can turn it on for the usually free-flowing Terriers. The game to have over 2.5 goals in it can be backed at 5/6, or you could go for it to have between 3-5 goals at evens.

Huddersfield are the 5/4 favourites to be promoted via the play-offs and should justify that tag against Bournemouth by booking their place at Old Trafford. However, this is the play-offs and with the Cherries constantly upsetting the odds over the last few years you can?t totally dismiss the chance of the underdogs getting through again.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.