Well I'd be rubbish as Mystic Meg, wouldn't I? Before Christmas I predicted Huddersfield Town would come away with 6 points out of 12 during the Christmas period with wins over Hartlepool and Southampton and losses against Carlisle and Sheffield Wednesday. What happened? We lost 1-0 against Hartlepool and 4-1 against the Saints. We then went on to throw away a 2-0 lead at Carlisle to draw 2-2 and eventually managed a win against Wednesday. So 4 points out of 12. As things stand, Town are second in the league but only until 5.00pm today when the other results come in.
I've just finished watching the Town v Sheffield Wednesday game on TV. This was the one I'd planned to watch at the Galpharm but I had flu over Christmas and am still recovering so 90 minutes on the terraces was not an option.
I was worried that after defeats against lower sides like Hartlepool we'd be trampled by Wednesday, who hadn't had any matches over the Christmas period and were just above us in the league. I should have had more faith. Huddersfield were amazing in the first half. They played excellent passing football that was a joy to watch. The icing on the cake was Anthony Pilkington's beautiful goal on 27 minutes from about 23 yards out. It was a superbly taken shot that flew into the top left hand corner of the net. Game on! The Owls rose to the challenge and their sturdy-looking forwards Mellor and Morrison were always a threat. Both sides knew the three points were up for grabs when the whistle blew at half time.
Then, as so often happens, it all fell apart. If the first half showed why Town are in the top six of the table the second half showed why they aren't (yet) contenders for automatic promotion. Talk about inconsistent. I don't know what happened in the dressing room at half time but it was as if they'd decided en masse that they'd shown enough class for one day, thank you very much. The sweet passing disappeared and it was all painful hoof and run and hope-for-the-best stuff. It was catching, too, because Wednesday were just as bad. As commentator Peter Beagrie said at the end '... the second half was so ugly it had warts.'
I'm not downhearted though. It's good to end the Christmas period with a win and to begin the New Year with confidence. We've got depth to the squad, especially now experienced journeyman Kevin Kilbane has been brought in to shore up the midfield. Antony Kay needs to up his game and the usually dependable Gary Roberts looked out of sorts but all in all there's room for optimism. I'll keep Saturdays in late May free, just in case there's a trip to Wembley for the Play-offs in the offing.
- Helena Pielichaty
PS: Best trivia from the match: Sheffield Wednesday 'keeper Nicky Weaver's career was saved after cartilage from a dead donor was grafted into his knee. No jokes about dead legs etc please. That would be wrong.
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