2005/2006 Season Preview - HUDDERSFIELD

Huddersfield: Yorkshire Home: Galpharm Stadium (nee McAlpine) 24,500 (all-seated) Nickname: The Terriers Hate: Bradford City. Leeds United. Last Meeting: 27th Mar 2004 LD3 Huddersfield Town A L 0-3 The Terriers are yet another of the 'Once We Were Famous' clubs that litter the division. Winners of the League Championship three times in a row from 1924-26, the club also won the FA cup in 1922. Out of our present support however, it's likely that only Ernest Montgomery is old enough to remember these glory days. The period most of us are likely to recall is the mid to late 90's and the era of the McAlpine stadium, owner Barry Rubery and Steve Bruce The building of the superb McAlpine stadium in 1994 was the springboard for a surge towards the Premiership for the club. After promotion to Division 1 (Championship) in their first season at the new stadium hopes were high, but the club were unable to build on the momentum and started slipping down the league. Peter Jackson started to turn things around and finished a credible 10th in 98/99. Halfway through that season wealthy businessman Barry Rubery had acquired the club and promised millions of pounds to be spent on players and the dream of Premiership football. Despite making progress on the pitch, Jackson was inexplicably sacked at the end of the season and replaced by the man Rubery believed could bring his Premiership dream to reality: Steve Bruce. Rubery invested significant sums of money in the club, but the wage bill grew to over £6 million, with club turnover not even covering half of it. In a move he was later said to regret, Rubery promised Bruce £3 million a season to spend on new players. During the course of the 99/2000 season everything was going hunky-dory and the club were well on course for promotion. Marcus Stewart was banging in the goals alongside Clyde Wijnhard, and only something ridiculous like selling your best striker to a rival promotion chasing club could stop the Terriers at this stage... Of course, such an idea is ludicrous and it didn't happen. During the same season that Hollins was somehow guiding our bunch of waifs and strays to promotion from Division 3, The Terriers themelves went on to clinch promo…eh?...Hang on…Oh f k me!, they DID sell Stewart, to Ipswich for £2.75 million. At the time of his sale to Ipswich, Huddersfield were 3rd in the table, and Ipswich 4th. Huddersfield failed to make the play-offs and Ipswich finished 3rd and went up to the Premiership via the play-offs. Rubery claimed Stewart had to be sold to ease the club's increasing financial liabilities, but from a football point of view it was suicide, and Steve Bruce was mightily displeased. The failure to get promotion, and the poor start to the next season, precipitated a collapse at the club over the next few years, both on and off the pitch, that saw Manager (s), Chairman, and a number of players depart. Rubery left in 2002, The post-Bruce managers of the team were Lou Macari, Mick Wadsworth and Mel Machin, none of whom, except for perhaps Macari, were able to get any kind of stable foundations at the club. Rubery eventually left in 2002, handing over control to a group of businessmen led by Vice-Chairman David Taylor. The kickback from the financial excesses of the Rubery era were always hanging over the club and eventually led to the club going into administration at the end of the 2002/2003 season after players wages were not paid on time. A truly dire season that saw two managers come and go and relegation to the basement division. A consortium was put together to save the club, led by the town's Rugby League Club Chairman Ken Davy. Along with a supporters trust, the new board saved the club from going under in similar circumstances to our own a few years ago, with a CVA being agreed to bring the club out of receivership. The club re-instated Peter Jackson as manager in time for the 2003/04 season and looked forward to a more stable future. They were left with relegation and only 8 professionals on the books, but at least they still had a club. Much to the joy of the fans, they came straight back up at the first attempt despite a poor start and severe restrictions to their resources. Blonde sensation Jon Stead lead the line for the Terriers early doors, scoring 16 goals in 26 appearances before his transfer to Blackburn Rovers for a fee of around a million pounds early in 2004. Despite this set-back the club finished fourth and went on to beat Nottinghamshire's finest Mansfailed in the 'Liam Lawrence Penalty Miss Final' as it has become known. The Terriers now find themselves in the mood to start the climb up the leagues all over again. Peter Jackson hardly endeared himself to Swansea fans by dismissing Trundle's masterful trickery in the game at the Vetch in 2003 (including the famous shoulder-roll) as "nonsense". Jackson, himself a no-nonsense centre-half in his playing days, probably had nightmares about players like Trundle when a player, and watching his defenders having the mickey taken out of them by the irrepressible scouser was probably a bitter pill to swallow. Swans fans should not take Jackson to be a bad sort though, as his loyalty and commitment to the Terriers, especially under financial constraints that would floor many a rival manager, is admirable, and he is definitely one of football's good guys. Moving on to present days, Huddersfield have signed Rotherham defender Martin McIntosh and former Chesterfield midfielder Mark Hudson, as well as striker Gary Taylor-Fletcher from League 2 play-off losers Lincoln City. Making the opposite switch from Huddersfield to Lincoln is utility player Nat Brown who had earlier failed to agree a move to Shrewsbury Town. There's not expected to be much more action on the transfer front in pre-season as Jackson is said to be happy with the squad as it stands. The main threat will again come from prolific striker Pawel Abbott who scored 27 goals last season. Of Polish nationality despite having been born in York, he has been described as having "quick feet for a big player" and other assorted clichés. All we really need to know is that he scores goals. Lots of them. Jackson is hoping for a big contribution to the promotion campaign from some of the younger members of his squad. Over the course of the close season Jackson has managed to get these players to sign new deals with the club, including impressive young midfielder and team captain Jonathan Worthington. Others to have signed include Michael Adams, Danny Collins and striker John McAliskey. Whether the Town squad is good enough to compete at the top end of the table this season is something a neutral like myself is not at all qualified to predict, especially someone who has hardly seen any League 1 football for a few years, but I'm going to do it anyway… They will finish: 5th

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