Irritating cocktail on grizzly afternoon for Leeds Road faithful Awful finishing crowns appalling Town display

Huddersfield Town 0 Exeter City 1

Saturday 11 September 1993.

Referee:

Att: 5266

Match Report by Melvyn Booth 

RAGGED Town were a shambles in an appalling Leeds Road performance to rank among the worst of recent years.

Neil Warnock's side had plenty of possession and more than enough chances but blew the lot on a grizzly afternoon for the fans. What hurt most was that workaday Exeter seemed to have more fight and commit- ment as Town's game plan dis- integrated into an irritating cocktail of aimless passing and awful finishing. Town were punished after 39 minutes when summer signing Micky Ross pounced for his first league goal to give Alan Ball's side an opening away victory of the campaign. The goal left Warnock still seeking a clean sheet in the Second Division and a first victory at Leeds Road, and he was so upset by the performance that he called Town in for Sunday training. There was plenty to work on because the harder Town tried to put things right on Saturday afternoon, the worse they became. Dogged by a debilitating fear around the Exeter box - and a smothering blanket of nine or 10 defenders for much of the time Town chased a goal more in hope than conviction. It might have been different had Town made more of three clear-cut chances during a cohesive five-minute spell of attacking mid-way through the first half. The first was created on 23 minutes by Mark Wells and Chris Billy, whose cross was met by the sort of perfect back-post run which Town had worked on all week in training. Unfortunately, Trevitt's stretching half-volley from the tightest of angles flashed across the face of Peter Fox's goal and eventually went out for a throw-in. A minute later, Iain Dunn had probably the best chance of the match when a superb flick from Iwan Roberts left him with the sort of one-on- one chance which you'd back him to score nine times out of 10. Dunn should have taken the ball wide as Fox raced from his line, but the goalkeeper deserved credit for an excellent save to deflect the ball wide as the striker aimed for the corner. With Exeter's defence shaking, the drama continued as Phil Robinson-who had an excellent start to the match- threaded a pass to send Iffy Onuora racing into the box with markers nowhere to be seen. But as Fox retreated to his line and Dunn screamed for the square pass which would have guaranteed a goal, Onuora harmlessly stubbed a shot into the side netting from 10 yards out. The big frontman paid the price by being substituted at half time he was also adjudged to have fouled Fox as Roberts was denied an injury- time equaliser-and Warnock re-jigged in the hope of finding some venom. He was close to gaining immediate reward as Roberts stretched to meet a close-range volley, only to lift the shot high over the bar. And Town went downhill from there, failing to string together hardly any moves. Phil Starbuck, back in his favourite striking position after a first half at sweeper, provided the promise of better things but he never received the necessary support. Town's passing and crossing was often so bad that there was rarely enough pressure exerted on an Exeter box where (appropriately enough with Shelley Webb and her BBC crew filming) it was standing room only for long spells. Exeter, therefore, looked pretty comfortable as Town continued to shoot themselves in the foot going forward, and the visitors might well have increased their lead had Ronnie Jepson twice taken advantage of sweeping breakaway moves. The hard-working Trevitt- who in the first half had watched Ross and Steve Wigley miss on the line after Starbuck had been robbed - almost saved some of Town's blushes at the death but ran the ball too close to Fox on a searing burst into the box. With that, any lingering hopes Town had of saving face disappeared and the frustration of the fans-around 250 of whom watched from the Open End-was complete. Few players could take credit - centre-backs Stuart Hicks and Peter Jackson were solid throughout and Starbuck worked hard and there was a sickening lack of belief. Rarely since falling into this division six years ago have Town looked so ill-at-ease with their football and the manager knows he must act quickly to put it right. This sort of hapless display cannot be allowed to fester, and Town must take the chance in 24 hours to rediscover their pride.

Huddersfield Town
Francis, Trevitt, Billy, Starbuck, Hicks, Jackson, Dunn, Robinson, Roberts, Onuora (Dyson 45 mins), Wells (Booth 78 mins). Gkp sub: Blackwell.

Exeter City
Fox, Minett, Robinson, Bailey, Daniels, Whiston, Storer, Coughlin, Jepson, Ross, Wigley. Subs not used: Worthington, Redwood.

Referee- Philip Wright (Northwich).

Cautions
Robinson (Town);
Minett (Exeter)

Half-time-0-1.
Scorer-Exeter Ross 39 mins.

Attendance-5,266.

Town man-of-the-match-Phil Starbuck.