Heartache for Huddersfield Town as successive defeats dent play-off ambitions

The Terriers went down to two late goals

Huddersfield Town conceded two injury-time goals to lose 2-1 to Bolton Wanderers at the Accu Stadium on Thursday evening.

Leo Castledine’s seventh-minute header had put the Terriers on course for victory, but the Trotters struck twice in stoppage time through Sam Dalby and Amario Cozier-Duberry to seal a dramatic win for the away side.

The defeat saw Town drop to eighth in the League One table, on 19 points from 12 matches played, while Bolton moved above their hosts into seventh with their first away win of the season, with the turnaround leaving the visitors on 20 points after 13 games.

Lee Grant opted to make two changes from his side’s 2-1 defeat to Stockport County last time out, as Lynden Gooch and Joe Taylor came into the team for Lasse Sorensen and Marcus Harness. Mickel Miller returned to the bench after spending just over two months on the sidelines with a hamstring injury.

Wanderers’ boss Steven Schumacher made five alterations to his team from their 3-0 defeat at Burton Albion at the weekend. Josh Dacres-Cogley, Eoin Toal, Josh Sheehan, Jordi Osei-Tutu and Marcus Forss were the players that were brought into the side.

The visitors had the first effort of the contest in the opening minutes, as Jordi Osei-Tutu had a shot blocked on the edge of the box, while the Terriers’ first attempt came via Alfie May, whose goalbound volley from a corner struck Taylor.

Town broke the deadlock in the seventh minute. Ruben Roosken’s corner from the left was headed home by the unmarked Castledine just outside the six-yard box, with the attacking midfielder netting his fourth goal of the campaign.

The Trotters had a couple of opportunities in response in the spell following the goal. Max Conway had a strike on the left-hand side of the box beaten away by Lee Nicholls, while Osei-Tutu couldn’t direct Sheehan’s cross towards goal.

Forss had two chances in quick succession as the half-hour mark approached, first slamming a shot into the side netting, before having a strike saved by Nicholls from a good position after being picked out by Amario Cozier-Duberry.

Castledine had a free-kick deflected wide at the 30-minute point, while League One’s top goalscorer Mason Burstow saw his first chance blocked after being found by Cozier-Duberry, who was the visitors’ bright spark in the first half.

Town looked threatening in counter-attacking situations as the half progressed. Taylor got played in behind Bolton’s backline on a number of occasions but the forward couldn’t make the most of the opportunities, while May had two efforts from outside the box as half-time approached, with one blocked and the other saved.

Wanderers had a good chance on the stroke of the interval as Cozier-Duberry slipped Dacres-Cogley in towards goal, but the wing-back’s cross was claimed by Nicholls, as the hosts went in a goal up at the break.

Both sides got into promising situations in the opening minutes of the second half, but Burstow’s cross was blocked by Joe Low, while Taylor’s low ball in at the other end was straight at Teddy Sharman-Lowe.

The visitors were first to have an attempt on goal following the restart, as Burstow met Forss’ cross shortly after the hour mark, but the striker’s header lacked power and was held by Nicholls.

Town’s lack of attacking threat after the break led to a double change from Grant, with Marcus Harness and ex-Wanderers forward Dion Charles entering the fray.

John McAtee was subsequently introduced for the Trotters and almost made an instant impact after being sent through on goal by Conway, but Low made the clearance with Nicholls beaten. Dacres-Cogley then had a shot blocked soon after, as the away side started to dominate proceedings with 20 minutes to play.

Burstow had another header kept out by Nicholls, while Osei-Tutu put a dangerous ball across goal that was cleared away by Roosken, as the visitors kept up the pressure, but Town held firm.

However, the visitors netted twice in stoppage time to turn the game around in dramatic fashion.

First, Sam Dalby headed home Cozier-Duberry’s cross in the third minute of stoppage time, before Cozier-Duberry struck past Nicholls in the fifth minute added on to consign the Terriers to a painful defeat.

Town: Nicholls, Ledson (C), Low, Gooch, Wiles (Miller 75), Taylor (Charles 65), Roosken (Roughan 82), Kasumu, Feeney, Castledine (Harness 65), May. Unused subs: Goodman, Sorensen, Vost.

Bolton: Sharman-Lowe, Dacres-Cogley, Toal (C), Johnston, Conway (Taylor 83), Cozier-Duberry, Simons (Morley 86), Sheehan, Osei-Tutu (Dalby 86), Forss (McAtee 67), Burstow. Unused subs: Miller, Christie, Cissoko.