Colchester Utd 0, Huddersfield Town 0

Nov 22 2004 By The Huddersfield Daily Examiner

HOW THEY RATED:

Paul Rachubka Solid saves kept out Johnson, Halford and Fagan and he handled well. Verbal directing of defence was excellent Rating: 8/10

Andy Holdsworth Attacking chances proved limited. One high-class piece of tracking denied Johnson on a first-half break. Tackled ferociously Rating: 7/10

Anthony Lloyd Played a succession of passes to non-existent runs in the first half but stuck at the job before being replaced on 55 Rating: 6/10

Steve Yates Dug in solidly as the home attack proved lively and quick and eventually bottled the threat of big Halford Rating: 7/10

Nathan Clarke Caught the eye with some powerful tackles and headers and his passing was cleaner than anyone else Rating: 8/10

David Mirfin Had a terrific battle with the dangerous Fagan and was strong through the whole game. Key role in the clean sheet Rating: 7/10

Chris Brandon Had Town's only shot of the first half, over the bar, and covered acres of ground. Did a lot of valuable tracking back Rating: 7/10

Jon Worthington Set the benchmark with a crunching early tackle on Watson. Influential in helping Town establish a foothold in hectic midfield Rating: 8/10

Danny Schofield Did well on the ball and caused Colchester a fair share of headaches with his supporting runs for Abbott up front Rating: 7/10

Pawel Abbott Worked hard as the lone frontman and created Town's best chance for himself with a superb piece of skill Rating: 8/10

Tony Carss Returned to bolster the midfield and maybe to prise an opening, but it was tough as Colchester got well behind the ball Rating: 7/10

FOCUS ON THE REF: MIKE RUSSELL from Hertfordshire did a pretty solid job and there were no really contentious decisions in the game. He was probably a little harsh in booking Nathan Clarke for a foul on Gavin Johnson early in the second half, which led to a free-kick from which Greg Halford brought a fine save from Paul Rachubka, but other than that there could be few complaints.

On more than one occasion, the official played sensible advantages and he always seemed to be up with the play. He also let his assistants know who was boss.

Colchester Utd: Davison, Stockley, White, Baldwin, Chilvers, Keith, Watson, Garcia, Johnson (Bowry 79), Fagan, Halford. Subs not used: Williams, Gerken (Gkp), Hunt, Bowditch.