Chelsea 2, Huddersfield Town 1

Jan 9 2006 By Mel Booth, The Huddersfield Daily Examiner

It was a massive relief to Chelsea and their fans in a sell-out crowd of 41,650, because they had seen their first-half dominance and advantage from Carlton Cole's soft 12th-minute opener wiped out by Town's compelling commitment in the second period.

While the defence, marshalled superbly by Nathan Clarke, played well throughout, Town were outclassed for 44 of the first 45 minutes (Taylor-Fletcher missed a great early chance) and Chelsea posted 15 goal attempts against one - Robert Huth hitting the bar - as Joe Cole and Lassana Diarra ran riot through midfield.

Chelsea's finishing was dreadful, fortunately, particularly from Shaun Wright-Phillips who missed three sitters, but it did not augur well for the second half and it took an astute substitution by Jackson at the break to turn the tie on its head.

Teenage talent Tom Clarke was sent on in central midfield and, not only did he stop Cole from bossing it, he simply shone on the big stage as Town got stuck in and rattled their hosts.

Fletch, too, dropped back to help contain Diarra while Collins showed his emerging quality when replacing the out-of-sorts Danny Schofield, helping Town push Chelsea back with efforts from both Clarkes and the solid Martin McIntosh.

The goal, of course, was the highlight of a spirited assault and, just for seven precious minutes, Jackson's side and their baying backers had a scent of victory.

It wasn't to be, but Town earned many admirers for their effort and this performance might just be the catalyst for a big League improvement.

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