Match report: Huddersfield Town 2 - 1 Swindon Town

Jan 19 2009 by Dougie Thomson, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

There wasn’t time for Swindon to even come close to an equaliser, but by that stage, the game should have been well out of their reach.

Click here for a gallery of shots from our pitchside photographers of Saturday's match.

Michael Collins’ 51st-minute opener, the midfielder’s sixth goal of the season, was Town’s ninth effort on target, and Andy Butler’s 60th-minute headed goal, his second for the club, their 11th out of a final tally of 13.

Without being disrespectful to a game Swindon side, who were far better set up than when Town won 3-1 at the County Ground back in October, it was the kind of contest Lee Clark’s team could have won by four or five.

And with their goal difference of minus one far inferior to the sides around them, those missed opportunities could prove expensive.

Clark has named an unchanged starting line-up for four matches in a row, but with tough trips to League I leaders Leicester (on Saturday) and Yeovil (tomorrow week) coming up, it will be interesting to see if the manager steps up his search for a striker this week, particularly after Andy Booth was left out of the 16 because of a back spasm.

Frontmen Keigan Parker and Phil Jevons beavered away, but neither were able to add to their sole goals so far this season.

Parker was the first to test Peter Brezovan, with the giant Slovakian stopper equal to his angled fourth-minute shot.

Smithies denied Billy Paynter in similar circumstances before Brezovan punched away Roberts’ curling ninth-minute effort.

Kevin Amankwaah’s 19th-minute shot was blocked, but for the rest of the first half, it was all Town.

Parker’s 22nd-minute shot was pushed wide by Brezovan before Amankwaah blocked a Jevons effort.