WE were all very happy with the business concluded by the club at the end of the transfer window.
Two very good prospects were brought in from Falkirk in Kallum Higginbotham and Murray Wallace, while one player left in the shape of Donal McDermott to Bournemouth.
And, as promised to the fans by club chairman Dean Hoyle, one player stayed in the shape of leading scorer Jordan Rhodes.
Dean said right from the start of all the speculation that Jordan wouldn’t be going anywhere in the January window and, while I’m sure there are been plenty of inquiries made, he was true to his word.
I’m sure our fans are delighted, because we all know the focus is wholeheartedly on going up this season and selling Jordan at this point wouldn’t have helped the cause at all.
I think it will do Jordan good to be here and help us get the job done.
He has all the records in front of him to break and, whatever happens come the end of the season, him and the club can look at things once again – hopefully from the very nice perspective of the Championship arena.
The boss, Lee Clark, has got Jordan firing on all cylinders and it’s great that he has nipped in ahead of the new spending cap for next season to get another two excellent young prospects into the squad.
It’s that sort of work which has attracted interest from other clubs and that’s why the gaffer comes into the equation when any decent club is on the lookout for a new manager.
His record with us over the last three years has been excellent and it’s no surprise that he has been linked with the job down the road at Leeds United since they parted company with Simon Grayson, following last week’s home defeat by Birmingham City.
It is a compliment to Lee because it shows how highly rated he is by everyone in the game, and it’s a compliment to the club, because it shows how well we are doing in a third-straight promotion chase and on the back of a new Football League record for unbeaten matches.
As I said at the outset, the aim now is to make this season one which finishes in promotion, and no-one will be allowed to shift their focus from that target.
OUR new signings from Scotland, Kallum Higginbotham and Murray Wallace, are sure of a warm welcome here at the Galpharm.
Kallum is already with us, of course, and working on a daily basis with Lee Clark and the first-team squad after his debut against MK Dons.
We’ll have to wait a little longer to see Murray, who is being loaned back to Falkirk for the rest of this season, but I am assured by everyone that he’s a very talented defender and one who was sought after by many clubs.
Lots of people were watching him, but it was great for our club that we were able to beat off competition from others and land someone who is said to be a fantastic prospect.
Murray is definitely one for the future and our fans will be looking forward to seeing him, hopefully with us already promoted to the Championship.
As for Kallum, he has already discovered that Huddersfield Town is a very friendly club and one which is easy to settle into.
Town has always been like that, ever since my very earliest days as a player. It’s always been a club where the players and fans have been very friendly and welcoming and let’s hope that never changes.
It can be intimidating, sometimes, particularly for young players, to settle into a new club, but I don’t think that’s any sort of problem here.
Kallum already knows Jordan Rhodes, from the time they were together at Rochdale, and he’s got a link to Scott Arfield because of Falkirk.
I know that Kallum has enjoyed his first few days with us and his debut, after a very hectic transfer deadline day of travelling backwards and forwards to Scotland, and we all hope he’ll produce the same form with us that he’s been producing all season for Falkirk and which attracted us to buy him in the first place.
Good luck to both lads.
