Huddersfield Town: Carlos Corberan and Terriers finding the right mix of substance and style

Huddersfield Town's Jonathan Hogg celebrates the winning goal. Pictures: Simon Hulme

With the way they passed the ball in the first half especially with one-touch football and clever movement, there was a lot about Huddersfield Town’s football on Saturday which was nice to watch.

But games against Millwall are typically more about substance than style, and now the Terriers have plenty of that too. Patience, fitness, determination, fantastic defending and once again set pieces were every bit as important in what felt like a really big 1-0 win.

It was, in short, a Jonathan Hogg-style game but the Teessider is no longer unusual in exhibiting Jonathan Hogg-style qualities.

“In the Championship when every game is so close, these small details can change the results a lot,” said coach Carlos Corberan.

Duanne Holmes is challenged by Millwall's Shaun Hutchinson.

Hogg’s header from an 82nd-minute corner was the headline moment but Sorba Thomas was quick to point to another.

“Everyone will talk about the goal and the header from Hoggy, but not many people are going to talk about the tackle from Matty Pearson on (Tom) Bradshaw,” he stressed. “They are the tackles that win games.”

Centre-back Pearson was one of the best players on the pitch, never better than when he launched into a tackle as Bradshaw bore down on goal in the 66th minute. Thomas hacked the ensuing corner away.

Pearson is one of the players who have improved the team immeasurably this season just by doing the uncomplicated, dirty, Hogg-style stuff so well. He, Tom Lees, Levi Colwill and Lee Nicholls, all added in the summer, bring a security not there last season by doing the sort of things which too often in the past were left to Hogg.