Analysis: Darren Moore and Huddersfield Town feels like a marriage still in need of a spark

"As I departed Northern California for England, I found it very difficult to contain my excitement," began chairman Kevin Nagle's programme notes for Saturday’s encounter.

This was supposed to be lift-off for Huddersfield Town, given a tantalising glimpse of what Alex Matos and Bojan Radulovic – "two exciting signings", Moore wrote in his notes, "exciting additions" commented Nagle – could do in a game they were never likely to win at Manchester City and transferring it to one they really needed to.

Matos and Radulovic adorned the programme cover. The latter had been Moore's warm-up act in the pre-match press conference to get the juices flowing.

But things did not go to plan.

At the end of training on Friday, Radulovic did not quite feel right.

"A large crowd came to finally see what they recognise as an out-and-out No 9 and probably landed here thinking what’s happened?” acknowledged Moore. "It was just an individual player doing a bit of work for himself to get ready for the game. Nobody was around him and he just felt like he tweaked something.”

It was the prelude to two relegation-haunted teams producing a display utterly lacking pizzazz.

It was Plymouth’s first league match under new manager Ian Foster. Promoted last season, they and Rotherham United are the only teams not to have won away from home in the 2023-24 Championship.

So it was understandable once Morgan Whittaker gave them a 12th-minute lead unrepresentative of the start of the game that they did not come out to play, and looked to eat up as much time as possible. Goalkeeper Conor Hazard did well to make it to 62 minutes before being booked for time-wasting, but referee Tom Nield was not going to buck the trend by being assertive.

"Our intentions were to win the game but Huddersfield always made it difficult for us," said Foster.

"We never said to the players go deeper, sit back, become more compact and invite them onto us, that was never the plan, that's just credit to the opposition."

Huddersfield were on the front foot, as Moore always insists he wants to be, but in his 21 games – three won, nine drawn – the handbrake has too rarely come off.

When Josh Koroma cut in on his left foot and equalised after 38 minutes, Argyle will have braced for a storm. They got persistent drizzle.

Conservatism does not sit well with Nagle, who has promised his players a coaching session on not passing the ball backwards this week and went route one with a post-match tweet that simply read "NOT GOOD ENOUGH!!"

In the stands to scrutinise first-hand during a month-long trip to West Yorkshire, he was reflecting the full-time boos – a smattering, not a torrent. It was a rare moment of forcefulness on a tepid day all round.

Nagle wants to give his manager time and transfer-market backing – he has spoken of three more signings, the cautious Moore will not commit to a number. But his video-diary follow-up when asked about a change in the dugout: "Not going to happen right now, obviously" could have done with being as emphatic by dropping words five and six.

When Nagle tweeted from California in September about "a total drubbing by Norwich City” you did not need to be a genius to realise he would soon need a new manager.

Neil Warnock bit back in his next press conference, and was gone inside a month.

Moore is a very different character. Nearly four months after making his vows to Huddersfield it feels like a marriage still in need of a spark.

For 62 per cent of the possession, the hosts did not have enough shots. Only Koroma's goal, Ben Jackson's to force an 86th-minute save, and a couple from distance by Thomas which missed the target had much conviction.

If dogged defending is needed, the Terriers relish it – even when a shortage of centre-backs through injuries and Yuta Nakayama's Asian Cup duty saw right-back Brodie Spencer on the left of a back three and midfielder David Kasumu at wing-back. When they must force the issue, they need a longer leash.

Matos summed it up, hunting the ball hungrily and fortunate Nield overlooked a foul on Leeds United loanee Darko Gyabi in the build-up to Koroma’s goal, but missing a good chance from a tight angle before it. Jack Rudoni’s 86th-minute header was a better chance and worse miss.

"The same intensity we had to win the ball back in Plymouth's half, in possession we could have shown that little bit more aggression to our play but the boys were probably being a little bit more careful and tentative to build the play," said Moore.

He must change that before Nagle changes him.

Huddersfield Town: Nicholls; Spencer, Helik, Lees; Kasumu, Rudoni, Hogg, Matos (Iorpenda 65), Jackson; Thomas, Koroma (Diarra 78). Unused substitutes: Edmonds-Green, Edwards, Wiles, Austerfield, Ayina, Bellagambi, Stone.

Plymouth Argyle: Hazard; Phillips, Scarr, Galloway; Kesler-Hayden (Edwards 65), Houghton (Butcher 90), Gyabi, Mumba (Miller 65); Whittaker, Hardie (Waine 87), Wright (Randell 65). Unused substitutes: Pleguezuelo, Bundu, Wright, Burton.

Referee: T Nield (West Yorkshire).