How Sheffield Wednesday are showing the way forward for Huddersfield Town and Rotherham United in battle to beat the drop - Stuart Rayner

The Terriers in particular are talking the talk, with their chairman, Kevin Nagle, in the country for a month to be a face, a point of contact and at times a lightning rod.

And whilst you can – and many have – questioned the American's openness, it is not his words, or those of manager Darren Moore, which matter, but actions.

With one win since October, Rotherham's fight is in danger of fizzling out if they do not do something pretty soon to stoke it back up.

Both they and Huddersfield look at their most comfortable with their backs to the wall.

Town's best players are centre-backs – even their top-scorer, Michal Helik, is one, for goodness sake.

Rotherham's best performances this season have been gutsy draws at home to high-fliers like Leeds United and Ipswich Town.

The Millers have only won three games all season (all at home), Town just three of Moore's 21 games in charge.

If either was in a stronger position, then spirited draws would be quite handy. But Rotherham are bottom of the Championship with catching up to do, Huddersfield just one place and four points above the relegation zone.

Meanwhile Wednesday, the club directly below the dotted line, are building a head of steam after giving the rest a generous headstart under Xisco Munoz. Since Rohl found his feet as the Spaniard's successor they have won six of their last 10 games in all competitions and have done some business in the transfer market too.

Plymouth Argyle, Stoke City, Millwall, Swansea City and Bristol City have all thrown the dice for new managers relatively recently, and one fears for the odd one out at the wrong end of the table, Blackburn Rovers' Jon Dahl Tomasson.

So Huddersfield simply have to keep up.

They can consider themselves unfortunate they signed the No 9 so obviously missing, Bojan Radulovic, only for him to pick up a minor training-ground injury the day before his scheduled Championship debut.

But what was missing in Saturday's 1-1 draw with Plymouth was more than just a target man, there was a real lack of intent from the team as a whole.

Nagle certainly seems to have it, complaining after the game about his team passing backwards too often, even if his outburst might be better kept behind closed doors at times. It is his club, though, and he seems adamant he will not change.

So Moore must rise to the challenge and somehow get his players playing the "front-foot football" he regularly talks about, but has too seldom delivered in West Yorkshire.

Rotherham must attack the challenge too, lest an air of relegation hangs over a club which does not look equipped for the battle ahead. Head of recruitment Rob Scott must magic something up in the transfer window and Leam Richardson, just into his second month, having so far only delivered the recalled Peter Kioso.

Neither Yorkshire club can afford to be reckless in a financial or footballing sense but right now they feel too passive.