Huddersfield Town 0 Exeter 1: Chairman Hoyle lays cards on the table for Clark and company

Chairman Dean Hoyle, who sold his Card Factory business for 350m in order to concentrate his efforts into getting Town into at least the Championship, let rip in his pre-match programme notes on Saturday.

Fortunately for Town's staff, Hoyle was in New York as they suffered a second consecutive defeat against another of League One's lesser resourced clubs, otherwise they could have expected another broadside after they slipped down to ninth in the table.

It followed on from a stoppage time midweek FA Cup replay win against non-league Cambridge but it was defeat at Oldham the previous Saturday that prompted Hoyle to launch his attack.

"One thing is for sure – it hurt me (defeat at Boundary Park). I felt physically sick after the game. People may be surprised at my reaction to this single defeat but as I have always said, this club has never been able to buy the talent we have now but has always had a 'never-say-die' attitude," wrote lifelong Town fan Hoyle.

"Whether it is fair or not, I have asked myself several searching questions over the past few days; do our players have the fight and bottle to face up to a physical and wound-up opposing team? Was a trip to Boundary Park not inspiring enough? Does our team have the real desire to get out of this League? This week I have posed those questions to Lee Clark."

Strong stuff and there we were wondering whether Town's slump in form was down to a 'negative' media after all!

Manager Clark kept his counsel after this latest defeat, sending No 2 Terry McDermott to face the press.

Liverpool great McDermott has seen it all before, of course, and knows now is the time for players and backroom staff to re-group and respond with a performance to be proud of at home to MK Dons tomorrow night – a Seventies themed occasion when former players who knew how to dig in against all opposition such as Jimmy McGill and Bobby Campbell will be among the guests.

And in captain Peter Clarke, Town have an on-field leader who will also take a level-headed approach to his frustrated chairman's comments.

"We are absolutely gutted because we didn't deserve that," was McDermott's reaction.

"I didn't really read the chairman's notes – I didn't bring my glasses in. He obviously cares and what he said is his prerogative but we have to stick together as a club from the tea lady Lorraine through to everyone.

"We have all to stick together and we will. We all want one thing, promotion, and if we stick together then I am sure we will attain it."

Regarding Clark's out of character no-show, he added: "The manager wears his heart on his sleeve. He cares about this football club. He desperately wants us to win promotion like we all do and it hurt him today. He was hurt last week at Oldham when we did not play well enough to win the game.

"We are man enough to say that but today we should have won but Lady Luck did not shine on us. He cares and it is difficult when you come off a defeat like that when within 10 minutes you are talking to the press and sometimes say the wrong things."

Graham Carey, pushed back to left-back as Liam Ridehalgh was rested along with fellow youngster Arsenal loan striker Benik Afobe, added: "The chairman has his own opinion and we were all disappointed last week. You don't see any of us backing out of physical challenges, we want to win as well. We know what we are capable of doing and we don't need anyone telling us about what we are doing wrong. We have had a good run and we know we will be up for it on Tuesday and play at a higher tempo."

Town struck the bar twice against Exeter and the second half became a schoolyard game of attack and defence but the visitors could not be blamed for their blanket defence approach, having struck in the 36th minute when Richard Duffy raced in unmarked to head home from a rehearsed corner.

The move was almost replicated but Troy Archibald-Henville's header was ruled out for a push on Clarke.

It was Town's lack of drive in that first half – Jordan Rhodes's header from Carey's cross against the bar proving a rare threat – that was to cost them.

They tore forward after the break but often denied each other space to operate, full-backs Carey and Lee Peltier too often filling gaps which Gary Roberts and Anthony Pilkington could have utilised.

Pilkington's return from hamstring trouble had been an unexpected lift but he was given a front-running role alongside Rhodes until half-time when Alan Lee was brought on, Joey Gudjonsson being sacrificed, Scot Arfield moving inside.

Arfield cracked a volley against the top of the far upright late on but fierce shots from the Scotland Under-21, Carey and Pilkington were all beaten away by young goalkeeper Artur Krysiak, whose 6ft 4in frame enabled him to pluck most of the crosses from the heads of Town's strikers.

Huddersfield Town: Bennett, Peltier, Kay (McCombe 84), P Clarke, Carey; Arfield, Gudjonsson (Lee 46), Johnson, Roberts; Pilkington, Rhodes (Afobe 75). Unused substitutes: Smithies, Garner, Ridehalgh, Garner.

Exeter City: Krysiak, Duffy, Taylor, Archibald-Henville; Tully, Sercombe, Dunne, Harley, Golbourne; Dureton (Nardiello 84), Logan (O'Flynn 80). Unused substitutes: Cozic, Edwards, B Jones, Thomson, P Jones.

Referee: N Miller (Co Durham).

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