Huddersfield Town 2 Stevenage 1: Roberts has contract to thrill in lifting Huddersfield ambitions

Roberts provided the quality otherwise missing from a feisty encounter against a Stevenage side who are a mirror image of manager Graham Westley, a man with an MA degree in company direction but who should also be awarded honours in how to wind up the opposition.

Westley almost came to blows with Halifax Town chief Chris Wilder in a visit to The Shay a few seasons back.

And he was at it again on Saturday, opposite number Lee Clark foolishly getting involved in the touchline antics to such an extent that he squared up to Stevenage coach Dino Maamria, sparking an end-of-match touchline melee, which referee Steven Rushton and fourth official Alan Clayton did little to try to defuse.

By then, the scouts had long gone, including Leeds United’s Malcolm Shotton, who can only have been impressed again by possible target Roberts if the Elland Road club have Scotland’s Robert Snodgrass prised away by a Premier League club in the January transfer window.

Roberts, however, remains hopeful a new deal at the Galpharm can be sorted out, having readjusted his targets for the season.

“My contract is up in the summer but I don’t think about it,” he said.

“It’s not in my mind because I’m playing well and scoring goals.Maybe when it comes to the end of the season and I think I’ve no job in the summer then I’ll think about it.

“You always want to play as high as you can and hopefully it will be at Huddersfield. Hopefully, something will get sorted out but there are a lot of people out of contract at this club in the summer so it’s not just me.

“I would love this club to be in the Championship, it is where we belong.”

Roberts put Town on course to extending their unbeaten League One run to 37 games by scoring the opener a minute before the break, collecting Scott Arfield’s through ball and coolly slotting home as goalkeeper Chris Day rushed out.

“He put it on a plate for me really and I had the simple task of putting it in the goal,” said Roberts of his sixth goal of the season.

“For a midfielder, I want to score 10 goals – I’ve reached around 30 goals in the last three seasons so if you get 10 goals and get 10 assists then you haven’t gone far wrong. This season I’ve scored six early so I might just push that target up a little bit,” added the flank player, whose second-half substitution was booed by the fans.

Refreshingly, Roberts had no complaints, adding: “We’re a squad and it is no problem to me being brought off because I thought I did my job while I was on the pitch. The manager brought fresh legs on in a great player in Danny Ward and I don’t understand why people can’t be happy – if anybody should have been unhappy it would have been me but I saw Danny coming on and he is a big threat and it is a squad game.”

Stevenage had equalised before his departure, having missed a glorious opening when Calum Woods cleared in front of goal after John Mousinho had been presented a clear opening by Phil Edwards’s cut-back after a mistake by Antony Kay.

Mousinho partially atoned by advancing through the middle before playing the ball out to Scott Laird, who drilled a fierce shot from the left which struck the far post before crossing the line.

Mousinho immediately pulled up with cramp to delay the restart yet sprinted into the fray when waved back on.

It was not his final act, however.

Before his crucial involvement again, Town regained the lead when substitute Anton Robinson wriggled and found space on the edge of the area to produce a shot which struck the base of a post to give Lee Novak a simple tap-in for his ninth goal of the season in the 76th minute.

Thirteen minutes later, however, Darius Charles struck a free-kick from near halfway and referee Rushton pointed to the spot as Ronnie Henry took a tumble under pressure from Kay, who should surely have been dismissed rather than booked if it was a foul.

Mousinho, succcesful from the spot in Stevenage’s penalty shootout defeat to Wimbledon in the JP Trophy in midweek, strode up but ballooned his kick over the bar and their hopes had gone.

Although Roberts and Novak got the goals both praised the muscular contribution of Alan Lee, who did more than most to show Town would not be intimidated by the visitors. “Lee Novak is definitely flying at the moment but big Al takes all the knocks and is a massive part of what we do. With Jordan (Scotland Under-21 striker Rhodes) to come back as well we are looking good at the top end of the field,” said Roberts.

Huddersfield Town: Bennett, Hunt, Clarke, Kay, Woods; Arfield (Robinson 63), Johnson, Miller, Roberts (Ward 71); Novak, Lee. Unused substitutes: Colgan, Naysmith, McDermott.

Stevenage: Day, Henry, Bostwick (Ashton 46), Roberts, Laird; Wilson, Edwards, Mousinho, Long (Beardsley 37); Reid (Harrison 77), Charles. Unused substitutes: Julian, Shroot.

Referee: S Rushton (Staffs).