Huddersfield Town 3 Wycombe Wanderers 3: Terriers see League One play-off hopes dented in agonising fashion
Huddersfield Town’s hopes of gatecrashing the League One play-offs were dented as they had to settle for a 3-3 draw with Wycombe Wanderers.
Shoddy defending allowed the visitors, led by ex-Huddersfield boss Michael Duff, to open the scoring via Nathan Lowe.
However, a thunderbolt of a strike from Ryan Ledson levelled proceedings before Marcus Harness poked home a second with 15 minutes of normal time remaining.
There were twists aplenty in the dying embers, with three goals scored beyond the 90th minute. Connor Taylor levelled proceeding for the Chairboys before a cool finish from Harness restored the home advantage.
The final twist came 11 minutes into stoppage time, when Lowe struck late to break Huddersfield hearts.
First half
Huddersfield started positively, shifting Wycombe onto the back foot almost immediately. Sean Roughan launched a long throw into the box early on and although the visitors could not clear their lines, Huddersfield could not capitalise.
Wycombe were again stationary when Lynden Gooch whipped a cross in yet and found Radinio Balker, who directed his header wide as he tangled with Taylor Allen.
The first flicker from the Chairboys came after eight minutes, when Andre Vidigal was sent away down the left. He looked to test Lee Nicholls from a tight angle but an excellent recovery challenge from Lynden Gooch ensured the ball struck the side-netting.
A scrappy spell ensued but Huddersfield soon regained their control of the affair. Bali Mumba jinked his way inside from the left and saw a shot blocked before Ryan Ledson unleashed a piledriver that whistled over the crossbar.
Wycombe continued to look vulnerable when crosses came in, with yellow shirts slow to react. Gooch fizzed a ball across the face of goal and fortunately for the Chairboys, the Terriers were just as slow to move.
Huddersfield’s right wing-back also dropped a corner delivery on to the head of Bojan Radulovic, who could not convert from close range.
Pressure continued to mount on the visitors, who could not seem to stem the flow of Huddersfield attacks. Gooch had been the provider-in-chief but gave himself a chance when he found a pocket a space outside Wycombe’s box. He put his left laces through the ball with considerable venom and drew a stunning save from Will Norris.
Having soaked up plenty of pressure, Wycombe bit back to take the lead against the run of play.
Nathan Lowe spearheaded a one-man counter-attack, shrugging off Bali Mumba before keeping his cool to slot past Lee Nicholls. Mumba had been left one-on-one with Nicholls and was simply outbattled, deciding against a professional foul and eventually losing his footing as Lowe marched from his own half towards goal.
Having lacked decisiveness with their defending, hesitancy was then Huddersfield’s undoing at the other end. Alfie May latched on to a beautifully floated pass from Sean Roughan, initially bring the ball down in a mesmerisingly smooth manner. He looked to round Norris but took it too wide, surrendering his chance to test the goalkeeper.
The frontman eventually pulled back for an arriving Mumba, who rifled into a sea of recovering Wycombe bodies.
Both sides probed as half-time approached and the pendulum continued to swing and forth until the whistle eventually blew.
Second half
Huddersfield wasted little time returning to the ascendency and did not have to wait long for their equaliser.
May headed in the direction of Harness, who let the ball go across his body with Ledson lurking over his shoulder. Huddersfield’s captain could not have caught the bouncing ball any sweeter and blasted it into the top corner from just outside the box.
A buzz was back in the Accu Stadium but the hosts were almost punished for napping at the back. Vidigal was threaded through on goal by a defence-splitting pass and Nicholls had to be brave to dive at the forward’s feet and collect.
It was the goalkeeper’s last contribution to the game as he was soon forced off with an injury and replaced by Jak Alnwick.
Huddersfield kept knocking on the door in the final third, desperate for a second goal to keep their season alive.
Harness slipped in behind Wycombe’s defence and pulled the trigger, watching Norris beat his effort away.
May then had the Chairboys defenders scrambling to clear after prodding the ball back across goal, which they managed to do before Radulovic could pounce.
Huddersfield’s persistence was eventually rewarded, when Harness poked home the second goal they craved. May’s shot was deflected towards the back post, where the unmarked attacking midfielder was on-hand to finish.
Huddersfield were pegged back late on by Taylor, who leapt to meet a corner delivery and head across Alnwick. Harness then stepped up to restore the home advantage with a low drive into the bottom corner, transforming the mood inside the ground.
The home faithful were hoping they had witnessed the final twist in the tale, but they had not. Bradley Fink headed a Luke Harris cross towards Lowe, who steered home a header from mere yards out to salvage a point for the visitors.