Huddersfield Town loan midfielder on swapping safety for survival at Harrogate

The midfielder, 21, is one of four Huddersfield Town loanees at the League Two club.

They find themselves pitted into something which, given results of late, looks highly to be a fight for Football League survival until the spring for the Sulphurities.

It's tough, but character-building and the strongest survive and prosper all the same.

Austerfield, in his second spell at Harrogate, said: "It is very different. I have gone from a B team changing room at Huddersfield where you are not playing for very much to a first-team dressing room where every three points is massive. It is kind of what I was looking for.

"You go from somewhere where you are always playing to a first team when you are not necessarily first choice and I had to bide my time at first and I did not play much to begin with.

"Now I am a more important part of the team which is what I want, but it is not as easy as people think it is, going into a first-team dressing room.

"In the league, you realise how important every three points is and enjoyment of that winning feeling going into every Sunday morning, there is no better feeling.

"Obviously, when you lose, you are lucky that there's a game not too far away in a sense."

Austerfield and his team-mates had a hard time last time out when Town were dumped out of the FA Cup by Hartlepool, with Simon Weaver’s side returning to league matters at another struggler in Rochdale on Saturday.

The loanee came off early in the second half and was replaced by defender Rory McArdle, one of several senior Harrogate professionals whose experience is proving invaluable for young professionals such as Austerfield.

He added: "Rory is excellent. I shared a room with him at Forest Green last season and just that night itself was a great experience to learn from.

"There's a lot of 'top lads' here. They are a good laugh off the pitch, but if you need anything a bit serious, they are there for you and on it, they will talk you through it."