Mark Fotheringham proud of Huddersfield Town's youngsters at absences mount at Championship club

With Tino Anjorin recovering from glandular fever, Tom Lees contracting Covid-19 on the morning of Wednesday's 2-0 defeat to Sunderland and Sorba Thomas suspended for his fifth booking of the season, it is not just injuries causing the Terriers problems.

But there are plenty of them too, with Ollie Turton, Matty Pearson, Jonathan Hogg and Tyreece Simpson in the treatment room. Yuta Nakayama and Ben Jackson were stretchered off, Nakayama the day after making Japan's World Cup squad.

It meant the average age of the side which finished the game was under 25, even with 30-somethings Lee Nicholls and Danny Ward on.

"The young lads are stepping up, they're not hiding and they're playing without fear," said Fotheringham, who gave 18-year-old Brodie Spencer a full debut and fielded fellow teenagers Brahima Diarra and Etienne Camara.

"We know the club's all about young players.

"We're disappointed with the result but I've got to be proud of the young lads. Every week it feels someone else is making their debut.

"We are relentless in the training and the group that doesn't start in the game are always out there doing extras and they're very focused and disciplined in everything they do. That's why when they come in, they perform well."

The midweek results sent Huddersfield back to the bottom of the Championship and their next games are at seoncd-placed Blackburn Rovers and fourth-placed Queens Park Rangers.

"It's a tough game playing teams at the top of the table just like last week with Millwall, they were the in-form team team and we won against them," argued Fotheringham.

"We know we're missing key personnel and it has been the case since I came onto the building but I've been working really hard with the guys who've not been involved and they're putting in really solid performances.

"They deserve to be in the team and on another day if we'd taken our chances, we should have won that game.”