Huddersfield Town 2 Rotherham United 0: Terriers find home comforts to see off Millers

After Ishmael Miller had ended a personal scoring drought stretching back eight months and 22 games in a Terriers shirt, the near immediate response of those sitting in the ‘home’ half of the South Stand was to chant, ‘He’s Ishmael Miller, he scores when he wants’.

It was, of course, meant in a light-hearted and affectionate manner. And those of a Huddersfield persuasion in the 12,763 crowd could afford such jocularity after seeing a four-game losing run at the John Smith’s Stadium come to an end.

Miller’s second-half strike together with a stunning strike from Mustapha Carayol just after the half-hour mark meant David Wagner had his first home win as Town head coach.

It also provided further breathing space on a bottom three that includes Rotherham United, who improved hugely after a woeful first-half showing.

What Neil Redfearn’s men lacked, however, was a cutting edge up front. When the all-Yorkshire clash was still goalless, Danny Ward wasted a glorious early chance and then, when the Millers were firmly in the ascendancy for a sustained period after the break, the visitors proved similarly profligate in front of goal.

It meant a frustrating trip home for the 1,665 visiting fans, who had to endure their Huddersfield counterparts gloating at the final whistle with chants of ‘you’re going down with the Bolton’.

The Town supporters housed in the South Stand had begun the evening waving the sort of giant flags that have made Borussia Dortmund’s end of the same name one of European football’s most famously raucous – the hope among the locals being that their side could be similarly inspired on the field.

Initially, that was the case as the ‘gegenpressing’ approach imported from Germany by former Dortmund coach Wagner brought a flurry of early chances.

Carayol had the first of those openings but his shot on 60 seconds was deflected narrowly wide before Sean Scannell and Ben Chilwell both fired into the side netting. That initial frantic early pace couldn’t last but, after a spell when the game hit a lull, Town sparked proceedings into life in sparkling fashion just after the half-hour.

Collecting the ball 30 yards from goal, Carayol took one touch before unleashing a shot that swerved mercilessly in the air to leave Lee Camp clutching at fresh air as the ball flew into the net.

It was the first time Huddersfield had been ahead at home in almost two months.

The Millers, however, could and really should have opened the scoring themselves with Danny Ward wasting a great opportunity on seven minutes when played in behind the home defence by an incisive pass. But the former Terriers wideman took a second too long to allow Joel Lynch to slide in to make a goal-saving tackle.

That, though, was the only time Huddersfield’s goal came under any genuine threat and it was difficult to argue against Wagner’s men deserving their advantage at the interval. It could, in fact, have been a two-goal lead with Harry Bunn only able to fire tamely at Camp in stoppage time after being played in by Carayol.

The Millers received a let-off in that instance and for the first 25 or so minutes of the second half the visitors threatened to capitalise.

Displaying the urgency and commitment that had been so lacking in the first half, Rotherham put the hosts under immense pressure.

Grant Ward was the first to threaten following a mistake by Ben Chilwell, the loanee from Leicester City who was watched by a host of Premier League scouts last night, but his cross was cut out by the alert Mark Hudson.

Lynch then had to react smartly to block a Danny Ward effort flick before it was Jed Steer’s turn to rescue the Terriers.

The loanee goalkeeper brilliantly kept out Joe Newell with his right leg after the Millers’ man had beaten two Huddersfield defenders as referee Mark Brown played an excellent advantage.

It seemed merely a matter of time before the equaliser arrived but then, out of very little, Town doubled their advantage on 73 minutes as Miller scampered clear and drilled past Camp.

Clarke-Harris almost replied straight away but his shot struck a post as if to underline that it just wasn’t going to be the Millers’ night.

It meant Huddersfield’s domination of this fixture continued, those goals in each half from Miller and Carayol meaning the West Yorkshire outfit have beaten the Millers on 12 of their last 14 league visits to the town.

Huddersfield Town: Steer; Smith, Hudson, Lynch, Chilwell; Hogg, Holmes (Paterson 71); Scannell (Lolley 59), Bunn, Carayol; Wells (Miller 46). Unused substitutes: Allinson, Davidson, Wallace, Dempsey.

Rotherham United: Camp; Buxton, Broadfoot, Collins, Mattock; G Ward, Frecklington, Smallwood (Derbyshire 76), Newell (Hyam 74), D Ward; Clarke-Harris. Unused substitutes: Collin, Green, Thorpe, Andreu, Toffolo.

Referee: M Brown (East Yorkshire).