Huddersfield Town

Having skippered his previous three clubs, the imposing centre back was handed the armband on a permanent basis by Manager Chris Powell on Thursday.

“It came as a bit of a surprise, because I didn’t come to Huddersfield with a view to becoming Captain,” Mark admitted to htafc.com.

“The Manager pulled me about a week ago and asked if I would be happy to take the captaincy, so I obviously said I was happy to – it is something I would never turn down. It’s an honour to be named Captain at any club.

“I had a conversation with (previous captain) Lee Peltier and he said he was happy for me to take it on and that he would support me. I thought it was important to clarify it wasn’t something I went after; it was the Manager’s decision. 

“I’m lucky to have the support of the boys. Since the moment I came in they’ve been fantastic, making me feel really welcome and a part of the Club. That’s just what you need when you join a new team.”

Hudson has plenty of experience of skippering sides and believes the key to being a good Captain is to set the standards yourself.

He continued: “I think it’s ensuring you do your job right day to day. I try to lead by example and do as many things as I can correctly, on and off the pitch. I try to be a voice - I’m sure those who have watched me play have noticed me shouting and balling! I also try to leave everything on the pitch, because hopefully that encourages people to follow suit.” 

Hudson led Town on the road in the two games before the recent international break, helping Town climb the table with a win at Wolves and a hard-fought draw at Blackburn Rovers. Whereas many may believe the break came at a bad time after those results, Mark has a different view:

“We can carry the momentum on. People may think that it would have been good to play again, but we welcomed the break as we’ve had a few niggles and we needed time to freshen up our bodies a little bit. 

“It’s given the Manager more time to try and get his ideas across, which is difficult to do in the season. We’ve seen some of that in the different formations we’ve played in different games – I think we’ve taken that on board well – but the block of training sessions we’ve had together has given us the chance to do that.

“It comes down to mentality. We need to keep our standards up and if we do, we’ll maintain our form.”

There has been a tangible improvement in Town’s defensive record since Powell’s arrival, with two clean sheets kept in his six games in charge. 

“I was brought to the Club help defensively and hopefully that is starting to pan out, but there’s a long way to go and a lot of hard work to put in yet. It’s early days,” Mark explained.

“The clean sheet at Blackburn was great; it’s a tough place to go and I don’t see many teams going there and doing that this season. I think Blackburn will kick-on. 

“Clean sheets give us a base for our good attacking players to do their thing. We defend together and we score goals together.” 

Next up for Town are Saturday’s visitors Blackpool, who come into the game on the back of their first win of the 2014/15 Sky Bet Championship season. 

“You can’t underestimate any team in this League, regardless of its position in the table,” Mark explained.

“Blackpool come here on the back of a good win and they’ll be targeting another three points. 

“Sometimes difficult times off the pitch can bring teams together. I watched Blackpool’s win a fortnight ago and they looked like a proper team. 

“We have to focus on ourselves and how we go about our game-plan. We’re looking to get the points. As long as we keep our standards up and keep pushing forwards, we have a great chance of getting the win.

“We have to focus on Saturday’s game; we can’t look any further. We’ll try and stamp our authority on the game.

“Any level of expectancy is something we have to deal with day to day. We put pressure on ourselves to maintain our levels, so we’re focused on doing that and driving each other on.”