MATCH ABANDONED AT BLACKPOOL
Huddersfield Town’s 2014/15 Sky Bet Championship season ended on a strange note as the match at Blackpool was abandoned early in the second-half as Blackpool fans protested on the pitch.
The game was goalless as the second-half started, but barely three minutes in the home fans invaded the pitch and never left, leading referee Mick Russell no option but to abandon the game.
What happens next in terms of the fixture and points was unclear at Bloomfield Road.
On the sticky Bloomfield Road pitch it was always unlikely to be a classic passing performance, but the Terriers still created more than enough chances to be ahead at the interval.
The first came within the first 60 seconds when, from kick-off, Joe Lolley – given a first start in nine games after his goal from the bench against Blackburn the previous weekend – found the overlapping Tommy Smith on the right and he found James Vaughan with his low cross, only for the striker to miscue his shot badly wide.
Mark Hudson then headed a Butterfield corner narrowly over the bar before the best chance of the half fell Town’s way just before the 20 minute mark. Lolley drove at Blackpool’s defence down the right and played a one-two with Vaughan to break into the penalty area. His final touch took him a bit close to goalkeeper Ell Parish and he saved his low effort before recovering brilliantly to block the follow-up effort from Ishmael Miller.
The impressive Oscar Gobern, starting a sixth consecutive game for the first time in over two years and benefiting from it, tested Parish again barely a minute later with a stinging long-range drive that the custodian had to push around the post. From Butterfield’s resulting corner, Joel Lynch’s header bounced agonisingly wide of the far post.
Smith and Conor Coady both hit good low crosses across the face of goal without anyone getting a touch as the Terriers continued to make the running.
Miller was impressive on his return to Bloomfield Road – he switched between the two clubs in the January window – and he created a chance on his own in the 32nd minute. Drifting over to the right, he collected the ball before rolling inside defender Darren O’Dea and powering a 20 yard drive just over the crossbar.
Blackpool’s best chance of the half came through former Town Player of the Year and Captain Peter Clarke. He got a great reception from the Town faithful all game and his uncharacteristic 35 yard drive in the 34th minute forced Alex Smithies across his goal to tip the ball wide at full stretch.
However, just three minutes into the second-half the Blackpool fans made their way onto the pitch and the match never got started.
Town’s team (4-4-2):
Alex Smithies; Reece James, Joel Lynch, Mark Hudson (c), Tommy Smith; Oscar Gobern, Jacob Butterfield, Conor Coady, Joe Lolley; Ishmael Miller, James Vaughan
Unused subs:
Joe Murphy, David Edgar, Sean Scannell, Murray Wallace, Philip Billing, Harry Bunn, William Boyle
