0 ................... TOWN

“From the set-up and the tactical point of view I have to raise my hands; with our set-up, we couldn’t compete,” the Town boss said.

“But my players also know they weren’t good enough – they have to raise their hands and say they made mistakes with the ball in the first half and a little bit in the second as well.

“We weren’t good enough today and deserved the defeat – we have to accept it, move forwards and focus on the next six really important games in front of us.”

The defeat, a third in four league games, leaves the side consigned to a play-off battle – currently seven points clear of seventh place Fulham FC but a massive ten points behind Newcastle United in the automatic promotion hunt.

“We and a few other teams are playing for the play-offs, this isn’t a secret and we’ve been doing it for the last three months.

“We have to make sure we perform well and collect points; the race for the play-off places is still underway and we are prepared.

“We will do everything to occupy one of these play-off places at the end of the season, but for this we have to play better than we did today.”

The 2-0 SkyBet Championship defeat at Forest may be a blow to Huddersfield Town’s automatic promotion hopes but the weekend was not all doom and gloom.

Despite the loss at the City Ground, David Wagner’s side are guaranteed a top 10 finish.

As well as the weekend fixtures witnessing fellow promotion rivals Reading humiliated 7-1 by Norwich City at Carrow Road, it also saw Burton Albion hold Aston Villa at the Pirelli Stadium.

And that 1-1 draw means 11th place Villa are now 16 points behind Town in the league table with a maximum of 15 points still to play for.

Of course, with Town currently third in the table, expectations are now a lot higher with a top six finish the primary objective in order to seal a place in the end of season lottery which is the play-offs.

But after finishing last season in 19th place, a top 10 finish would have been a realistic target at the start of the current campaign.

It is the highest league finish the club has achieved since the 1999-2000 campaign when Steve Bruce guided the club to eighth position in the then known as First Division.

Coincidentally, the points total of 74 that year is also the same number of points Wagner’s men currently have this term.

So, while everyone connected with Town are now hoping for a higher placing than tenth, it’s important to remember where the club have come from and what they have already achieved.