Town fans keen for a clean slate for next season
out the season, they could well go into the final day of the season with an injury list of just three senior players: Oumar Niasse, Christopher Schindler and Danny Grant. Of those three, only Grant is currently contracted for next season.
The last thing they need is for anyone else to add to that, and although Corberan insisted at his press conference that he is not going to ring the changes for tomorrow’s game and it remains a hugely important match for his side, the reality is Town are so close to safety that it would surely not be worth risking any players whose fitness is at all in doubt.
Town already have a thin enough confirmed squad for next season as it stands without suffering any further setbacks, and getting through the next two games without any major injuries could be absolutely critical going into a very difficult summer.
THIS is, remarkably, Coventry City’s first visit to the John Smith’s Stadium. The last time the Terriers hosted them was at Leeds Road in the League Cup all the way back in August 1977.
There will be a familiar face in the opposition dugout, though, with Mark Robins coming back to his former club, who he joined from Coventry in February 2013.
The last time the former Town boss was at this ground it was for Town’s 4-0 defeat to Bournemouth on the opening day of the 2014/15 season, when current Town man Tommy Elphick set up the first of two Callum Wilson goals. Jonathan Hogg and Danny Ward were both in the starting line-up for Town that day.
Robins said after the game: “It’s still early days and we dump this result in the waste bin and move on.” The board felt it was the manager who needed consigning to the scrap heap, though, with Robins sacked the following day.
Corboran and Toffolo insist the players are determined to give fans something to feel
good about
HUDDERSFIELD Town fans would hold on to just five of the 15 players whose contracts are set to expire this summer.
Just two of those have received a strong majority in our poll of hundreds of Terriers fans, however, which makes clear once again just what a daunting task the recruitment team face as we head into the summer.
We gave our views on the players whose deals are coming to an end and asked you to give yours too.
Here’s what you would have decided if you were in charge of handing out contracts.
TERRIERS fans have come out with a strong show of support for two players.
Over 95 per cent of fans would get midfielder Alex Vallejo signed up for the new season after a series of assured performances in both defence and especially in midfield since emerging as a starting option in January.
Carlos Corberan’s side have missed Vallejo’s composure and eye for a pass over the last few games while he has been recovering from a concussion.
Supporters also like what little they have seen from Romoney Crichlow – 78pc would be in favour of a new deal for the 21-year-old centre-back, whose last first-team appearance came away to Watford in January.
IT’S a somewhat longer list on this side of the ledger as far as Town fans are concerned.
Alex Pritchard received 96pc release votes and Richard Keogh is not far off with 95pc.
You could make an entire defence out of the list of players the fans would let go, in fact, with Tommy Elphick (89pc release), Richard Stearman (82pc), Jaden Brown (82pc) and Demeaco Duhaney (75pc) all failing to make the supporters’ retained list.
Joining them out the door if the fans had their way would be Juninho Bacuna (70pc) and two recent signings, striker Yaya Sanogo (63pc) and back-up goalkeeper Jayson Leutwiler (63pc) – despite the fact the
FRAIZER Campbell and Christopher Schindler are the two most divisive players in the whole poll with fans just barely coming down on the ‘keep’ side for both.
Campbell actually fared slightly better than the skipper: 52pc would retain the striker’s services for another year, with 51pc coming out in Schindler’s favour.
There is also a narrow decision for Oumar Niasse, who 57pc of fans would like to see in action next season after he suffered an injury shortly after signing as a free agent in March.
Isaac Mbenza has enjoyed a better season than anyone would have hoped last summer but his form has dipped recently – perhaps owing partly to a groin injury he has had to play through – and just over 60pc of fans would let him go.