Bradley volley keeps Luton in the hunt

One leg down, one to go and one team will reach the Championship play-off final on May 29. After an exhilarating encounter, Luton Town and Huddersfield Town are level on both goals and expectation ahead of Monday’s second leg, although the visitors may yet rue failing to turn dominance into a win.

“We haven’t lost the game and that’s important,” Nathan Jones, the Luton manager, said. “We were electric in the first half. In the second they frustrated us, but we learned to deal with it. If we didn’t think we could win, we might as well save on the hotel bills.”

A non-league team as recently as 2014, and with a budget still akin to that level, Luton’s eye-catching rise may not have plateaued, but Huddersfield, who ended the season three places and seven points ahead of them after finishing 20th last term, have their tale to tell, too.

“A positive step,” Carlos Corberan, their head coach, said. “But they were adapting to our dominance, and we need to find new solutions.”

Huddersfield might have had a penalty in the first 20 seconds when Harry Toffolo was swatted by James Bree, but were ahead after 12 minutes when Toffolo took advantage of Kal Naismith’s stumble to feed Danel Sinani. There was still much for the Luxembourg striker to do, but he drew Sonny Bradley wide and slotted past Matt Ingram.

But then Naismith whipped in a free-kick straight to Bradley, who volleyed home his first goal of 2022 to leave all to play for on Monday.

Luton (3-1-4-2) Ingram; Burke (Hylton 80), Bradley, Naismith; Lansbury (Lockyer 67); Bree, Campbell, Clark, Bell; Jerome (Snodgrass 90+1), Cornick. Subs Isted (g), Potts, Mendes Gomes, Kioso. Booked Naismith.

Huddersfield (3-4-3) Nicholls; Lees, Hogg, Sarr; Turton (Pipa h-t), Russell, O’brien, Toffolo; Sinani (Thomas 85), Ward (Rhodes 71), Holmes. Subs Blackman (g), Anjorin, Colwill, Eiting. Booked Rhodes.

Referee Robert Jones (Merseyside).