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| 1995–96 season | |
|---|---|
| Chairman | Geoffrey Headey |
| Manager | Brian Horton |
| Stadium | Kirklees Stadium |
| Division One | 8th |
| FA Cup | Fifth round (knocked out byWimbledon) |
| League Cup | Second round (knocked out byBarnsley) |
| Top goalscorer | League:Andy Booth (16) All: Andy Booth (21) |
| Highest home attendance | 17,878 vsDerby County (26 December 1995) |
| Lowest home attendance | 5,094 vsPort Vale (15 August 1995) |
| Average home league attendance | 13,151 |
| Biggest win | 3–0 vsBarnsley (12 September 1995) 4–1 vsWest Bromwich Albion (16 December 1995) 3–0 vsCrystal Palace (24 February 1996) |
| Biggest defeat | 0–4 vsBarnsley (3 October 1995) |
Huddersfield Town's 1995–96 campaign was Town's first season in the second tier since the1987–88 season. They finished in 8th place, just 8 points and 2 places below the play-offs.
The closed season saw the departure of the hugely successful strike partnership ofAndy Booth andRonnie Jepson, whose goals had been vital to Huddersfield's success in the previous two seasons. Booth left forPremier League clubSheffield Wednesday in a club record £2.7 million deal while Jepson left to 2nd DivisionBury on a free transfer. Horton invested the money in the prolificBristol Rovers strikerMarcus Stewart (for a club record £1.2 million),Barnsley'sAndy Payton (£350,000) andBlackpool defenderAndy Morrison (£500,000).
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Following Town's promotion the previous season, many were surprised that managerNeil Warnock resigned to become manager ofPlymouth Argyle. A few days later, the ex-Manchester City andOxford United managerBrian Horton was hired as his replacement. They had a bad start to the season, losing 3–0 to local rivalsOldham Athletic atBoundary Park, but they managed to recover with convincing wins againstWatford,Birmingham City,Charlton Athletic andIpswich Town soon set Town players and fans alight.
Town did have a good middle part of the season, going on a run of only 2 losses in 19 league games losing only toPort Vale and eventual championsDerby County. They also put on a good run in theFA Cup, which saw them reach the last 16 for the first time since the1971–72 season. They eventually lost in a replay toPremier League sideWimbledon, having been seconds away from knocking them out in the original tie, only forEfan Ekoku to score a 93rd-minute equaliser for the Dons.
Town seemed to be on course for a play-off spot, but the end of the season saw Town lose 8 of their last 13 games, winning only 3 of them. They finished in 8th place, but a better end to the season might have seen Town get nearer to the play-offs for thePremier League.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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| Date | Opponents | Home/ Away | Result F – A | Scorers | Attendance | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 August 1995 | Oldham Athletic | A | 0–3 | 10,259 | 24th | |
| 19 August 1995 | Watford | H | 1–0 | Jepson | 10,556 | 18th |
| 26 August 1995 | Tranmere Rovers | A | 1–3 | Cowan | 9,072 | 19th |
| 30 August 1995 | Birmingham City | H | 4–2 | Dalton (2), Jepson, Bullock | 12,305 | 11th |
| 2 September 1995 | Charlton Athletic | A | 1–2 | Booth | 9,570 | 12th |
| 9 September 1995 | Ipswich Town | H | 2–1 | Collins,Sedgley (og) | 12,057 | 10th |
| 12 September 1995 | Barnsley | H | 3–0 | Jepson, Collins, Booth | 14,635 | 3rd |
| 16 September 1995 | Crystal Palace | A | 0–0 | 15,645 | 5th | |
| 24 September 1995 | Sheffield United | H | 1–2 | Jepson | 12,840 | 10th |
| 30 September 1995 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 2–1 | Cowan, Booth | 15,945 | 5th |
| 7 October 1995 | Port Vale | H | 0–2 | 11,559 | 9th | |
| 14 October 1995 | Reading | A | 1–3 | Booth | 8,534 | 14th |
| 21 October 1995 | Sunderland | H | 1–1 | Booth | 16,054 | 11th |
| 28 October 1995 | Southend United | A | 0–0 | 5,128 | 13th | |
| 4 November 1995 | Norwich City | H | 3–2 | Jepson, Jenkins, Dalton | 13,747 | 9th |
| 11 November 1995 | Portsmouth | A | 1–1 | Scully | 6,876 | 11th |
| 18 November 1995 | Millwall | A | 0–0 | 9,402 | 12th | |
| 21 November 1995 | Leicester City | H | 3–1 | Bullock (2), Dalton | 14,300 | 10th |
| 25 November 1995 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | 2–1 | Booth, Dalton | 16,423 | 8th |
| 2 December 1995 | Port Vale | A | 0–1 | 7,701 | 11th | |
| 9 December 1995 | Sheffield United | A | 2–0 | Booth, Bullock | 12,126 | 10th |
| 16 December 1995 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 4–1 | Turner, Jepson (2), Booth | 12,664 | 4th |
| 23 December 1995 | Luton Town | A | 2–2 | Booth, Makel | 7,076 | 5th |
| 26 December 1995 | Derby County | H | 0–1 | 17,878 | 7th | |
| 30 December 1995 | Stoke City | H | 1–1 | Prudhoe (og) | 15,071 | 6th |
| 1 January 1996 | Grimsby Town | A | 1–1 | Jepson (pen) | 7,524 | 4th |
| 13 January 1996 | Watford | A | 1–0 | Bullock | 7,568 | 2nd |
| 20 January 1996 | Oldham Athletic | H | 0–0 | 13,013 | 3rd | |
| 3 February 1996 | Tranmere Rovers | H | 1–0 | Collins | 12,041 | 3rd |
| 20 February 1996 | Charlton Athletic | H | 2–2 | Booth, Rowe | 10,951 | 4th |
| 24 February 1996 | Crystal Palace | H | 3–0 | Booth, Jepson (pen), Makel | 13,041 | 4th |
| 2 March 1996 | Derby County | A | 2–3 | Booth, Thornley | 17,097 | 5th |
| 9 March 1996 | Luton Town | H | 1–0 | Edwards | 11,950 | 6th |
| 12 March 1996 | Birmingham City | A | 0–2 | 15,296 | 6th | |
| 16 March 1996 | Stoke City | A | 1–1 | Edwards | 13,157 | 6th |
| 19 March 1996 | Barnsley | A | 0–3 | 10,660 | 7th | |
| 24 March 1996 | Grimsby Town | H | 1–3 | Jepson | 12,090 | 7th |
| 30 March 1996 | Sunderland | A | 2–3 | Edwards, Booth | 20,130 | 8th |
| 2 April 1996 | Reading | H | 3–1 | Edwards (2), Booth | 11,828 | 6th |
| 6 April 1996 | Southend United | H | 3–1 | Jepson, Edwards, Booth | 11,558 | 6th |
| 8 April 1996 | Norwich City | A | 0–2 | 13,021 | 6th | |
| 13 April 1996 | Millwall | H | 3–0 | Jepson (pen), Edwards, Booth | 11,206 | 6th |
| 20 April 1996 | Leicester City | A | 1–2 | Bullock | 17,619 | 8th |
| 27 April 1996 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 0–0 | 25,290 | 8th | |
| 1 May 1996 | Ipswich Town | A | 1–2 | Thornley | 17,473 | 8th |
| 5 May 1996 | Portsmouth | H | 0–1 | 14,091 | 8th |
| Date | Round | Opponents | Home/ Away | Result F – A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 January 1996 | Round 3 | Blackpool | H | 2–1 | Jepson (2, 1 pen) | 12,424 |
| 6 February 1996 | Round 4 | Peterborough United | H | 2–0 | Bullock, Booth | 11,629 |
| 17 February 1996 | Round 5 | Wimbledon | H | 2–2 | Rowe, Cowan | 17,167 |
| 28 February 1996 | Round 5 Replay | Wimbledon | A | 1–3 | Booth | 7,015 |
| Date | Round | Opponents | Home/ Away | Result F – A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 August 1995 | Round 1 1st Leg | Port Vale | H | 1–2 | Dalton | 5,363 |
| 22 August 1995 | Round 1 2nd Leg | Port Vale | A | 3–1 | Bullock, Booth (2) | 4,380
|
| 19 September 1995 | Round 2 1st Leg | Barnsley | H | 2–0 | Collins, Booth | 8,264 |
| 3 October 1995 | Round 2 2nd Leg | Barnsley | A | 0–4 | 8,192
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| Name | Nationality | Position | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Simon Baldry |  England | MF | 3 (11) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 3 (12) | 0 |
| Andy Booth | England | FW | 43 | 16 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 51 | 21 |
| Kenny Brown | England | DF | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Darren Bullock | England | MF | 42 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 50 | 8 |
| Simon Collins | England | DF | 18 (12) | 3 | 1 (2) | 0 | 4 | 1 | 23 (14) | 4 |
| Tom Cowan |  Scotland | DF | 43 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 51 | 3 |
| Gary Crosby | England | MF | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 (1) | 0 |
| Paul Dalton | England | MF | 29 | 5 | 3 (1) | 0 | 4 | 1 | 36 (1) | 6 |
| Iain Dunn | England | FW | 3 (11) | 0 | 1 (1) | 0 | 1 (2) | 0 | 5 (14) | 0 |
| Lee Duxbury | England | MF | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Jon Dyson | England | DF | 15 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 17 (2) | 0 |
| Rob Edwards | England | MF | 13 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 7 |
| Steve Francis | England | GK | 43 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 50 | 0 |
| Kevin Gray | England | DF | 38 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 43 | 0 |
| Steve Jenkins |  Wales | DF | 31 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 1 |
| Ronnie Jepson | England | FW | 40 (3) | 12 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 45 (3) | 14 |
| Richard Logan | England | MF | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Lee Makel | England | MF | 33 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 2 |
| Tony Norman | Wales | GK | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Paul Reid | England | MF | 8 (5) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 12 (5) | 0 |
| Rodney Rowe | England | FW | 6 (8) | 1 | 3 (1) | 1 | 0 (1) | 0 | 9 (10) | 2 |
| Pat Scully |  Republic of Ireland | DF | 25 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 28 | 1 |
| Lee Sinnott | England | DF | 32 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 40 | 0 |
| Ben Thornley | England | MF | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 2 |
| Simon Trevitt | England | DF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Andy Turner | England | MF | 2 (3) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 (3) | 1 |
| Mark Ward | England | FW | 7 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 (1) | 0 |
| Jon Whitney | England | DF | 3 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 3 (2) | 0 |