[Lord Snooty]

April 18:

Well yesterday featured a promotion, today we're back to our more usual game of trying to avoid relegation. And on this date in 1998, we did it in style by beating West Bromwich Albion 1-0 at the McAlpine Stadium, with a goal from Simon Baldry.

This was of course, the season known as the Great Escape. That was because by mid October we were bottom of Division One (now known as the Championship) and looking like certainties already for the drop. Brian Horton got sacked and former player Peter Jackson, was persuaded to leave his job as a player for Halifax Town to come and be the next Huddersfield Town manager.

He didn't need much persuading, but he did insist on having his mentor from his days at Bradford City, Terry Yorath, in as his assistant. By the time this game came around, we had just been hammered (again) at Carrow Road, but we started the match knowing that victory today would secure our 2nd tier status for another season.

We did it, and with a couple of games to spare. Which is just as well as we lost them both. It wouldn't have mattered though, the chasing pack never chased that hard and we ended the season in a comfortable looking 16th. The three teams to go down? Reading, Stoke City and........ Manchester City. Yes, Manchester City. Down in the third division.

Anyway, the club made a DVD of the season, with the Great Escape as the theme. Here's Jacko and Taff having a laff in the outtakes.

On this date in 1970, Dick Krzywicki scored against England. It was for Wales in the Home Internationals, at Ninian Park, Cardiff. The Home Internationals, if you're too young to remember, was an annual tournament played between the home nations and this year, they were being played early due to the upcoming World Cup in Mexico, which England had qualified for and wanted to get out there early to acclimatise. That went well, not, with Bobby Moore famously getting arrested.

Straying from the point again. This match was a 1-1 draw. Ryszard Lech Krzywicki, to give him his Sunday name, scored first. Franny Lee equalised for the Three Lions, who at the time were still world champions. No Town player has done what Dicky did since, that is, score against England.

The most recent match on this date was in 2015. As we did in 1998, we finished in the Championship in 16th. No such relegation worries this time. We were well clear by the time this match at home to Derby County came around. We were on the beach in us flip flops, but Derby were still pushing for a Play Off spot, which they failed to do, finishing 8th.

The two points that they dropped in this drawn game at the John McAlpharm Stadium, would've had them finishing 5th had they won. What a shame.

So like I said. It was a draw. But not any old draw. It was a four all draw. You don't get many of them. And little Tom Ince scored twice for the Rams, one more goal than he managed at the JSS as a Town player.

He opened the scoring, but then Oscar Gobern and Mark Hudson made it 2-1 to us. Just before half time, Reece James scored direct from a corner kick to give us a 3-1 lead at the break. They pulled it back to 3-3 before Nahki Wells restored the lead, only for Incey to complete the scoring with still another eleven minutes to go, in what was a nail biting end to the game.

And finally, a happy birthday to David Mirfin, born on this date in Sheffield in 1985 and so is 37 today. He was a centre back who used to pop up with the odd goal in important matches, York away and Lincoln in the Play Offs spring to mind.

He was, of course, one of the Young Guns. Another club DVD we had made.