Know Your Enemies: Huddersfield Town

Hudderfield Town FC was founded in 1908, and impressively earned a spot in the Football League just three years later. A runners up performance in the second tier in 1919-20 was enough to secure top-flight football, where they would stay until 1952.

The Terriers would lift their first trophy—an FA Cup triumph—in 1922, and then go on to become a dominant side English football for the next decade or so. From 1923-26, Huddersfield Town became the first team in England to win three consecutive top flight titles (a feat only matched, but never bettered by Liverpool, Arsenal, and some Manchester team). In the subsequent eight seasons, Huddersfield would finish runners up in the league three additional times (1926-27, 1927-28, and 1933-34). It was, to say the least, a high water mark for a club that would struggle massively in the post-war years.

They would never reach such lofty ambitions ever again.

Although the Terriers bounced straight back into the top flight after relegation in 1951-52, they would once again be relegated just three seasons later in 1956. And in the 61 years since, they only enjoyed two seasons (1970-72) of top tier football. For a team that could once legitimately be considered an English powerhouse, the recent decades have not been kind to them.

As was common for teams shortly after their founding, Huddersfield experimented with a variety of kit combinations before settling on the tried and true blue and white stripes (with WHITE shorts and socks, not to be confused with Brighton and Hove Albion’s blue and white stripes with BLUE shorts and socks, duh). For stretches here and there, the team has been known to roll out all-blue shirts, blue and white shirts with red piping, and in recent years black socks. One very early variation was a salmon pink kit. It may very well have been hideous (trust me, I searched whole seconds for a photo), but I think we can all agree that there are not enough salmon pink kits in the footballing world.

Their nickname, “The Terriers,” was a fairly late addition to the club, adopted in the 1969-70 season. From what I’ve been able to glean, it appeared to be a board decision for marketing purposes. Regardless, the name stuck, and a terrier now appears on the badge, sitting atop the Huddersfield coat of arms, just like a good boy. A very good boy.

When not playing Liverpool, there are several reasons to root for Huddersfield. Of course, current manager David Wagner is BFFs with Jurgen Klopp. Also, Huddersfield employed a little-known manager named Bill Shankly from 1956-59. You know, before he changed footballing forever. And finally, Patrick Stewart is a supporter.

Liverpool will host Huddersfield Town on October 28th, with the reverse fixture taking place January 30th.