Stevenage 1
Huddersfield Town 2
League (League One)

Match report written by Neil Metcalfe, The Comet

Stevenage fell to another defeat at the Lamex as Huddersfield Town put their play-off challenge back on track.

First-half goals by Callum Marshall and Nigel Lonwijk came either side of a Brandon Hanlan strike, and all inside the opening 24 minutes.

Most of the chances in the second period fell to the visitors and although Boro hit the bar in the closing minute, it was the Terriers who won 2-1.

It was a game the hosts could have won, a game they definitely should have drawn at least, but also one they weren't at their best at.

Improvement will be needed as they head to Cambridge United on Tuesday.

Stevenage kept the same side that had won 1-0 away to Shrewsbury Town, the only change coming on the bench as Dan Butler returned for the first time in 2025, a head injury sustained in late December keeping him out in the meantime.

He replaced youngster Ryan Doherty

With the sun out, and coming off the back of the 1-0 win at Salop, the mood around the Lamex was fairly upbeat.

It took three minutes for the Terriers to turn that and while it wasn't exactly a catalogue of errors, it wasn't great defending.

Dan Sweeney did not deal with a high ball and then when it was pushed left for Ruben Roosken, Nick Freeman did not get close enough.

He was then able to shovel it in from the left and Marshall tapped in.

It should have been 2-0 five minutes later when the Boro defence melted away from Josh Koroma on the edge of the box.

That gave him time to pick his spot but Murphy Cooper kept his eye on it too, diving to his left to push it away from the base of his post.

But if the defence had not been great up to that point, Hanlan pulled them out of the muck with a lovely finish.

He had looked second best to get to a Louis Thompson ball forward but great strength saw him get ahead of Lonwijk and running in on goal.

He reached the six-yard box and seemingly only had the gap between the keeper's legs to aim for.

However, he spotted a gap high over the keeper's left shoulder and he blasted it into the roof of the net.

It was then Boro's turn to spurn a glorious opening to score a second.

A one-two got Kyle Edwards into space on the right of the box and he played a first time cross.

If you were being kind to Dan Kemp you could say the delivery was off the ground and slightly too hard.

In truth though the top scorer met it unmarked in the six-yard box and with the side of his foot. He should have burst the net but it screwed wide, and well wide at that.

And Boro were punished for it when Town went in front again on 24 minutes.

It was a simple goal too that perhaps Boro could have defended better but was still executed well.

A corner from the left by Antony Evans was sent high to the back post and the only man coming in on it was Lonwijk who got a running jump on Lewis Freestone to head home.

If you wanted a sign that it wasn't going to be Boro's day, you got it when a similar situation saw Jordan Roberts head straight at Lee Nicholls.

Boro had looked a little off the pace throughout the half, but there was still a feeling they could get at the visitors, perhaps with a tactical switch.

That would eventually come on the hour as Butler and Jamie Reid came on, making a switch to a back three with wing backs.

That was probably hastened by the fact Cooper produced a wonderful double save, the first leaping to his right to scoop a Marshall header away at full stretch.

He then blocked the rebound as the Boro defence scrambled to recover.

It was still Huddersfield though who were having the chances after the formation change.

Marshall beat the offside trap and rolled it past Cooper but millimetres the wrong side of the post and into the side netting.

Carl Piergianni then had to nick the ball off Marshall toes as he prepared to set himself for a shot.

Reid did have a chance that Nicholls stopped at his near post but the Boro sub was off balance and running away from goal when he had the effort, meaning he couldn't get the power in the shot.

It was soon followed by a drive from Sweeney that the keeper pushed behind but time was running out for Boro.

And there wasn't really a moment where it looked like they would conjure something, even if Reid hit the crossbar in the last minute, limping to a defeat in what was a winnable game.