Huddersfield Town Match Experience

I’m Ethan Blakeman and I’m a first year Sports Journalism student at the University of Huddersfield. The day was Saturday and it was Huddersfield Town v Barnsley at The John Smith's Stadium. I travelled to the match by walking from the University to the Stadium. I set off from the University at 2pm and I arrived at the stadium for 35 minutes before the 3pm kick off. Unfortunately, due to the weather there was no fan zone however there was still plenty to do before kick-off. The first thing I did before even entering the stadium was buying a match programme which is a great read of a great value of £3.50, it is perfect for regular fans and neutrals as it tells the reader everything they need to know before the game. There is a great range of food and drink inside the stadium available at a great value for fans. I was lucky enough to have a great seat in the lower core stand which had a fantastic view of the pitch and had a great atmosphere. The pre-match vibe was fantastic with brilliant exciting music to get the fans excited for the match. The atmosphere certainly built up as time went on with the fans enjoying watching the players from both teams warm up. As the players went back down the tunnel they were applauded by all the fans. Minutes away from kick off the players came back out of the

tunnel ready for the match and the atmosphere was ecstatic as the match was so close now to being underway.

The atmosphere throughout the whole game was fantastic. Two clearly very passionate set of fans desperate for their team to win this exciting Yorkshire derby. Huddersfield were the first team to score in the 30th minute with the scorer being the captain Christopher Schindler leading the home end to erupt with excitement and joy as their team took the lead. The half time score was Huddersfield 1-0 Barnsley. At half time the a lot of fans went to get some food and drink from the wide range that is available. The fans still in their seats were entertained at half time by the substitutes warming up and their being a raffle which fans were able to win some fantastic prizes such as hospitality seats for the upcoming fixtures. Music commenced during half time to keep the fans engaged and excited for another exciting half of football. As the second half begun the fans all took back to their seats. In the 53rd minute Huddersfield scored the second goal of the match thanks to Karlan Grant leading the home fans to cheer for joy once again. Late on in the match the away fans also got their chance to celebrate due to a goal from Jacob Brown making it 2-1 with just over 10 minutes to go. The home team were now under pressure so the home fans were eager for the game to end as they were so close to victory whilst the away supporters continued to cheer their side hoping that their side would be able to get an equaliser. Both sets of fans were encouraging the teams to keep fighting on till the end. After the six additional minutes were up their was a huge sound of relief from the Huddersfield fans as their team managed to hold on to win the match and secure all 3 points.

It was a fantastic game and a great experience for all the fans that went to the match. I would definitely suggest for football fans and even people who have never even been to a football match to go to a Huddersfield match for a superb experience and a real bargain for students who get tickets at a fantastic reduced price.