The League One table since Huddersfield Town sacked Michael Duff - it makes grim reading for Kevin Nagle | OneFootball

Huddersfield Town haven't improved since owner Kevin Nagle made the decision to sack Michael Duff.

Following a disappointing relegation from the Championship last season, there was an expectation on Huddersfield Town going into this campaign.

Owner Kavin Nagle was under the spotlight after his bold managerial calls backfired, so the decision to turn to Michael Duff last summer, someone who had experience in League One, looked a sensible one.

Yet, a 1-0 defeat to Bristol Rovers on March 8 saw Huddersfield drop out of the play-off places, and it was announced the following day that Duff had been sacked.

Michael Duff’s sacking hasn’t improved Huddersfield Town

Clearly, Duff was adjudged to be underachieving, and many would have agreed with the call, as Huddersfield had the resources to compete for an automatic promotion place, and they had lost four in five.

However, Nagle didn’t have a replacement lined up, with academy boss Jon Worthington stepping up to lead the side for the remainder of the season.

And, it’s fair to say that hasn’t gone to plan, with the Yorkshire outfit having won two and lost three of the five games under his guidance, which puts them 13th in the league in that period.

As with any managerial change, there is hope for a bounce, and a 5-1 thrashing of Crawley in Worthington’s first game suggested Huddersfield may carry momentum into the run-in.

But they’re now four points away from the play-offs with five games to go, which is a bigger gap than when Duff was sacked, so it’s fair to say it hasn’t worked.

There were suggestions last week that Huddersfield could look to appoint a permanent boss before the summer, with Paul Warne and Brian Barry-Murphy linked, but nothing has materialised since.

Huddersfield Town need long-term stability

A more worrying trend is how the Terriers have struggled against the better sides in League One under Worthington.

The three defeats have come against a top-half side in Lincoln, and promotion chasing duo Charlton and Wycombe. So, with games against Leyton Orient and Stockport on the horizon, it’s going to be difficult for Huddersfield to reach the play-offs.

Either way, whether they win promotion or not, there will be an understanding that the Terriers need some stability in the summer.

Nagle has to take responsibility for the constant managerial changes over the past 18 months, and the reality is that it hasn’t worked out.

You would hope lessons have finally been learned, and there will be pressure from an understandably disgruntled fan base for the owner to get it right.

But, the immediate focus for Worthington and the players will be to try and get on a winning run, as there is enough talent in the squad for Huddersfield to end the season on a high, even if it does seem unlikely.