Features
Away days: Huddersfield Town
Written by Tom Easterby
The Magpies’ first away trip of the new Premier League season sees them travel to Yorkshire to face fellow promoted side Huddersfield Town. Here’s a little bit more information about the Terriers’ home…
Club: Huddersfield Town
Stadium: John Smith’s Stadium
Capacity: 24,500
Distance from St. James’ Park: 118 miles
Previous Premier League visits: 0
Newcastle United’s first away game of the 2017/18 Premier League season will be against Huddersfield Town, at the stadium where United secured one of their most important victories on the way to lifting the Sky Bet Championship title last term.
That 3-1 victory in March, which came thanks to goals from Matt Ritchie, Daryl Murphy and Dwight Gayle, was a result that particularly pleased manager Rafa Benitez.
“We needed to work very hard in defence, to cover each other, to protect each other. It was a very good team performance,” said the Spaniard, reflecting on that win in Yorkshire that sent them five points clear at the top of the table. It was a hard-earned win in front of just under 2,000 Magpies supporters in amongst a crowd of over 23,000 at the John Smith’s Stadium, a ground first opened in 1994 as the Terriers made the move from their old Leeds Road home.
Huddersfield’s average home attendance as they won promotion via the play-offs last season was just over 20,000. Based on the last campaign’s figures from top flight clubs, only Bournemouth had a lower average home crowd, but David Wagner’s side will go into 2017/18 – their first in the Premier League – on a high, having toppled Reading on penalties in the showpiece play-off final at Wembley in May.
However, Newcastle’s recent record in Huddersfield is encouraging. They are unbeaten in their last five away games against the Terriers – a run stretching back to 1964. It’s a record Benitez and his side will hope to maintain on Saturday, 19th August.