It's only the Vertu Trophy... but Huddersfield Town now have clear priorities for promotion push

Doncaster ended the Terriers’ run at the quarter-final stage on another evening of tough but potentially valuable lessons for Liam Manning

* It’s only the Trophy, but… a worrying trend that has persisted for most of the season has returned over the past three games — namely, Huddersfield Town’s tendency to look poor for large spells and pay the price for it.

Throughout the first half, Town often appeared to be working to three different game plans. They had the run of the possession and territory, but were so disjointed that they did precious little with it and ended up conceding a silly penalty that gave Doncaster the lead.

The second half was an improvement. To a large extent, Doncaster have Thimothée Lo-Tutala to thank for keeping them in the game, despite allowing Cameron Ashia’s equaliser to squeeze past him into the net.

The goalkeeper made spectacular saves from shots by Will Alves and Alfie May during open play. He went on to keep out three of Town’s four penalties in a dismal shootout for the Terriers, with the returning Antony Evans hitting the crossbar on their final attempt.

Throw in some brave defending to head away Lasse Sorensen’s goalbound shot, a few balls across the face of goal that went unfinished, and there’s an argument that Town were unlucky to end up going to penalties in the first place.

But this narrative is once again undermined by the fact that Town looked too purposeless and tepid for half the game. You can win individual matches off one good half, but over the course of a season it will catch up with you.