Oxford United complete transfer move for Huddersfield Town's Brodie Spencer

The Terriers academy graduate has made a permanent move back up into the Championship

Huddersfield Town have sold defender Brodie Spencer to Championship side Oxford United for an undisclosed fee.

The Northern Ireland international joined the Terriers from Cliftonville in 2020, when he was 16 years old, and came through the ranks of the B team system before making his first-team debut in 2022.

Spencer spent the first half of the 2023/24 season on loan at Motherwell, and his standout performances prompted Town to recall him and put him straight into the first team.

The 21 year old has been a regular for Town since then, playing either at right-back, left-back, or as a central defender in a back three.

Spencer had just one year left on his deal at the Accu Stadium after the club triggered an extension clause last year and had rejected several offers of a new deal at Town.

That has led Huddersfield to cash in on Spencer now rather than risk the disruption losing him midway through the season or the potential financial hit of him departing for a lesser training compensation fee next summer.

Town boss Lee Grant said in a club statement: “Since my arrival at the club discussions with Brodie and his representatives have been ongoing, and I made it very clear that we wanted Brodie to be part of our plans this season.

“Brodie is a player we wanted to keep for the long-term and someone who in my opinion could develop and grow with us whilst being part on an exciting project. However, after rejecting several contract offers - most recently this summer after my arrival - he made his desire to leave the club very clear. Accordingly, we accepted a lucrative offer from Oxford for his services.

“Brodie has remained professional throughout these discussions, and we wish him nothing but the best in his new role.

“Any desire to play at a higher level matches our own, and that ambition isn’t altered by this departure. We will remain active and ambitious in the transfer market, with the squad having made a strong, committed start to training ahead of our upcoming camp in Austria.”

We Are Terriers reaction

Spencer’s contract situation and his undoubted ability and potential made him a prime candidate for a summer departure, so it’s no major surprise that he has attracted a sufficiently tempting offer for Town to send him on his way with their best wishes.

It’s hard for us to blame him for having the ambition to play at a higher level. Though his youth has shown now and then, overall Spencer has been one of Town’s most reliable, consistent and versatile performers since returning from his spell in Scotland two and a half years ago. He is frankly too good to play League One football for a second successive season.

His departure is just one of the unfortunate consequences Town will have to accept from their failure to win promotion last season. Had they gone straight back into the Championship, it’s possible they could have tempted Spencer into a longer stay at the club.