Huddersfield Town manager Lee Grant believes that his players were so desperate to beat Bolton Wanderers last night ‘that perhaps it affected the mentality’.
The Terriers welcomed Bolton to the Accu Stadium last night hoping to break into the League One play-off positions. The stats showed prior to kick off that a home win was likely, with Huddersfield possessing the fourth best home record in the division and the Trotters holding the second worst away one.
It looked as if the game would pan out as expected when Leo Castledine headed the Yorkshire-based side into the lead after just 7 minutes. They then dominated the remainder of the first half, although failed to build on their advantage.
The second period was in stark contrast to the first and it looked as if Lee Grant’s side may have held on for the victory. However, Sam Dalby struck a 93rd minute equaliser before Amario Cozier-Duberry snatched a dramatic winner two minutes later to send the away fans into pandemonium.
Absolute limbs!!!!
What a stunning end to the game!!! 😍😳#bwfc pic.twitter.com/wHNJN3kXUP
— The Real EFL (@RealEFLSocial) October 16, 2025
Grant ‘Angry, Upset And Disappointed’
A win would have sent Huddersfield up to fourth in the table ahead of this weekend’s round of fixtures. However, they have now been leapfrogged by Bolton, who have jumped into seventh.
Speaking after the game, Grant couldn’t contain his disbelief at having victory snatched from him in the dying minutes:
“About as tough an end to a game as you can get. About as sore as we can feel, about as angry, disappointed and upset as we can feel.
“The emotion in the stadium, on the pitch, on the side, I think we’re all shared in that emotion. When you lose a game in that fashion, it really hurts, it stings, you can’t hide from that.
“There will be a sense for all of us that the second-half performance leads to where we end up in the game, and that’s a real disappointment, because the first half we didn’t show any signs of that, and the second half we stray away from the things that we hold dear, our values, the things that served us really well in the first half, and we’re punished in the worst way for it.”
Continuing, the former Manchester United goalkeeper claimed that their will to win was perhaps their downfall in the end:
“Do I feel like the group were trying? Yes I do. I feel like they wanted to win that game so badly that perhaps it affected the mentality, and how we went about that second half, and therein lies the lesson for us as a group.
Lee Grant spoke to HTTV after full-time.#htafc | @sbk pic.twitter.com/SlNPCSPVKt
— Huddersfield Town (@htafc) October 16, 2025
“There’s no doubt about it, this is going to be one of the most painful ones we have, and can have. For us as staff, for the players themselves collectively, of course individually as well, there’s no doubt about it, you have to be ready, honest and open to look at it, and to take it firmly on the chin.
“Conversation yes, work yes, open and honesty yes, all of those things are important, because to come away from the things that you did so well in the first period, that’s probably the biggest disappointment I think for all of us as a group.”
Writer’s View
Last night felt like a game that Huddersfield really needed to win. It’s not a game that is going to define their season just yet but it is a major blow to their future ambitions. They’re already 2 points behind Lincoln City, who occupy the final play-off spot, and that gap could increase further tomorrow.
The Terriers travel to Wycombe Wanderers next weekend. Another defeat could see Lee Grant’s position come under threat, despite only taking on the reins in the summer.
