Mid-season report: Huddersfield Town

After one of the longest-running transfer sagas of the summer, Huddersfield Town striker Jordan Rhodes joined Blackburn Rovers for £8m at the end of the summer window.

Huddersfield were reportedly pleased with the amount they received for the striker, but they had surrendered a vast number of goals ahead of the new season.

Reinforcements in the shape of Simon Church, James Vaughan and Adam Hammill were signed on loan, but Sean Scannell was the only major permanent transfer for the club.

A strong run of form in the early stages of the season elevated the club into the higher regions of the table, but their results have suffered in recent weeks.

Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at Huddersfield's opening half of the season in their return to the second tier of English football.

August

Huddersfield's season began with a League Cup tie away to Preston North End. However, with Simon Grayson naming an experimental side, they were dumped out of the competition in the opening round.

Their league programme began one week later against Cardiff City, but they were beaten by the odd goal on a tough evening in Wales.

The month ended on a positive note, however, as they secured a 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest before picking up their first three points of the season against Burnley on their own patch.

September

September proved to be their most successful month by some distance. They opened with a 2-2 draw away at Ipswich Town before recording a 1-0 win over Derby County after the international break.

Their winning run continued as they won away at Sheffield Wednesday and Blackpool, a period of results that left them in second position in the early stages of the season.

The month did end on a disappointing note as they were beaten at home by Watford, but three wins and one draw from five league matches pointed to a successful return to the Championship.

Meanwhile, Jermaine Beckford also arrived at the club on loan from Leicester City to provide competition for places in the final third.

October

October brought an early visit from Leicester City, who after a disappointing previous campaign had been tipped as the favourites for promotion this season. The Foxes were impressive on the evening as they recorded a 2-0 victory.

Huddersfield quickly returned to form, however, with a 1-0 win away at a struggling Birmingham City outfit. Their second successive victory quickly followed as they beat promotion-chasing Wolverhampton Wanderers at the John Smith's Stadium.

It proved to be a disappointing end to the month, however, with successive defeats to Peterborough United and Millwall as they began to slip down the league table.

That said, their early-season form had left them in and around the playoff positions and showing no signs of failing to score goals with the loss of Rhodes to Blackburn.

November

The early stages of the month showed great promise as they beat Bristol City before registering a home draw against Blackburn Rovers and winning away at Barnsley.

Next came the visit of Brighton & Hove Albion, but they were beaten by the odd goal on their own patch. An away draw followed at Charlton Athletic, but they came crashing down to earth at the end of November with a 3-0 thumping by Middlesbrough at the Riverside.

December

A home tie against Grayson's previous side Leeds United came on the opening day of the month, but two late goals from Leeds meant that Huddersfield suffered their second league defeat in quick succession.

Next up they hosted Bolton Wanderers at the John Smith's Stadium and a late strike from Vaughan secured a 2-2 draw against the former Premier League outfit.

They then travelled to high-flying Hull City on December 15, but were well beaten despite the proximity of the 2-0 scoreline. However, they did pick up a point against Crystal Palace in their final match before Christmas.

Another point followed at home to Blackpool on Boxing Day to leave the club in 15th position in the table with Sheffield Wednesday at home next to come.