Sodje puts national service on hold in bid to earn promotion
Nigeria will have to do without Efe Sodje when they play Jamaica in the Unity Cup friendly international at Charlton tomorrow. Instead the 31-year-old defender, who played against England in the 2002 World Cup, will be leading out his side to authentic canada goose outlet face Mansfield Town in the third division play-off final at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium.
Will the Huddersfield captain be distracted, with World Cup qualifying starting next month, by thoughts of his fellow internationals? ‘That won’t be in my mind,’ says Sodje. ‘The final is the most important match for me.’
Huddersfield missed automatic promotion on the last day of the season. They drew 1-1 away to Cheltenham and Torquay, winners away to Southend, finished with a better goal difference.
Manager Peter Jackson named Sodje a ‘key player’ for Huddersfield this season, but Sodje’s imposed absence (a two-match ban following an incident at Scunthorpe) may have been a factor in a 3-1 drubbing by Mansfield in the penultimate game. That was a costly defeat.
So what of their chances tomorrow? The last time Town took a point off Mansfield they had the services of prolific goal scorer Jonathan Stead and, despite his having left for Blackburn in can i wash my canada goose coat February, Stead remains the leading anyone has got canada goose coat scorer for the club canada goose coat 1000 bulbs free canada goose coat – kensington with 16 goals. How will they cope without him?
‘The day he left we played Darlington and lost 2-0, but after that we went on a run,’ said Sodje. ‘The team spirit was fantastic. When he left we got stronger and stronger.’
The goals seemed to come from all over the field. Even Sodje played his part with a headed goal against Oxford. Since Stead’s departure, Huddersfield have netted canada goose coat 1000 calorie 29 goals in 19 games.
Still, Peter Taylor clearance, manager of third division runners-up Hull, is not convinced by Huddersfield, citing a lack of experience in the side as a weak point. ‘I think they’ll find it very tough.’ Two relegations in the last three years have taken Huddersfield from first division regulars to the wrong end of the Nationwide.
Sodje stands firm though, benefits of canada goose jacket ‘Huddersfield are a massive club. We’re not supposed to be in division three. It’s going to be a tight game but we are definitely going to win.’
Huddersfield will have 22,000 fans backing them in Cardiff, giving them a huge advantage in terms of support can you wash canada goose jacket over Mansfield, who have sold 14,500 tickets.
Mansfield manager Keith Curle, who has been linked with the manager’s job at Blackpool, will be hoping that midfielder Liam Lawrence can continue his fine form today.
Lawrence scored 22 goals in the regular season, including one against Huddersfield in Mansfield’s 3-1 win at the McAlpine Stadium in March, but he said: ‘The fact we beat them recently will mean very little. I’m sure they will be more difficult to break down.’
League meetings:
Mansfield 3 – 3 Huddersfield
(November 22 2003; att 5,828)
In Mansfield’s first comeback of the season against Huddersfield, Craig Disley’s stoppage-time goal earned the home team a point after Jon Stead, who scored twice and hit a post, had put Peter Jackson’s team 3-2 ahead. buy anyone has got canada goose coat canada goose coat online
Huddersfield 1 – 3 Mansfield
( May 1 2004; att: 18,633)
When John McAliskey gave Huddersfield the lead in front of their largest home crowd for three years, automatic promotion beckoned, but goals from Rhys Day, Junior Mendes and Liam Lawrence put Mansfield in the play-offs .