Danny Schofield compared the joy of recording his first win as Huddersfield boss to memories of the birth of his children after his side defeated Stoke 3-1 in the Sky Bet Championship.
Carlos Corberan’s successor secured the first win of his Terriers tenure as his players capitalised on the visitors’ wastefulness in front of goal.
Lewis Baker had an early penalty saved and Jacob Brown struck a post prior to Yuta Nakayama powering in the hosts’ opener.
Baker made amends with a precise finish and then Dwight Gayle thought he had completed the comeback, only for his effort to be chalked off for offside.
Substitute Duane Holmes helped turn the tie in Huddersfield’s favour, providing two assists for Danny Ward and Jordan Rhodes late on as they secured victory.
“It’s massive for us,” noted Schofield. “I said to the lads in the changing room, I’ve got two kids and I nearly said the feeling now is better than when they were born but I held myself back and said it was equal because I don’t want to upset the missus.
“The longer you’re without a win, you do feel it becomes more difficult and there’s more focus on the losses, but we never stopped believing.
“As soon as you stop believing, it becomes very difficult but I could sense the belief and the energy in the lads pre-match.
“It was a deserved win and there were some great moments in the game. There are always key moments in seasons and after Lee’s (Nicholls) save, you do feel as though things can turn and it was a pivotal moment for us.
“We speak and say words all we want but if actions and behaviours aren’t implemented daily then the words mean nothing.
“The reason I’m in this game is because it’s very emotional and you’re passionate about it. The emotions when you lose are tough and coming to speak to the media is difficult but today’s a good day for all of us.”
The visitors’ profligacy in front of goal proved costly, with Baker denied by Lee Nicholls from 12 yards out and Brown spurning a sequence of chances.
Stoke were left ruing fine margins when Gayle was adjudged to have strayed marginally offside and a fast finish from Huddersfield was decisive.
Potters boss Michael O’Neill said: “I thought the scoreline was extremely harsh on us; we had a lot of positives in our play and a lot of control on the game despite being the away side.
“In the second half we controlled the game and we were dominant and it’s a mistake that leads to the second goal and then we’re having to chase the game.
“The goal from Dwight Gayle is onside and that would put us 2-1 ahead so we’re disappointed with that as well. That’s out of our control, we’ve just got to accept it but when we watch the game back, we’ll find a lot of positives. We’re just unfortunate that the result goes against us.
“We’ve got to keep believing in what we’re doing and how you play. You have to trust that you’ll improve.
“We believe we’re building a team to play in a certain way that can progress and do well in this league and we’re not going to change that because we’ve made a few mistakes and lost the game.
“People have to be patient with that, I’ll be patient with that and the players because it’s a good young group and they apply themselves really well.”
