Two potential penalties were turned down during the 2022 play-off final, which may have contributed to the Terriers’ defeat.
Given how good Forest were under Steve Cooper, this Wembley loss in 2022 was maybe unsurprising.
The Reds were at the bottom of the table when Cooper arrived, and the team had been struggling under Chris Hughton.
But Cooper produced a feel-good factor at The City Ground and led Forest to a top-six finish, with the Reds coming into the play-off games as the favourites of many given how brilliant they had been under the Welshman.
After defeating Sheffield United in the play-off semi-finals on penalties, they were drawn against Huddersfield, who had defeated Luton Town in the last four.
Levi Colwill’s own goal was the difference between the Terriers and Forest at Wembley, and Huddersfield haven’t recovered since.
Huddersfield had to work hard to equalise after Forest went ahead 1-0, and two penalty incidents went against them in the second half.
Jon Moss issued a yellow card to Harry Toffolo after Jack Colback seemed to trip him inside the box.
VAR was used for this game, but the check was finished and the verdict was upheld, much to the surprise of many Huddersfield fans.
Many neutral supporters believed it was a penalty as well, and they felt the Terriers were unlucky not to receive one for Max Lowe’s challenge on Lewis O’Brien. The penalty kick was not awarded, and Forest won the match 1-0.
Simply looking at Huddersfield’s current circumstances demonstrates how devastating the play-off loss has been.
They’ve been battling relegation for the past several seasons, and if it weren’t for Neil Warnock, they’d have been relegated at the end of last season.
There are several explanations for its rapid fall.
First, they lost Carlos Corberan after the Wembley final, and if they had been promoted to the Premier League, you believe he would have continued.
Corberan is a tremendously good coach, so having him at the helm would have been a huge advantage for the West Yorkshire team.
They also lost some notable players, including Following their play-off final loss, the club had no realistic possibility of re-signing Colwill, either permanently or on loan.
Toffolo and O’Brien also left, which was a significant setback given that both had been valuable assets for the Terriers throughout the 2021/22 season.
Again, if Huddersfield had gained promotion, Toffolo and O’Brien, who joined Forest, would most likely have stayed.
Recruitment has not been great in recent years, and the appointment of Darren Moore plainly did not work out, but numerous events that occurred as a direct result of the Forest defeat have played a role in the Terriers’ demise.
Even though it has been nearly two years since that match in the English city, Huddersfield fans will not forgive the authorities.
