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Northern Ireland star handed challenge by his manager as they push for promotion

A picture of Callum Marshall in action for Northern Ireland against Bulgaria
-Credit: (Image: Jonathan Porter/PressEye)


Michael Duff has challenged Huddersfield Town loanee Callum Marshall to be more clinical despite the young forward bagging his third goal of the season in midweek.

The Northern Ireland international, who is spending the season at the the Yorkshire club from West Ham, helped the Terriers extend their unbeaten run in League One to seven matches with the second goal in a 2-0 victory at Leyton Orient on Tuesday night.

The result leaves Town sitting fifth in the table five points off the automatic promotion places and Duff urged his players to keep pushing. But he has warned his players they cannot afford to keep missing chances and he challenged his strikers to take the opportunities that come their way.

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“It might sound like pressure, it is pressure, we can’t keep relying on centre-halves to score goals from set plays to win us games,” the Terriers’ boss told HTTV. “I know Callum’s scored a goal right at the end, which kills the game off, but there’s an expectancy, and at the minute it’s not quite landing.

“We’ve had loads of different combinations, but it’s not like they’re not trying. It’s trying to be a little bit more clinical, because we’re not always going to come and create that many chances, it doesn’t matter who we play.”

Marshall is enjoying life under Duff at Huddersfield Town after he arrived in Yorkshire with a point to prove after a frustrating spell on loan at West Brom at the end of last season. Last month Duff labelled the 20-year-old as "supporters' dream" as the former Linfield player made a big impression in the games he has played so far this season.

Duff told the Yorkshire Post: “He’s infectious. He’s a great kid. He’s on a lot of money for a young lad but you wouldn’t know whether he was on £2 a week or £20,000. It’s not £20,000-a-week by the way. He is a supporter’s dream. He comes off the pitch and his lungs are coming out of his mouth and that’s what they want.”

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