Huddersfield Town head coach Martin Drury has explained why new signing Samson Tovide was left out of the club’s EFL Trophy victory over Doncaster Rovers.
The 22-year-old forward joined the Terriers on a three-year contract last week after leaving Colchester United at the end of the 2025/26 campaign.
Tovide had spent the summer as a free agent and trained with National League club Southend United before completing his move to Yorkshire. His lack of a full pre-season means Huddersfield are carefully managing his workload before introducing him to competitive action.
The attacker was not involved as Town came from behind to win 3-1 against Doncaster on Tuesday evening. Jamie Spencer, Joe Low and Lasse Sorensen scored after Rovers had led at half-time.
Drury admitted that both he and Tovide are eager for the forward to make his debut, but the Huddersfield boss is following the advice of the club’s physical performance staff.
“He’s not ready. He’s not ready to play. As much as I want him to play and as much as he wants to play, I’m led by professionals who I’m working with in the physical department, and we need to get him up to speed.
“Otherwise, we put him at risk. We throw him in, he gets injured and then suddenly we lose him for a long period of time.
“So, again, it’s being cautious with it, but we’ll push on that.”
Huddersfield faced competition for his signature, with his ability to operate centrally or from either flank making him an attractive option. However, their encouraging start to the campaign has allowed Drury to avoid rushing him into the side before he is physically ready.
The head coach also delivered a positive update on the other players currently recovering from injuries, suggesting his squad could soon be strengthened further.
“The other players that are injured are really pushing, and they’re very close to coming back.
“We’ll get numbers back over the next week or two. We’ll keep working with Samson, and he’ll be not far away at all.”
Tovide will continue building his fitness with the Huddersfield squad and could move into contention during the coming weeks, provided he responds positively to the increased workload.
Tovide began his career in the academies at Leyton Orient and Colchester United, making his senior debut for the latter against Southend United in the EFL Trophy in November 2020. The centre-forward went on to score 18 goals in 140 appearances across all competitions for the U’s, including a career-best seven league goals during the 2024/25 season, before leaving when his contract expired in the summer of 2026 and joining Huddersfield on a three-year deal.