| Season: | 1985–86 |
| League Result: | 16th |
| Cup1 Result: | Third round |
| Cup2 Result: | Second round |
| League Topscorer: | Dale Tempest (12) |
| Season Topscorer: | Dale Tempest (13) |
| Highest Attendance: | 11,667 vs Bradford City (7 September 1985) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 4,511 vs Shrewsbury Town (15 March 1986) |
| Largest Win: | 2–0 vs Bradford City (7 September 1985) 3–1 vs Leeds United (5 October 1985) 2–0 vs Oldham Athletic (21 Decembebr 1985) 3–1 vs Sheffield United (11 January 1986) 2–0 vs Sunderland (1 March 1986) 3–1 vs Barnsley (31 March 1986) 2–0 vs Stoke City (5 April 1986) |
| Largest Loss: | 0–3 vs Shrewsbury Town (12 October 1985) 0–3 vs Stoke City (2 November 1985) 1–4 vs Portsmouth (1 February 1986) 1–4 vs Norwich City (12 March 1986) 0–3 vs Bradford City (22 March 1986) 0–3 vs Middlesbrough (29 March 1986) 0–3 vs Charlton Athletic (12 April 1986) |
| Nextseason: | 1986–87 |
Huddersfield Town's 1985–86 campaign was another disappointing season for the Terriers, with the team struggling for consistency and survival in the Second Division, until the arrival of Scottish striker Duncan Shearer from Chelsea near the end of the season saw Town guarantee their status in 16th place.
Town had a good start to the season with Dale Tempest becoming the first and so far only Town player to score a hat-trick on the opening day of a league season in Town's 4–3 win over Millwall. He was top scorer with 12 goals, even though he was on loan at Gillingham in the latter part of the season, before moving to Lokeren in Belgium at the end of the season.
Between October and December, Town went on a run of 10 consecutive matches without a win, which saw Town hover dangerously above the relegation zone for most of the season. Following that they went on a run of only 1 defeat in 8 matches, followed by a run of 5 losses in 6, which forced manager Mick Buxton to bring in a new striker.
In came Chelsea striker Duncan Shearer, who scored a hat-trick on his full debut in Town's 3–1 win over Barnsley. That coupled with three other wins saw Town finish in 16th place, just 6 points and 3 places above the relegation zone.
| Date | Opponents | Home/ Away | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | Position | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 August 1985 | Millwall | H | 4–3 | Tempest (3, 1 pen), Webster | 6,603 | 5th | |
| 20 August 1985 | Grimsby Town | A | 1–1 | Curran | 6,180 | 3rd | |
| 24 August 1985 | Oldham Athletic | A | 1–1 | Cork | 6,024 | 5th | |
| 26 August 1985 | Portsmouth | H | 1–2 | Tempest | 9,298 | 8th | |
| 31 August 1985 | Crystal Palace | A | 3–2 | Cork, Tempest, Webster | 6,026 | 8th | |
| 3 September 1985 | Blackburn Rovers | H | 0–0 | 9,060 | 6th | ||
| 7 September 1985 | Bradford City | H | 2–0 | Cowling, Cork | 11,667 | 4th | |
| 14 September 1985 | Sheffield United | A | 1–1 | Cork | 13,854 | 7th | |
| 21 September 1985 | Norwich City | H | 0–0 | 7,225 | 7th | ||
| 28 September 1985 | Sunderland | A | 0–1 | 18,979 | 9th | ||
| 5 October 1985 | Leeds United | H | 3–1 | Tempest, Stanton, Curran | 9,983 | 7th | |
| 12 October 1985 | Shrewsbury Town | A | 0–3 | 3,986 | 9th | ||
| 19 October 1985 | Hull City | A | 1–3 | Phil Wilson | 8,128 | 11th | |
| 26 October 1985 | Carlisle United | H | 3–3 | Tempest, Raynor, Cork | 5,012 | 11th | |
| 2 November 1985 | Stoke City | A | 0–3 | 7,291 | 14th | ||
| 9 November 1985 | Charlton Athletic | H | 0–2 | 5,205 | 16th | ||
| 16 November 1985 | Brighton & Hove Albion | A | 3–4 | Tempest, Cowling (2) | 7,952 | 16th | |
| 23 November 1985 | Fulham | H | 1–3 | Tempest | 4,650 | 19th | |
| 30 November 1985 | Wimbledon | A | 2–2 | Cork, Raynor | 2,805 | 18th | |
| 7 December 1985 | Grimsby Town | H | 2–2 | Cowling (2) | 4,811 | 20th | |
| 14 December 1985 | Millwall | A | 1–2 | Tempest | 3,645 | 21st | |
| 21 December 1985 | Oldham Athletic | H | 2–0 | Cowling, Bray | 5,094 | 21st | |
| 26 December 1985 | Barnsley | H | 1–1 | Raynor | 10,575 | 19th | |
| 1 January 1986 | Middlesbrough | A | 1–0 | J. Jones | 8,487 | 20th | |
| 11 January 1986 | Sheffield United | H | 3–1 | Raynor (2), Tempest | 9,268 | 18th | |
| 18 January 1986 | Crystal Palace | H | 0–0 | 5,729 | 17th | ||
| 1 February 1986 | Portsmouth | A | 1–4 | Tempest | 10,937 | 19th | |
| 25 February 1986 | Hull City | H | 2–1 | Cork, Curran | 4,518 | 16th | |
| 1 March 1986 | Sunderland | H | 2–0 | Curran (2) | 7,150 | 14th | |
| 8 March 1986 | Leeds United | A | 0–2 | 14,667 | 18th | ||
| 12 March 1986 | Norwich City | A | 1–4 | Curran | 12,772 | 18th | |
| 15 March 1986 | Shrewsbury Town | H | 1–0 | Curran | 4,511 | 16th | |
| 18 March 1986 | Carlisle United | A | 0–2 | 3,334 | 16th | ||
| 22 March 1986 | Bradford City | A | 0–3 | 9,058 | 18th | ||
| 29 March 1986 | Middlesbrough | H | 0–3 | 5,585 | 18th | ||
| 31 March 1986 | Barnsley | A | 3–1 | Shearer (3) | 5,746 | 15th | |
| 5 April 1986 | Stoke City | H | 2–0 | Shearer (2) | 5,750 | 15th | |
| 12 April 1986 | Charlton Athletic | A | 0–3 | 4,143 | 17th | ||
| 15 April 1986 | Blackburn Rovers | A | 1–0 | Cork | 5,183 | 15th | |
| 19 April 1986 | Brighton & Hove Albion | H | 1–0 | Shearer | 5,469 | 12th | |
| 26 April 1986 | Fulham | A | 1–2 | Shearer | 2,877 | 16th | |
| 3 May 1986 | Wimbledon | H | 0–1 | 6,083 | 16th |
See main article: 1985–86 FA Cup.
| Date | Round | Opponents | Home/ Away | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 January 1986 | Round 3 | Reading | H | 0–0 | 9,875 | ||
| 13 January 1986 | Round 3 Replay | Reading | A | 1–2 | Cowling | 8,726 |
See main article: 1985–86 Football League Cup.
| Date | Round | Opponents | Home/ Away | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 September 1985 | Round 2 1st Leg | Shrewsbury Town | A | 3–2 | J. Jones, Curran, Tempest | 2,251 | |
| 7 October 1985 | Round 2 2nd Leg | Shrewsbury Town | H | 0–2 | 4,966
|
| Name | Nation | Position | League Apps | League Goals | FA Cup Apps | FA Cup Goals | League Cup Apps | League Cup Goals | Total Apps | Total Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ian Bray | DF | 32 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 36 | 1 | |
| Malcolm Brown | DF | 36 (1) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 (1) | 0 | |
| Peter Butler | MF | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | |
| David Cork | FW | 37 (1) | 8 | 0 (1) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 39 (2) | 8 | |
| David Cowling | MF | 39 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 43 | 7 | |
| Brian Cox | GK | 37 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 41 | 0 | |
| Terry Curran | MF | 33 (1) | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 35 (1) | 8 | |
| Steve Doyle | MF | 42 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 46 | 0 | |
| Joey Jones | DF | 38 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 42 | 2 | |
| Paul Jones | DF | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 0 | |
| Keith Mason | GK | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| Paul Raynor | MF | 20 (10) | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 (10) | 5 | |
| Liam Robinson | FW | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | |
| Duncan Shearer | FW | 7 (1) | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 (1) | 7 | |
| Brian Stanton | MF | 7 (6) | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 9 (7) | 1 | |
| Dale Tempest | FW | 29 (1) | 12 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 33 (1) | 13 | |
| Simon Webster | DF | 41 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 45 | 2 | |
| Paul Wilson | DF | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | |
| Phil Wilson | MF | 35 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 39 | 1 | |
| Julian Winter | MF | 3 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 (1) | 0 | |