Town match-winner glad Luton put 'unpleasant' scenes behind them in Vertu Trophy

Long-serving Luton midfielder Jordan Clark was happy to see the Hatters take steps to put the ‘unpleasant’ nature of the reaction to Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Burton Albion behind them when beating Plymouth Argyle 2-1 in the Vertu Trophy quarter-final in midweek.

The 32-year-old had to witness one of the worst reactions during his 208 appearances in a Town shirt, with Luton booed off by their own supporters, which saw manager Jack Wilshere and captain Kal Naismith both involved in angry exchanges with fans. For the majority of Clark’s first four seasons in Bedfordshire it was an upward curve as Town cemented themselves in the Championship and even went on to reach the Premier League in the summer of 2023.

However, back-to-back relegations leading to Luton being a League One club have hit hard, as this term, six straight defeats on the road and no wins in eight, means even a place in the play-offs for a team who were expected to be challenging for automatic promotion, are by no means a certainty. It has led to the frustration increasing amongst supporters on an almost weekly basis, as the furore spilled over at the weekend when Town conceded a stoppage time leveller against the Brewers at the weekend.

That meant the Hatters returned a few days later to take on Plymouth Argyle, albeit with the stadium half full, as there was a far more positive feel around the place, Luton triumphing 2-1 to move one game away from Wembley, as they host Northampton Town in the semi-final next Wednesday evening.

With Clark starring the last time Town did play at the home of football, scoring in the 1-1 Championship play-off final draw with Coventry City and then netting in the penalty shootout victory as well, then on being able to hit back and turn things around at the first time of asking, to put themselves so close to another visit to the capital, Clark said: “The staff have been really good the last few days especially with the disappointment of the weekend and everything that happened after that which was quite unpleasant.

"It's one of those we've just got to not forget it, but put it behind us for what is a different tournament and any chance to get to Wembley, not many people do it in their career. So if we can do it twice in so many years it would be really, really special and I know this club will fill out the whole section again. One game away from Wembley is massive, as no matter what cup or what tournament you’re in, it can never be sniffed at, as we know in the past. It's a real special occasion, I know this club would travel in numbers and we want to give them a day out again."

Getting a result in the week was definitely no foregone conclusion either, with the Hatters going up against a Pilgrims side who had won an impressive seven from their last 10 matches, putting five past league leaders Cardiff City in their last outing, but Town were out of the blocks well once more, holding off some early pressure to then take the lead through Izzy Jones’ strike on 16 minutes.

Following their attempts to try, although ultimately fail, and hold on to their lead against the Brewers a few days previously, the Hatters didn’t make the same mistake on Tuesday night, Jones having some good opportunities to add to his tally from two inviting Shayden Morris crosses, only for a defensive error from George Saville lead to Argyle levelling, his backpass selling James Shea short, the recalled keeper’s fired back into the empty net by Tegan Finn to make it 1-1.

However, to their credit, Town showed their confidence isn’t quite as fragile as some might have presumed, bouncing back from the disappointment, as with a minute to go, Saville won the ball in midfield and Kasey Palmer flicked a first time pass through to Wells, who was brought down in the box by Mathias Ross for a penalty.

Clark stepped up, having scored two and missed one since assuming the responsibility this term, opting to go down the middle on this occasion to make it 10 goals for the campaign, the first time he has ever achieved such a feat in his career. On holding his nerve, he continued: “I'm really pleased. Obviously when they equalise you're thinking, oh no, you see the time ticking away a little bit and you're thinking, could it be a penalty shootout?

"It was a scrappy second half, I’m disappointed that we didn't get the ball down a little bit more and play, but the one bit of quality we had, into Kasey's feet, flick around the corner and Nahki did brilliantly to get behind them and win the pen. Then it’s just about focusing, trying to pick my spot and hopefully it goes in. I’m buzzing to see it hit the back of the net as there were quite a lot of tired bodies out there who didn't want penalties, so really pleased with that.

"The first half we played some good stuff, but we've got to take it on ourselves to play through the lines quicker, get in behind and show the quality that we know we have. Lately we’ve not been doing that and then second half you're going to get a reaction from them. They’re going to put balls in your box, going to play it long which is what they've had so much success from in the last how many weeks. They’re one of the most in-form teams in the league, credit to us for digging in as every team’s going to have a spell in the game and it's down to us.

"The staff are a little bit disappointed that we went away from what was working first half, but sometimes in game when things are upon you, you have to defend your box and that was the most disappointing thing on the weekend. We didn’t play well but we should have seen the game out and come away with three points, even when not performing well, which is disappointing.”

Luton will now look to build on this success when they go to basement side Port Vale this weekend, who have won just twice on home soil. Although buoyed by the midweek triumph, Clark knows they simply somehow have to find a way to turn things around outside of Bedfordshire, adding: “We know our problem this year has been the away form and we’ve got to stop that rut, got to win away from home and use this as a little springboard. I know the fans are fed up of hearing that, but we have to forget about what's in the future, just focus game to game and it's Port Vale who are next up.”