There, a much-changed United successfully booked their place in the Carling Cup's third-round draw.

But progress into the later stages of the competition was far from secure as Blackwell's team fell a goal behind before eventually overcoming a Huddersfield side whose performance belied their League One status.

Blackwell expects United's latest opponents to prove every bit as resilient as Stan Ternent's team, despite finding themselves in the midst of a debilitating injury crisis.

But Wednesday night's subdued display in West Yorkshire has done nothing to dissuade Blackwell that he has the options at his disposal to continue United's encouraging start to the new season.

"We'll go back to the normal line-up," he said at Shirecliffe yesterday.

"I thought Morgs (Chris Morgan) came in and did well; so did Killa (Matthew Kilgallon) and the rest of the back four.

"They had do.

"But I'm pleased that we could make seven or eight changes and still show the bravery to go out there and win.

"Huddersfield have never been anyone's mugs and it was always going to be a tough battle.

"You try to warn players about what to expect in these situations but, to be honest, sometimes it never really sinks in until they get out there.

"There have been a lot of Championship and Premier-ship clubs go out of the competition already and it always seems to be the case that the clubs lower down perform really well against those towards the top.

"So, all in all, when I sat on the bus on the way home and heard how things had gone elsewhere I wasn't disappointed.

"All I saw was the fact that we've now won our last four matches and that we're coming along nicely in the cup too."

Despite spreading some positive gloss across United's efforts at Huddersfield, Blackwell will doubtless feel aggreived that no-one currently on the fringes of his squad staked a claim for inclusion against Cardiff.

Morgan, now fully recovered from concussion, should start, but the majority of the starting 11 which triumphed 3-1 at Blackpool last weekend will return to the fold.

However, Blackwell was effusive in his praise for Darius Henderson's efforts and, after paying tribute to the £2 million marksman during his post-match press conference, predicted the former Watford striker will pose a threat to a Cardiff defence still searching for its first cleansheet this term.

"For me, Darius has been everything I expected," Blackwell continued.

"I think Hendo will be in his element against the likes of Darren Purse and Roger Johnson because they're big, tough centre-halves.

"Darius gives us a real physical presence up there, which we didn't have before he came in.

"The ball isn't coming straight back at us now and, because he's able to hold it up, it means we're able to play further up the pitch and be much more organised and methodical about what we're doing.

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