In early 2004, Abbott was signed on loan by Huddersfield Town as a makeshift replacement for Jon Stead who had just been sold to Premier League side Blackburn Rovers. He scored on his debut after coming off the bench against Bristol Rovers, going on to score four times in six games on loan. He was then bought for a fee of around £125,000. He would score only once more that season, but in 2004/05 became the first Town striker in 6 years to hit more than 20 goals as he struck 27 times in all competitions.