Showing posts with label huddersfield town. Show all posts
Showing posts with label huddersfield town. Show all posts
Wednesday, 19 May 2010
WANTED: NEW CUP FINAL OPPONENTS
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Friday, 14 May 2010
"We're not goin' to Wembley!"
ShareAs we bask in the glory of last Saturday and re-run the adrenaline rush time and time again with the hundreds of YouTube videos of that glorious day, its worth remembering that several times last Saturday we were languishing in the dreaded play-off berths.
As Mikkel Anderson, Bristol Rovers' goalkeeper, was misjudging his throw into Jermaine Beckford's forehead, The Mighty Whites were in the gut-wrenching 3rd place - 2 points behind Millwall. In a very simplistic view, had any one of the following mis-kicks not gone in our favour, today Leeds and their fans would be nervously getting ready for an early morning trip to The Galpharm, to face Huddersfield Town in a Play-off Semi-Final first leg (with the return leg at Elland Road next Tuesday night) - the worst possible climax to a season that promised so much. Anybody who has kept half an eye on Leeds United over their time in League One will know that trips down the A62 usually reap very little, and Leeds come up against a Town team raising their game for a bi-annual cup final.
It is with that in mind, and a smug grin on my face that I will settle back over the next five days and watch Huddersfield, Swindon, Millwall and Charlton battle it out for a place, along side ourselves and Norwich in The Championship. Judging by the drama of The Championship play-offs this week, the end of season lottery is quite a spectacle when you don't have a vested interest but a nerve-shredding nightmare when your team is involved... Lets just thank our lucky stars that we're not going to Wembley this year!
For the record, Dirty Leeds are hoping for
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Tuesday, 16 March 2010
Saints latest victims of 'The Leeds United Effect'
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Following Southampton's metamorphosis from a team that could easily have been mistaken for Barcelona on Saturday against Leeds into mid-table 'also-rans' at home to Swindon tonight, I decided to investigate this infuriating pattern that has been a mainstay of United's time in League One.
Its been said for months now that teams raise their game when Leeds United are in town or when lower league players get the opportunity to play in the relative splendour of Elland Road. Its easy to pass these comments off as a cliché or arrogance from a team 'living in the past', struggling to accept reality of life in English football's third teir. So as Southampton became the latest victim of 'The Leeds United Effect' lets see if this myth has any substance...
It turns out that of the 32 opponents Leeds United have faced this season in all competitions (51 matches) only 3 teams have managed to back up 'their cup final' performance by winning their next two league games! Colchester, Norwich and Brighton are the only clubs to keep their season on track following a fixture with Leeds. Astonishingly of the 8 teams that have recorded victory over The Whites this term, only two (Liverpool and Millwall) have backed it up with victory in their next league game. Moreover, Exeter City haven't won a single game since beating Leeds 2-0 back in January and Huddersfield Town have recorded 3 straight defeats since their almighty effort in the recent 2-2 draw at The Galpharm.
Hopefully we can escape this 'tin-pot' league with its 'tin-pot' clubs in the not too distant future and play against clubs who see Leeds United as just another fixture instead of playing like Brazil, in the carnival atmosphere that inevitably grips the Towns and Cities Leeds visit.
All this for a team that was once famous...
For more Leeds United discussion join the Dirty Leeds messageboards at http://www.dirtyleeds.com
Its been said for months now that teams raise their game when Leeds United are in town or when lower league players get the opportunity to play in the relative splendour of Elland Road. Its easy to pass these comments off as a cliché or arrogance from a team 'living in the past', struggling to accept reality of life in English football's third teir. So as Southampton became the latest victim of 'The Leeds United Effect' lets see if this myth has any substance...
It turns out that of the 32 opponents Leeds United have faced this season in all competitions (51 matches) only 3 teams have managed to back up 'their cup final' performance by winning their next two league games! Colchester, Norwich and Brighton are the only clubs to keep their season on track following a fixture with Leeds. Astonishingly of the 8 teams that have recorded victory over The Whites this term, only two (Liverpool and Millwall) have backed it up with victory in their next league game. Moreover, Exeter City haven't won a single game since beating Leeds 2-0 back in January and Huddersfield Town have recorded 3 straight defeats since their almighty effort in the recent 2-2 draw at The Galpharm.
Hopefully we can escape this 'tin-pot' league with its 'tin-pot' clubs in the not too distant future and play against clubs who see Leeds United as just another fixture instead of playing like Brazil, in the carnival atmosphere that inevitably grips the Towns and Cities Leeds visit.
All this for a team that was once famous...
For more Leeds United discussion join the Dirty Leeds messageboards at http://www.dirtyleeds.com
Sunday, 28 February 2010
"Leeds have F***** it up!"
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I have to say I was amused by Town's fans parody of our re-written 'Baby Give it up' chant. Whether they were referring to the game itself, the title race or one of the many situations that Leeds have managed to grab despair from the jaws of ecstasy is unclear. Nonetheless, credit must be given to the cretins who were residing in the stand to the left of the visiting support.
It was far from their only contribution though, even before kick off a 'man' in his late forties, shaven headed and clearly three sheets to the wind, decided to stand on his chair and goad the Leeds fans with some verbal diarrhoea. Safe in the knowledge that there were 100 or so other like-minded fools, stewards and police separating him from his would be victims. This was the same pillock who decided that Robert Snodgrass wasn't going to be allowed to take a throw-in midway through the 2nd half in-case Leeds scored again! Few can blame the man though, if I had to endure a life where I continually felt inadequate amongst my peers and the wife only let me out one afternoon each week, I'd act like a tosser too!
With all that in mind, I have to say my 4th visit to The Galpharm, has confirmed that it and Huddersfield in general is one of the most depressing places in Northern England, grim streets, grim atmosphere and seemingly always grim weather. The football stadium, although infinitely more modern than its surroundings, goes along the same lines - dull, uninteresting and soulless. I couldn't watch football there every week!
The local football fanatics offer little in the way of reprisal either, bitter, deluded and tin-pot (they play music when they score for Christ's sake) perhaps this is what comes from living your entire lives in the shadow of a larger, more successful neighbour. Although I'm not sure Man City, Everton or Spurs fans have succumb to such failings.
Celebrations akin to becoming the first domestic club to win The World Cup always ensue following any favourable result over their beloved West Yorkshire rivals but after yesterday's 2-2 stalemate, a result that all but rules Town out of the race for automatic promotion I expected sombre faces all round. To my surprise they were still celebrating a result that could prove valuable to Leeds' promotion ambitions. No doubt they will point to the fact they had snatched a deserved point form their most bitter rivals but that mentality is why they're destined for life in League One for a good while yet and probably why they haven't beaten any of the top five teams this season.
As for what all that means in the League One title race, and whether Leeds have indeed f***** it up, remains to be seen but a decent result was made even better by the chasing pack's inability to register a win a few hours later. Yesterday's result and performance against 'The Galacticos' of Huddersfield could prove to be vital. There is a long way to go still and plenty of strange results will undoubtedly occur as teams buckle under pressure but so far this season only two teams have produced under pressure; Norwich and Leeds!
It was far from their only contribution though, even before kick off a 'man' in his late forties, shaven headed and clearly three sheets to the wind, decided to stand on his chair and goad the Leeds fans with some verbal diarrhoea. Safe in the knowledge that there were 100 or so other like-minded fools, stewards and police separating him from his would be victims. This was the same pillock who decided that Robert Snodgrass wasn't going to be allowed to take a throw-in midway through the 2nd half in-case Leeds scored again! Few can blame the man though, if I had to endure a life where I continually felt inadequate amongst my peers and the wife only let me out one afternoon each week, I'd act like a tosser too!
The local football fanatics offer little in the way of reprisal either, bitter, deluded and tin-pot (they play music when they score for Christ's sake) perhaps this is what comes from living your entire lives in the shadow of a larger, more successful neighbour. Although I'm not sure Man City, Everton or Spurs fans have succumb to such failings.
Celebrations akin to becoming the first domestic club to win The World Cup always ensue following any favourable result over their beloved West Yorkshire rivals but after yesterday's 2-2 stalemate, a result that all but rules Town out of the race for automatic promotion I expected sombre faces all round. To my surprise they were still celebrating a result that could prove valuable to Leeds' promotion ambitions. No doubt they will point to the fact they had snatched a deserved point form their most bitter rivals but that mentality is why they're destined for life in League One for a good while yet and probably why they haven't beaten any of the top five teams this season.
As for what all that means in the League One title race, and whether Leeds have indeed f***** it up, remains to be seen but a decent result was made even better by the chasing pack's inability to register a win a few hours later. Yesterday's result and performance against 'The Galacticos' of Huddersfield could prove to be vital. There is a long way to go still and plenty of strange results will undoubtedly occur as teams buckle under pressure but so far this season only two teams have produced under pressure; Norwich and Leeds!
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