Dirty Leeds: 7 Days of Football (11/05/10)

In what will become a weekly feature of Dirty Leeds during the Summer and into next season, lets have a look back at the last 7 days of footballing news;

MIGHTY WHITES WIN PROMOTION
The only place to start really, Leeds finally escaped the dreaded pit of despair that is League One and in typical Leeds United fashion, it was far from straight forward and at one point had a grown man close to tears... To say that Daryl Duffy's goal rocked me to my very core would be the biggest understatement since Gary Neville revealed he 'admired' David Beckham. If the front man had ran into the crowd following his goal and stabbed me in the chest, I can't imagine it would have hurt more than watching him reel away in celebration of a goal that threatened to unravel 9 months of hard work and condemn Leeds to another season in oblivion.

What happened next was something that even the most long-standing of Whites supporters would consider a 'rarity'. Leeds United's players stood as one and mirrored the passion and desire that their supporters are famed for. Fighting back from the brink of disaster to the most glorious occasion Elland Road has witnessed since 1992... and the rest is history!

A quick mention to each and every player who has participated for Leeds United this season - Thank You!

BATES BRANDS EVERTON "A TWO-BOB" CLUB
Ever the epicentre of an argument, a less than sober Ken Bates belittled Merseyside's second club at the club's End of Season Dinner on Saturday night. Alledgedly claiming that Jermaine Beckford still has time to reconsider a Summer move to a "two-bob" club like Everton and stay with Leeds United. 

If money wasn't a factor, then I'd say you have a point Ken. However with Jermaine now 28 years old he needs to fund his future and unless you can relocate your cheque book then nobody can blame the lad for looking after number one. Jermaine has his critics but for a man who has been undoubtedly the single most important player for the club since our relegation form The Premiership and scored the two most legendary goals in our recent history, he owes Leeds United a sum total of - Nothing!

SPURS WIN TICKET TO EUROPE'S TOP TABLE
Never has such an over-hyped game been shown so much apathy. Seriously, did anybody outside East Manchester or North London really care which team finished fourth in The Premiership? Strangely more attention was on the fact that Liverpool had dropped out of the 'Big four', rather than which team would replace them. For the record Spurs won 1-0, thanks to a late Peter Crouch header. Again, the real story is where do the Anfield club go from here?

POMPEY SPIRAL OUT OF CONTROL
Having entered administration some two months ago with debts rumoured to be around £119M, the South Coast club have now fallen closer to the black hole of extinction with reports of them haemorrhaging £7.5M each month. Quite how they will fair with the lack of regular income between now and August is anybody's guess. Player sales will undoubtedly be rapid and at a fraction of their true worth and funds will fall a long way short of the required millions to stem the flow... Apparently looking at a 17 point deduction before the season even starts in August, one has to question if the club will even make it that far, or will the life support machine be switched off??

POINT DEDUCTIONS BECOMING A HABIT
Up until the infamous Summer of 2007, point deductions in the English game were a thing of legend, something only found in a small annotation in record books from way back when. Since the Football League dropped the unprecedented sanction of 15 points upon Leeds the day before the start of the new season, several clubs have fallen victim of the new 'toy' of the powers that be. Luton, Bournemouth, Rotherham, Southampton, Crystal Palace amongst others have all been hit with similar sanctions. Admittedly, the rules for entering administration are clear to all and few clubs can have a complaint when the 'minus 10' letter arrives in the post.

Strangely this week Hartlepool United were hit with a 3 point deduction just days before the final day of the season, throwing any plans of winding down, out of the window by dropping them deep into a relegation battle! The reason they were deducted 3 points was due to fielding an ineligible player, who should still have been serving a suspension. Clearly an admin error on someone's part. As it turned out the sanction was irrelevant and The Pools survived on goal difference, condemning Gillingham to the basement division.

Now all this seems perfectly straight forward but if you cast your mind back a few years when West Ham United 'knowingly' played Carlos Tevez in the majority of their games, even though they didn't own the player. The Premier League (Its worth noting the different governing body) decided, after much deliberation that no points would be deducted, thus relegating Sheffield United by the finest of margins; a single goal. Where's the justice in that!? Is it because nobody will really notice if Hartlepool are deducted points, are they too far North to even worry about?

Its also worth remembering that Leeds did something similar at Burnley a few years ago by fielding one too many loan players, although Leeds lost that game, points remained intact.

This seemingly 'random' approach to points deduction and sanctions needs to be clarified for everyone, sooner rather than later.

PREMIER LEAGUE INCREASE REWARDS FOR FAILURE
In the recent General Elections, a major topic has been that of Welfare, and the ridiculous way that this Countries Government's pay out to the terminally lazy and general under-achievers. Its a hot-topic, and probably one that almost won the Tories the vote!

As 'unbelievable' as the majority of tax payers see the current welfare system, The Premier League have adopted one of their own... Currently, clubs relegated from The Premier League into The Championship receive £16M over 2 seasons in 'parachute' payments. These payments are said to 'bridge the gap' in the difference of revenue between the two leagues, allowing clubs to restructure and adapt to their new, lower income. Unfortunately, that is rarely the case. Clubs spend all the cash trying to get back and end up where Southampton are. Portsmouth have already been given theirs for next season!!

Inexplicably, and for reasons that I can't grasp at the minute, it has been decided that relegated clubs (Clubs that have FAILED remember) will now receive a whopping £48M over the next 4 seasons following relegation!! Such ridiculous decisions are usually associated with UEFA and their 'rigged' seeding systems. What this new ruling is to achieve, apart from further alienate the lesser clubs in The Football League pyramid, is anybody's guess. Surely the idiots in suits can see that throwing money at the Premier League clubs further diminishes the sense of competition and the integrity of the game. Why not share the wealth equally between the four divisions? What chance have the likes of Millwall or Swindon (should they win promotion) or Leeds for that matter, have against a team who has £48M to spend? Rigged Deck!

WIGAN MAKE A JOKE OF PREMIERSHIP
Now its obvious that Chelsea are a very good footballing team and are deservedly Champions of England but for Wigan Athletic to be hammered 8-0 in supposedly the 'strongest' league in the world is an absolute shambles. Lets not forget, this is the same team that shipped 9 at White Hart Lane earlier in the season. They should be relegated by default and replaced by a team that can actually call themselves 'professional'.

Follow Dirty Leeds on Facebook and Twitter or join the Dirty Leeds supporters forums at www.DirtyLeeds.com

Dirty Leeds: 7 Days of Football (11/05/10)

Leeds aim for top spot!

Not usually one for regurgitating news, this is a bit of a novelty. A novelty in every sense of the word...

As posted on the Official Site, Leeds are releasing 'Marching on Together' as a single - Get it bought!!

Article in full

Our club anthem Leeds, Leeds, Leeds (also known as Marching On Together) has now been digitally re-mastered and is being released worldwide in 35 countries and in over 500 digital stores on Sunday May 16 as a Digital Download at 79p on iTunes.

The charts are now compiled on a Sunday to Saturday basis so fans are urged buy the track by Saturday May 22 in the hope of securing a chart position the following day in the charts that are compiled by the Official Charts Company and broadcast on most radio stations nationally every Sunday.

The track sounds amazing. It sounds like it has been dusted down cleaned and had a damn good polish to a perfect mirrored shine! State of the art technology has been used to bring out frequencies top bottom and mid range and various software has been used to enhance instrumentation on the original recording so it sounds far more superior than the original release 39 years ago.

This modern technology was not available in 1972 when it was first released has given the original track a new lease of life now you can hear this classic anthem that has stood the test of time like you have never heard it ever before!

If over 10,000 Leeds fans buy the track we hope to be in the top 10 by The Official Charts company!

Over 10,800 fans already pledged to buy the digital download on a facebook fansite put together by fans http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=393661090206 titled "Celebrate Promotion by making Leeds, Leeds, Leeds, ( Marching on Together No 1.)"

If 20,000 fans buy the 79p download on the first week of release on iTunes, Leeds, Leeds, Leedscould sit at the top of the charts.

Remember you can now follow Dirty Leeds on Facebook and Twitter.

Leeds aim for top spot!

We've done it!

After 9 months of ups, downs, ups and then downs, Leeds United are promoted!

The match against Bristol Rovers was Leeds' season summed up in 90 minutes. A strong start, full of enthusiasm and endeavour, with plenty of promise. The middle, which saw Leeds reduced to 10 men and go 1-0 down, was akin to the 4-month blip after beating the Salford Yanks in the FA Cup. But in the end, Leeds United triumphed and took one step back on their road to becoming one of the biggest clubs in England.

It's been said at times that some of the Leeds players don't have enough bottle or passion for the club. Nobody can fault the effort, passion or bottle yesterday. Too many times have the players crumbled after going a goal down, but with no room for error whatsoever, the Mighty Whites rose to the occasion.

For the final 25 minutes, 38,000 bums were squeaking, not least when high balls were thrown towards the United penalty area, but the tumultuous roar which erupted as the referee blew his final whistle was one of relief, pride and pure unadulterated joy.

Thousands of fans flocked onto the pitch to embrace their heroes, to celebrate with one another after a season which has seen many Leeds fans age beyond comprehension. Tears were shed, screams were screamed, and dances were danced on the hallowed Elland Road turf. We had done it. We had climbed out of the God-awful pit that is League 1, and made our way back into the 2nd tier of English football.

Simon Grayson, Andy Hughes, Patrick Kisnorbo, Johnny Howson, Jermaine Beckford, Luciano Becchio, and many others, have done what Leeds fans have been praying for, for 3 years. They've taken Leeds United up. And to do it in such a way made it all the more sweeter. Knowing that Millwall had won, and would have been celebrating when Rovers went 1-0 up, as we were at Charlton when news filtered through of Andy Robinson putting Tranmere 2-0 up, brought smiles to the faces of many.

Quite what to expect with Leeds next season is another matter, and no doubt many of the fans will be hoping the board show enough ambition to make it 2 promotions in 2 years, but for now the memories of the day we escaped the clutches of League 1 football will make the summer a very enjoyable one.

We've done it!

Hoist The Colours!!

I felt it necessary to draw attention to an article written in the Yorkshire Evening Post today. In which Gary Walker questions the current attitude of Leeds United fans and whether they are really helping the team in what is a very difficult period.

The article can be found here:  Do Whites fans want to help the team?

In short, Mr Walker rallies for a call to arms and a 'United' front from the Elland Road faithful for Saturday's vital game against Swindon Town (and presumably the rest of the season). Claiming the negative attitude from the fans is making a positive performance from the Leeds players almost impossible for fear of a very audible reprimand from the paying punters. Gary goes as far as stating that a negative and disgruntled home crowd at Elland Road is worth a goal start to any opposition and that's what Danny Wilson's men will be looking for this weekend.

Although long-winded and clearly written by a passionate fan who is desperate to use his influence to give the team any advantage that will help shove them over the line come May, I can't help but agree with the majority of it. This isn't me climbing on my soap box and demanding that everybody should follow my example... I was the first to vent my sheer frustration when Robert Snodgrass wasted a match-winning opportunity against Brentford and couldn't even muster a nod of acknowledgement for the players efforts at the final whistle against Millwall but it is very much 'Do or Die' for Leeds United now and we need to play our part in helping the lads rescue a season that could now be historic for all the wrong reasons.

I, for my part will try not to get so frustrated each time Jonny Howson gives the ball away or each time Jermaine Beckford falls over. I'll even bite my tongue when Neil Kilkenney is inevitably substituted in place of one of Simon Grayson's favourites for a token appearance.

For more Leeds discussion join the Dirty Leeds forums at www.dirtyleeds.com

Hoist The Colours!!

We don't deserve this!

So as Leeds United players trudged off after being tamed by the Lions last night, the boos echoed around Elland Road. Chants of "What the f**k is going on?" were audible for all to hear, even those who (perhaps wisely) opted to watch the game on Sky. With just a three-point lead over 3rd placed Millwall, along with playoff humiliation in both of United's previous League 1 campaigns, Leeds supporters have been left dreading the thought that similar heartache will fall upon them this season. But the question which is being asked is - were our fans right to boo the players?

Managers, coaching staff and players have come and gone through the years, but one thing has remained constant - the passion, desire, and love shown towards the club by the Leeds United fans. At least 20,000 pay to watch our beloved club at Elland Road each week for the third season in the third tier, coupled with the fans who sell-out allocations at away grounds time after time, but what reward have we seen?

What exactly have we got in return in the past 8 years from Leeds United and its owners? 2 relegations, 25 points deducted, administration, the loss of ownership of our stadium and Thorpe Arch, and 3 playoff disappointments, to name but a few.

On the pitch, the players in white did not have the bottle for the fight last night, and did not do their jobs. If we, as regular employees, performed our jobs to such a sub-standard level week after week, we would be sacked. Ken Bates famously said that to watch Premiership football, we'd have to pay Premiership prices. Well we certainly are paying Premiership prices, but the football aspect is somewhat lacking.

It is hard to put a finger on just what has gone wrong since we entered 2010, but it would seem nothing is working for Leeds at the moment. Even bringing in the gritty Paul Dickov, at the spritely age of 37, has failed to inject some desire into a lifeless United squad, who look a completely different outfit since those wonderful FA Cup performances in Manchester and North London. Quite why the team wasn't strengthened in January opens up a completely different can of worms, but time is rapidly running out for Simon Grayson to put things right.

If, somehow, Leeds to manage to hold on to the second automatic spot, then the long-overdue promotion party will be based more on relief than success. Leeds fans deserve medals for their long-standing support of the club, despite everything we've been through, and promotion this season from this league is the very least we deserve.

For more Leeds United discussion join the Dirty Leeds messageboards at http://www.dirtyleeds.com

Note from the editor: Welcome to our new author DIPDEES, hopefully the first of many excellent articles.

We don't deserve this!