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Thursday 30 August 2012

Capital One Cup - Round 3

I always get mixed feelings about the Cup draw.

I make a mental note of our number, like everyone does, and then when every number comes out and the name is announced I sit and shout at the TV like it has the ability to change it.

If we would have drawn Doncaster or Arsenal away, I would have thrown a massive bitch fit, plainly because that tie would bore the living shit out of me. I didn't want Bradford, or scum and I didn't want to be going anywhere too far, as I would have to take two days holiday ha ha!!

I did however want an away tie because, well I just love away days :-)

As it turns out, Jamie and I both really wanted Everton away.

We did draw Everton....At home ha ha, never mind, it saves holidays and coach costs I suppose ;-)

This game will be played, week commencing 24th September.

MOT xx <3 xx

Wednesday 29 August 2012

Leeds United 3 - 0 Oxford United

The feeling around Elland Road last night was really relaxed, this wasn't a game we necessarily needed to win.

Warnock made a few changes last night as we thought he would, bringing Ashdown, Kisnorbo, Byram, Brown, White and Gray into the starting 11.

Sam Byram was in a new position on the wing and Gray was upfront with Diouf.

I must admit, for the first ten minutes I thought it may be a long night for us, the adrenaline must have been pumping for Oxford as they were straight on us and had quite a few shots and a lot of the possession.

Rodolph Austin had the first of the Leeds shots on goal though on the 12th minute which went just wide of the goal.

Adam Chapman for Oxford tested Jamie Ashdown though on the 18th minute and it was clear that they were full of confidence as Alfie Potter tried his luck with a shot from 25 yards out but it was blocked by Patrick Kisnorbo.

We did start getting into the game however and started playing some good football.
Rodolph Austin opened the scoring on the 27th minute with his first goal in a Leeds United shirt.

We were playing so much better now, working harder to exploit gaps in the Oxford defence.

Que Sam Byram, the youngster in his new position calmly took the ball past a defender and controlled it well, he then  chipped the ball over the goalkeeper who had no chance of saving it. What....A....Goal.

For the rest of the half, we kept piling the pressure onto Oxford who weren't dealing with it the way they were in the first 10-15 minutes of the match. They looked deflated and tired and the half time whistle couldn't have blown soon enough for them.

The second half began and Micheal Brown was penalised from the off when he brought down Sean Rigg.
The free kick was taken by Adam Chapman and Damian Butt made Ashdown make a save as they tried to get a foothold in the game.

El Hadji Diouf - who was having a much better game than Saturday, swung in a corner and Austin was waiting in the box who had a shot but it was saved by Oxford keeper, Clarke.

Rodolph Austin came so very close again to adding his second when he attempted a 40 yarder that he nearly pulled off, the bar came to Oxford's rescue though and the play resumed.

Sam Byram was looking for his second too when a volley of his just cleared the bar.

After 73 minutes Tom Lees got himself on the score sheet after Diouf crossed the ball in and Lees got his head on it to put the game past Oxford.

Diouf was taken off and replaced by Dom Poleon on the 76th minute of play.

Aiden White had two shots in as many minutes as we pushed on for a fourth goal.

Neil Warncok decided to bring Sam Byram and replace him with Lee Peltier just before full time, probably so he could get the plaudits he deserved for what was an amazing goal.

So that's it!! We are through to the third round of the Capital One Cup, the draw will take place tomorrow (Thursday) night.

I was really impressed with a lot of the performances last night. Neil picked the right squad to do the job.

I found it encouraging that we kept looking for a goal instead of sitting back. This is what needs to happen more with this team, as I mentioned yesterday, when we sit back instead of pushing for another we tend to get caught too deep and concede silly, preventable goals.
Obviously when you are pushing for a goal you need to be careful too that you are not caught on the counter so the midfield needs to be strong enough to deal with that kind of pressure and last night it was. Rodolph Austin being man of the match by a country mile, he was outstanding.

El Hadji Diouf also had a great match, which, after his performance on Saturday, I wasn't expecting. I am his biggest critic, but last night he did everything right, and he assisted two of the three goals.

Ashdown made some good saves when he was called upon to do so.

Sam Byram REALLY impressed me on the wing....We saw in pre-season he could score goals, and I think he settled in to that role. The work he did before he scored his wonder goal was superb and we coudln't have asked for more from him last night.

It was nice to see the lads who were on the bench yesterday having a bit of a laugh with each other during the pre-match warm up. They were all taking shots at Lee Peltier who was wearing Paddy Kenny's gloves, I hope Paddy never gets sent off and we have to use Pelt's as he wasn't very good ;o) ha ha.

Next up is Blackburn at Elland Road on Saturday. That is going to be one tough match. We've had a really difficult start to the season, lets just hope the lads are all full of confidence and fresh, ready to go.

MOT xx <3 xx

Tuesday 28 August 2012

Peterborough 1 - 2 Leeds United

I know, I know, I'm late with this, but I spent my whole Bank Holiday weekend decorating so I just couldn't find the time!!

It wasn't an early morning thankfully due to kick off being 3pm so it was nice to have a bit of a sleep in.
Even though it was a 3pm kick off, there was no time for a pre-match pint, the police ordered all the coaches to rendezvous at Peterborough services so we could get an escort into the ground.

We used to park in a car park just at the back of the away stand, however, this is currently being re-developed into the most random housing estate I have ever seen, so we parked in a car park about 5 mins walk away from the ground. The weather was sticky and humid, and just as we arrived, the heavens opened and the turnstiles weren't yet open, at this point, I was panicking as I am terrified of lightning and I knew it was going to start. Thankfully though they opened the turnstiles and we got into the ground, just in time, as the thunder rumbled for about half an hour (thank god it was under cover!!).

Though this was only the third match of the season, it felt like much more, it felt like if we didn't get 3 points from this, then we'd have some serious problems. Like I have said before though, there are no easy games, you can't go into a game and expect to win, it doesn't work like that.

As the teams came out on to the pitch, we took the roof off with the noise we were making. Though London Road is an old ground, it is one with character and the only one in this league with Terracing!! We never sit down at away matches anyway so it makes no odds to a lot of us if there are no seats. I honestly can't explain how loud we sang, it was one of those moments where the hair stands up on the back of your neck.
Approx 3,800 people all on top form singing: 'Your dad's a c**t and so are you' to Darren Fergusson just before the game kicked off, resulted in a wave from the Peterborough manager which then started a round of various other songs about him.

We started the game well, we looked strong, Ross McCormack having the first shot of the game in the 4th minute but the keeper dealt with the threat.

7 minutes in however and Luciano Becchio got the first goal when Ross McCormack crossed a ball into the box and Becchio was there to tap it in.

Scoring early is always good, but we then tend to soak up pressure which then usually results in a goal for the opposing team. I hoped we'd crack on like it was 0 - 0 and go for another.

Peterborough almost opened their scoring on the 13th minute when a corner was taken by Grant McCann and Shaun Brisley shot on target, however Paddy Kenny saved and the game continued.

As most of you will know, Paddy Kenny has a song that goes, 'Paddy Kenny, having a party, bring your vodka, and your charlie' - The lads came up with one for Rudolph Austin too on Saturday, which goes 'Rodolph Austin, having a party, bring your Rizla's and Bob Marley'....Qua....Li....Ty - I love it, though our players are probably going to be drugs tested more frequently ha ha!!

We were having the better of the play and seemed to be comfortable, the only time we ever looked shaky was when they were on the counter and they had the potential to cut through midfield.

Becchio and McCormack were looking strong and both had shots on the 23rd and 27th minutes, Becchio was just off target with a header and Ross had a shot blocked. It was encouraging to see that we were looking for another goal.

Emile Sinclair was booked on the 28th minute for what looked like a horror challenge on Lee Peltier.

Both sides had chances on the 34th minute of play when Ross McCormack headed just over the bar and Grant McCann had a shot blocked, though we were in control of the match, it was clear to see, Peterborough were not taking this lying down.

As storms continued to rumble on in the distance, the rain came down just as the referee blew for half time.

I was personally quite happy with the way we were playing, there is always room for improvement and we could have been tighter so that their counter attacks could have been dealt with faster but on the whole it was a good first half.

When the second half kicked off, the rain was really coming down.
We had a corner right from the off and that was taken by Ross McCormack, however it went out for a throw in. David Norris shot on target after Lee Peltier's second throw in but the keeper Robert Olejnik had it covered.

Peterborough responded though and shortly after Paddy Kenny was called into action after Lee Tomlin had a shot.

After a great bit of play, Luciano Becchio scored his second with a header right in front of us, we went crazy once again, but what was nice to see was the way the goal was celebrated by the team, A group hug in front of the Leeds United Faithful was lovely to see, it just felt like the togetherness was back in the squad. Luciano then knelt in front of the away supporter and did his trademark celebration.

The next 10 minutes of the game were a bit of a power struggle with no clear cut chances for either side. We were still winding up Darren Fergusson though with chants of 'He's gonna cry in a minute', he looked to be getting more and more irate the more the match went on.

just after the hour mark, we began to get a little sloppy defence wise and Lee Tomlin tested Paddy Kenny who just tipped the ball over the bar.

Though it was clear to see Peterborough were more in the game, it was still a struggle for either side to gain control of the game, but on the 73rd minute a shot by Michael Bostwick made the score 1 - 2. Leading up to the goal Luke Varney had missed a chance to clear the ball which ultimately gave Peterborough a chance to score, silly mistakes can be costly. My immediate thought was 'Oh shit, not again' however I hoped it would give us a kick up the arse as they only had a one goal deficit now and had everything to play for with plenty of time left on the clock.

From the kick off The Posh were fired up and a shot by Paul Taylor just went wide of the goal, it was clear to see we needed a change, a fresh pair of legs to hopefully stop them equalising.

El Hadji Diouf, who didn't impress, was replaced by Sam Byram.

The shots kept on coming though as Grant McCann tried to even the odds but the shot (thankfully) went wide ha ha.

Dom Poleon was given a run out as he replaced Ross McCormack just before 80 minutes. He made an impact and almost straight after he came on, he was brought down by Danny Swanson who was booked for the challenge.

Luciano Becchio was replaced by Andy Gray just before 90 mins.

Grant McCann was really hunting an equaliser and had yet another change on the 90th minute, however it wasn't to be.

4 minutes of Fergie time was announced which seemed like forever as Peterborough piled the pressure on us and had a couple more shots on goal. As the whistle blew, I was able to breathe a sign of relief. We came out of it with an important 3 points.

A lot of people were annoyed at the performance, and admittedly a lot of the 2nd half was not easy to watch as a fan and there were more mistakes than we'd like. I have had to learn the hard way however that you can't dwell on it, when you support Leeds United, no two games are ever the same, we never do things the easy way.

Luciano Becchio was back to his old self. It was one of the best games I have seen him play in quite a while, not just the goals he scored, his defensive headers, clearing the ball from the box, away from any danger. His goals were taken really well and the togetherness after his second really was heartwarming. He was definitely my man of the match.

Austin was another one who had a good game, solid tackles, held the ball well, he's impressing me, I think it must have been the excitement of the new song we have for him ;o)

Peterborough were the quietest set of fans I have ever witnessed. We out sung them all game, the only thing I heard from them was their stupid drum and the cheer after their first goal, they were rubbish!!

We play Oxford in the Capital One Cup at home tonight. Back in the Kop for me as I can't have my Season Ticket seat again.

At a guess I would say Neil Warnock will rest quite a lot of the first team and give the likes of Poleon, Kisnorbo and Gray a game.
Oxford are doing really well in League 2 at the moment, sitting pretty at the top after winning three and drawing one of their last four games!!

MOT xx <3 xx

Wednesday 22 August 2012

Blackpool 2 - 1 Leeds United

Tuesday could soon overtake Monday as my most hated day!! We never bloody win on a Tuesday!!

The day started off brilliantly, went to the pub for a couple of pints before getting on the coach, the weather was pleasant and warm, lovely.
Gets into Lancashire, the skies got darker and darker and suddenly the heavens opened. Rain?! RAIN?! It POURED it down for a good half an hour, however when we pulled off just outside Blackpool for (another) couple of pints (or more), the rain stopped and revealed nice blue skies.


I should have known it wasn't going to be a good day when I attempted to dry my hands under the condom machine, and a couple of old ladies walked in, it was then, and only then, I realised why my hands weren't drying....I did wonder why they weren't, I bet they thought, christ its not even half 5, she must be on a promise!!

Anyway, we left there and got to the ground in good time.

Blackpool is not a ground I look forward to visiting, it is a flat pack plastic ground with little atmosphere and the away end is shocking for the money. It does say on the ticket, ' restricted view' but you still pay £25 for the pleasure. You have to literally stand on your tiptoes and bob about to see the far end of the pitch.

We knew before the game kicked off, this was going to be a really big test for us, bigger than Wolves and it was.

As assumed, Paul Green could not play due to his knee injury so Tom Lees was back in the starting 11 and Peltier moved to Left Back.

The first 10 minutes of the game were tit for tat really with both teams having chances at opening the scoring, the first real chance came from Ross McCormack who shot wide inside the first 5 minutes.

Tiago Gomes had plenty of chances to score just before the quarter of an hour mark but Paddy Kenny came to the rescue to keep the score 0 - 0.

The first goal was scored when Ross McCormack swung in a lovely ball and Tom Lees was there to head it in on the 17th minute.

The pressure was then all on us as Blackpool stepped it up a gear and we found it difficult to step up with them in order to keep them at bay.

Paddy Kenny was pulling off some first class saves though as Blackpool kept on pushing to equalise.

With 41 minutes on the clock, Blackpool's man of the moment, Thomas Ince had a shot but it went just wide, it felt like a goal was coming, it was just a matter of when.
Ince had another shot at goal just before half time which went over the bar and as the half time whistle went, there was a sense of pride and also relief that we had dealt with the pressure so far. We could tell the game was far from over.

Straight away, Blackpool came out, all cylinders firing and Ince had two shots on goal in the first five minutes of the second half, one off target and one that was blocked.

Though the game was getting tougher by the minute, I was trying to be positive and thought, if we played like we did on Saturday for the whole game, we might just be Okay. 
Sadly my optimism didn't last long.

On the 49th minute, Ross McCormack had a shot on goal, but it was just off target.

Thomas Ince was unstoppable now and with confidence for Blackpool growing by the minute, he tried his luck to get the first for Blackpool on the 52nd minute, but again, it was just too high.

El-Hadji Diouf came on for Ross McCormack on the 58th minute.

The next 10 minutes or so were a bit of a power struggle, we had the better of the shots but Blackpool were the better and stronger team. David Norris and Luciano Becchio both trying to get the 2nd goal that we so desperately needed.

Blackpool then took control of the game entirely and finally, on the 75th minute subsitute Nouha Dicko scored the first goal for The Tangerines.

The second goal for Blackpool came with 80 minutes played by Matt Phillips.

By the time the game began to draw to a close, there was only ever going to be one winner as Blackpool kept coming at us and exploiting our weaknesses and in the final minutes we were very lucky it wasn't 3 - 1 due to last minute shots by Ludovic Sylvestre and Matt Phillips respectivley.

But, after 4 minutes of added time, Blackpool had stolen all three points and they deserved them too!!

They were a damn good team, and if they can keep hold of their players, they are going to be a real force in this league. Thomas Ince looking like the danger man in a team full of great players.

Sadly it wasn't to be for us. I was in possibly the worst mood ever coming out of the ground, but that was plainly because I was so frustrated that two late goals had killed us off. If both teams had played like they did in the first half we'd have probably left with at least a point!! You don't win games with if's and but's however and we have to now leave that behind and get our heads up, straight on to the next game.

Another away match on Saturday, this time, Peterborough!! 

MOT xx <3 xx




Monday 20 August 2012

Monday....

Monday. Where the hell did the weekend actually go?!

This morning was a massive pain in the arse, I went to catch the bus at exactly the same time as I normally do, but almost 30 minutes later, I was still waiting, in the pouring rain and then, yeah, you guessed it....Two came along at once, oh the irony.

Anyhow, I realised when I got in this morning, that I never spoke about how well Rodolph Austin did against Wolves!!!! He was brilliant!!!! He put a right shift in and made some fantastic tackles and commanded midfield really well. Really looking forward to seeing him tomorrow night in Blackpool.

It also occurred to me that I took a half day tomorrow to get to the match but I didn't think about the time were going to get back and how knackered I'm probably going to be....Fail.

Just heard that Sam Byram has signed a three year deal with us, which I see as fantastic news, he impressed pre-season and he did well at Shrewsbury but on Saturday he really did give it his all. It's always nice when a player comes through the Academy and does well. Really really happy and hope he continues to do well :o)

We are currently waiting to hear the extent of Paul Green's knee injury he sustained on Saturday, but Warnock has said on the Official Site 'I don't think it's going to be very good and we could be losing him for a few weeks, if we're lucky.' - I am disappointed by this news as he was playing really well before the injury.

Still convinced tomorrow is going to be a really tough match but still really looking forward to it.

Safe journey to everyone going down and hope the weather stays dry for our trip to the seaside :o)

MOT xx <3 xx



Sunday 19 August 2012

Leeds United 1 - 0 Wolverhampton Wanderers

Woke up on Saturday morning and was in the best mood EVER!! I was so excited and couldn't wait to get to Elland Road for the first match of the season. 

Words can not describe how giddy I was when I got inside the ground, I felt like a kid at Christmas, even more so when I got sat in my seat. 
We watched the players warm up, warm being the operative word, it was bloody roasting, and slowly but surely the stand began to fill up with familiar faces, faces you know personally and faces you don't, but without them, it wouldn't be the same.

As the players came out, the noise was unbelievable for the amount of us there, the atmosphere was back and there was optimism in the air. A minutes applause was held and respected by all, for Leeds United fans that passed away over the summer.

Lee Peltier was given the Captain's armband for the match, but we are still none the wiser as to whether he is the permanent Captain.

The whistle blew for the start of the match, and we started really well, we looked sharp and in control.

The chances were coming thick and fast for us and we nearly went 1-0 up inside the first 15 minutes when Luciano Becchio passed to a fast approaching Ross McCormack to head home the first, however the ball went slightly wide and it was a goal kick.

We looked deadly and the whole team were doing their job in all parts of the pitch. Young Sam Byram had probably the hardest part to play, marking Matt Jarvis who is centre of speculation at the moment as West Ham have been trying to lure him back to the Premier League. Yesterday however, he looked pretty average and never looked like someone we couldn't deal with.

It is so refreshing to have a keeper like Paddy Kenny, his kicking was fantastic yesterday, and that showed when he kicked the ball upfield to a waiting Ross McCormack who crossed it in to Becchio to finish with a great header and get the first, and only goal of the match.

Usually when we score an early goal, we find it hard to defend, and usually let one in at the other end in very quick succession, however, yesterday was very different and even though Wolves were trying to get into the game, we were solid defensively.

Paul Green was having a fantastic match but his Championship debut for us was cut short just before half time when he succumbed to a knee injury he'd sustained about 5 minutes earlier. He was replaced by El Hadji Diouf.

Half time came and a lot of us found ourselves looking at each other and talking about how surprised at the quality of the football was we had just played, but we knew Leeds United, and we were preparing ourselves mentally for a tough second half.

We started the second half brightly and had a couple of chances early doors however, it was clear that Wolves had come out and had a little more fire in their belly than they did in the first half, Peszko almost equalled the odds but Byram was there to see off the danger.

Our work rate slipped a little in the second half, and Peszko came close to scoring again, we were letting Wolves in to the game a little more than I was comfortable with and we were understandably looking tired. Warnock decided to change it on the 75th minute as Ross McCormack made way for Tom Lees to come on, after recovering from an injury that kept him out of last weeks cup tie against Shrewsbury.

The closing minutes of the game belonged to Wolves as they worked hard to try and get an equaliser but to no avail.

Byram almost got a goal for himself on the 88th minute after moving into midfield with a shot from about 25 yards out, we know he can hit them, as we saw in pre-season, not this time however, and the game continued.

The board went up for added time, which was 5 minutes, which seemed like forever!!

Probably the most promising shot on target for Wolves was in the 2nd minute of added time as the post seemed to come to the rescue after a header from Doumbia, however, a free kick had been given as Doyle brought down Peltier.

The whistle blew for full time, and we were relieved and pleased about how we'd played for most of the game.

Stand out players for me, well, probably too many to mention. Diouf did what he needed to do, and he did it well, he held up the ball well towards the end of the game. Varney, Norris and Pearce, so solid, really happy with the way they played. Becchio, I am ever critical about the way he sometimes goes down too easily, instead of staying on his feet, however, yesterday, it seemed like the old Becchio was back, he worked really hard and got in some great scoring positions, I hope this season we see more of the Luciano we know and love, and back to his prolific best :o)
Byram did so well, he had such a tough task marking Jarvis and he looked like a regular, I am always happy when we bring someone through the youth and they get a chance in the first team, I think he will play his heart and his soul out for this team, looking at him yesterday, it was hard to believe he is only 18!!
The only player I am going to be quite critical of here is Aidy White. White has the pace to hurt a team, blistering pace, he can skip away from opposing midfielders, but often manages to lose the ball instead of lifting his head and trying to find a pass to waiting attacking midfielders/strikers. I think it will come in time, we have to remember, it was the first match of the season!!

We did what we needed to do and we did it well, next match is Blackpool away, loving the fact that it is on Tuesday night, so I don't have long to wait for another fix ;o) I think though, this will be a much tougher match than yesterday and we will need to stay defensively strong as their winger Thomas Ince, scored two yesterday in Millwall.

3 points on the board though, exactly what we wanted :o)

MOT xx <3 xx



Friday 17 August 2012

Ross puts pen to paper with new 3 year deal

BRILLIANT news that Ross has signed on with us for 3 years.

Hope this is a good start to a great weekend :o)

MOT xx <3 xx

Its almost here!!!!

I have been in the biggest crappiest mood ever this week and I couldn't put my finger on why, but now, its Friday, its the eve of a new season and I couldn't be more excited.

That feeling at the start of a new season is wonderful isn't it, full of joy and hope and excitement, I don't think I've ever been so excited to get back to my season ticket seat!!!! I might hug it.

Wonder how long it is until we are complaining though ha ha, the excitement never seems to last with us does it?! I will savour this giddiness though and carry it on to tomorrow where I will probably be a unbearable and sat in my shirt waiting to go at like 9am ha ha!!

I also decided I am not going to do any predictions this season, because, well, no-one really knows do they!! I am also going to try and be less superstitious as well because I am actually terrible.

Warnock has said he hopes that Tom Lees is back in the side after his injury that prevented him from playing last weekend and he hopes the guys coming back from International Duty will be okay too.

What a goal by Ross McCormack by the way!! Really well worked running round the defenders and slotting one in on his return to the Scotland squad, here's to hoping he does something like that tomorrow, and signs a contract!!

Hope we all come together tomorrow and raise the roof of of Elland Road for a new season :o) It will be a tough game though, I reckon Wolves are going to be pretty up for it to say the least, they will be out to make a point after being relegated from the Premier League last season. Here's to a good match and hopefully some points on the board.

MOT xx <3 xx

Sunday 12 August 2012

Leeds United 4 - 0 Shrewsbury Town

It was so nice to wake up yesterday knowing that I'd be going to Elland Road to watch my boys :o) 

We sat in the Kop yesterday as we couldn't have our Season Ticket seats. I must admit I love the atmosphere in there & miss it from time to time, however, there is a lot less room. There was a woman sat next to me who had a handbag with her and it wasn't small, now, I myself am guilty of carrying round a handbag the size of a small continent, but not at Football....I was hit with her stupidly large handbag on numerous occasions throughout the match, so annoying, don't bring a handbag that size to football if you can't control it ;o)

It had come to our attention pre-match that El Hadji Diouf was at Elland Road....As the team came out for warm up, so did he. Now a massive part of me can't stand the bloke in any way shape or form, I can honestly say I never thought I would see him in a Leeds shirt and I was slightly concerned about how he'd be accepted into the changing room after spitting on Ross McCormack but they seemed to be getting on fine.
Of course we like to be known as 'Dirty Leeds' so he fits right in there, I just hope he's not too much of a tosser and hope he doesn't get sent off every other game.
We have signed Diouf on a non-contract basis and he started on the bench.

We started the game in a really shaky, nervous, sloppy way and the first 10-15 minutes were painfull, Shrewsbury were playing much better football than us, they got in our faces and we just looked asleep. It felt like last season had never ended in a way and all I kept thinking was 'It's going to be a long season'. However one of our new signings Rodolph Austin shot from distance and Becchio was in just the right place to net his first competitive goal of the season.

Things started to look much better for us as we began to settle into the game and Luke Varney was the next to score on the 26th minute.

As half time came I felt a lot happier than I had done earlier on, our passing and movement were getting better and better with every minute, we looked comfortable, but we had to keep that up, one wrong move and I had a feeling Shrewsbury would pounce.

Shrewsbury brought around 1,500 fans with them, fair play really they brought more than some of the Championship sides last year.

As the second half kicked off I was worried we might slack off a little bit and let Shrewsbury back in the game, however, we carried on as we left off and looked threatening.

On the 65th minute of play, David Norris - The Captain for the match yesterday, netted one of his own making the score 3-0 to us. I can't remember the last time we looked so comfortable in a competitive game, it was actually good to watch!!

Ross McCormack was the next, and last man to get on the scoresheet after the Shrewsbury defender handled the ball in the box and a penalty was awarded to us.  
Ross celebrated his goal by imitating putting pen to paper and signing his contract, nice to see he actually wants to sign up, lets wait and see how the contract talks go!!!!

So the game ended and we won the game comfortably, it was a little strange walking out of Elland Road in a nice mood.
If we can conquer the whole 10-15 minute lull we had at the start of the game we might be alright!! 

There were a lot of positives to take out of yesterday though. Young Sam Byram had a great game at the back, as Neil Warnock said he looked like he'd been there all his life.
Green and Norris also had fantastic games too.
Got to give some plaudits too, to Paddy Kenny, he was great yesterday made some fantastic saves. It's great to see a keeper of ours that can kick too.

As a team I think they all played well, still work to do and room for improvement, but it was a positive start.

First game of the season next week at home against newly relegated Wolves.

MOT xx <3 xx

Friday 10 August 2012

Takeover News....

We should know by now that Leeds United never do things the easy way. In fact I'm that used to us doing things the hard way, I'm not even sure there is an easy way.
I am of course talking about the 'Takeover' or lack of it!!

Rumours began to circulate yesterday morning that the planned Takeover had collapsed - these rumours were soon confirmed by the Leeds United Supporters Trust and soon after the press were reporting the story too.

I think we had all assumed something like this would happen, but I sort of panicked, I physically can't see this club go through any more crap, we've been through so much as a team and this takeover would be the start of a new Leeds United. New team, new season, new owners, new start, and suddenly that was all gone, and we were back to square one.

The club released a statement at around 4pm that read:

A club statement...

Leeds United ('The Club') announces that the exclusivity period granted to a potential investor as mentioned in the statement of 26 June has ended.
The Club remain happy to continue discussions, but not on an exclusive basis, so as not to prevent other options passing.
The first priority must be to ensure that the credibility of any future investor or ultimate owner is such, that the Leeds legacy and its future is in safe hands, back in the Premiership.
The Club will continue to be receptive to approaches from potential new partners who can establish that they have the necessary credentials.
Meanwhile, it is encouraging that there is a new spirit at the club under the management of Neil Warnock and his ten new signings.

Now, of course, I read that about thirty times, trying to figure out what it actually means plainly because it is more light-hearted than I was expecting. Things still sounded positive but it sounded to me like the original investors had found something that had changed their mind about buying the club. My mind started to wander about what that could possibly be as we have come so far without any kind of hiccups!!

LUST issued a statement later in the evening:

Further to our reports earlier today that the proposed takeover of Leeds United has collapsed, we have been working to find out more details about the situation.
We were told that in the last few days negotiations between Leeds United and the potential investors were delicately poised, and that yesterday Shaun Harvey flew to Monaco for discussions about the deal. This morning we were informed that the deal for a takeover of the club had collapsed.
As soon as we were able we shared news of this development with our members and with the wider Leeds United fan base, who have been anxiously waiting for updates since the club’s last statement in June.
As the day has progressed, we have done all we can to get a full picture of the situation at Elland Road. What has become clear to us is that events are moving quickly, and that urgent discussions have been taking place in the light of this deal’s collapse.
Those discussions have resulted in this evening's statement from Leeds United on their official website, which has confirmed that the period of exclusivity agreed with a potential investor has ended.
The statement goes on to say that Leeds United are happy to continue discussions with this investor on a non-exclusive basis, and we are encouraged that the opportunity is still there to conclude a deal that had reached an advanced stage, but had looked to be over this morning.
We are also pleased to read in this statement that Leeds United remain willing to listen to approaches, and we welcome this positive stance. As we have stated previously, Leeds United Supporters' Trust have spoken with several parties interested in the future of Leeds United, and we are pleased that the door appears to be open for them to come forward.
At L.U.S.T. we remain committed to our Vision Statement and the desire our members have for change at Leeds United. While we are disappointed that the uncertain situation at Elland Road looks set to continue, we will keep doing all we can to help bring about a positive future for Leeds United.

As ever, we will update the fans with developments whenever we can.

I guess at the moment we are playing the waiting game for more information though I am told this morning, the deal is still very much alive....Lots of things going on and news is changing on an hourly basis.

Fingers crossed for some better news soon.

MOT xx <3 xx

Tuesday 7 August 2012

Pre-Season 2012 - Over

Shocking to think that after all that planning for the tour, all the travelling, looking forward to all the Pre-Season games, it's all over, and it's finished with a win at the Pirelli Stadium, Luke Varney scoring the only goal of the night on the 27th minute.

The full report is on the Leeds United website obviously as I wasn't there I can't write up what I thought of the game!!
Listening to Yorkshire Radio though, they kept using the phrases; 'It's a good workout' and 'It's not very exciting'....Self explanatory really!!

Really hoping we manage to get a striker in before the season starts, before the weekend would be ideal but defo before the start of the season. I think that is the missing link at the moment but obviously in the coming weeks we will get to know the team a lot better and what they are all capable of. Saturday should be interesting anyway.

MOT xx <3 xx

Burton Albion v Leeds United

The final Pre-Season match of the year gets underway tonight and I aren't there!!!!

I have discovered I'm a horrible person If Leeds are playing and I'm not there ha ha. Gutted I won't get to see Austin and Peltier hopefully play their first games tonight, really hope they do well. Hopefully things start slotting together a bit more tonight and we see an improvement on previous matches. Can't wait to get back to it on Saturday in the League Cup against Shrewsbury. Back to Elland Road. Back home.

Can't wait.

MOT xx <3 xx

Sunday 5 August 2012

Preston North End v Leeds United -Pre-Season Friendly 2012

As I write this I am currently hiding from the thunderstorm of epic proportions in Leeds. Hate lightning, unless I'm in a car then I love it (yeah, weird) Jay is being my thunder buddy for life, bless.

Thank god this didn't happen yesterday at the match otherwise I think I would have passed the hell out.

Pre-Season continued with a trip to Deepdale yesterday, and the score ended 3-1 to us.
Biggest surprise for me was seeing Patrick Kisnorbo in the starting line up, I like Paddy as a person and it's nice to see him back after he has been so unlucky with injuries of late. He didn't look too bad for the time he was on, but I think we need someone a bit more solid to really command that back line.

The game was by no means pretty, but there were some fantastic goals scored, none of which were scored by forwards!!!!
Preston were working really hard and were really coming at us in the first 20-25 minutes but Tom Lees chested and volleyed a superb header by Luke Varney to open the scoring. Really well worked.
Paddy Kisnorbo made way for Sam Bryam to come on in his place after 30 mins.
Preston were not down and out though and in the 2nd half a goal came for them in the 57th minute, Mousinho evening the odds at one a piece.
Becchio, McCormack and Brown all came off in the 60th minute of time and were replaced with, Drury, Gray and Pugh.
As we got in to the 2nd half we settled down a bit and began to look a lot more settled and organised, Pearce impressed showing his strength at the back.
Bryam put us in the lead again as he scored on the 66th minute but we weren't done with the goals yet. The last scored on the 80th.

We stayed to clap the players at the end, when Neil Warnock brought someone on who hadn't played.....Lee Peltier.
Absolutely fantastic signing in my opinion, good, solid defender, think he'll do well here, especially the way Lees and Pearce have been playing so well. Here's to hoping we might be solid defensively for the first time in a long time.

Next match is Burton away on Tuesday, then the League cup at home on Saturday :-)

I turned 23 on Friday so it was a nice little present to go for a couple of drinks and go to the Football!! :-) Jamie bought me the full new away kit with Becchio on the back of my shirt :-) Love it!!!!

MOT xx <3 xx