Mighty Leeds Weblog

The Bank of England Club were rumoured to be ready to bust the bank to get the signature of John Charles from Leeds United, and Sunderland legend Raich Carter, the Peacocks’ manager, was ready to do business. by Kelvin.Beattie Argus had tracked and reported this story with some enthusiasm in the Sunderland Echo in the spring of 1955. It was not the first time he had committed to print to tell readers the club were chasing the signature of “this great player”. Sunderland were known as the Bank of England club in the 1950s. Under the stewardship of chairman Ted Ditchburn and his board, they spent unprecedented amounts of money to buy in the best individual players of the age in an attempt to recapture the glories of halcyon days. With Bill Murray as manager for all of this ‘Bank of England’ period, Sunderland had just enjoyed their best-ever season (1954/55) in this era. They finished fourth in the First Division and got to the semi-final of the FA Cup, where they were knocked ou...

The economic potential of Yorkshire is evidently not being fulfilled. The scale of the prize was clear from the real estate investment and infrastructure forum UKREiiF, taking place in Leeds. The Mayor of West Yorkshire announced plans for a Mayoral Development Zone in Leeds that could accelerate 20,000 new homes for the city and boost major infrastructure projects like the redevelopment of Elland Road is a glimpse of what could be possible if vision is paired with political will. The plans would see former industrial land being put to good use with housing greatly needed in the region. This needs to be accompanied by investment in transport infrastructure. Namely the need for a tram network across West Yorkshire. The importance of delivering the West Yorkshire mass transit network was underscored by Leeds United director Peter Lowy. Mr Lowy makes a convincing argument for the first phase of the West Yorkshire mass transit project to run trams to Elland Road. He says that it wo...

Daniel Farke has just over 12 months left on his contract and the 49ers will have to make a renewal call Isaac Johnson Leeds United reporter If there was any doubt that the ball is in the 49ers' court when it comes to Daniel Farke’s contract, the Leeds United manager’s comments last week extinguished it. His daring decision to go strong on his demands of the board’s forward vision this summer, though hardly controversial, was pre-meditated and purposeful. It leads the observer to ponder why he decided to make such comments when he did. While the main contents - to be "ambitious" in the next three to five years and keep evolving - is exactly what fans want to hear, his suggestion of wanting to retain the "final say" on sporting matters and that he needed to be “convinced” of the next stage leaves supporters staring back at club chiefs. This is not the first time Farke has sent a message to hierarchy by the vessel of a press conference, having done so be...

Get the traffic cone Written by: Rob Conlon The beach balls were out and so was half of Leeds United’s team. In the last home game of the season, Sebastiaan Bornauw was playing his first ninety minutes in the Premier League at Elland Road. The bench was filled by kids yet to make their debuts. And by the end of the game, Leeds were operating with Wilf Gnonto at right-back and Joel Piroe at right midfield. There was no need for Leeds to win this game and that was as good a reason as any. The whole afternoon was a microcosm of the campaign, the weather oscillating between autumn, winter, spring and summer all in the space of a few hours, 93 minutes of patient resilience followed by the sweet release of jubilation and a chance to celebrate every member of this team for one last time. Hello, goodbye, United are back! Of those 93 preceding minutes, I can’t remember a great deal. The sparse notes I made on my phone reflect a care free afternoon that, in the case of Samu Saiz’s name b...

By Graham Smyth Leeds United proved against Brighton that you can have half an eye on the future and still do your job in the present. The Whites' smash and grab victory in their final home outing perfectly encapsulated their entire Premier League return. All season long they have remained competitive and therefore in with a chance of points. Against Brighton they came under serious pressure, defended for their lives and then won it by pouncing ruthlessly on a stoppage time error. Daniel Farke spent much of his pre-game presser talking about the future, both his and the club's. In his eyes the only possible way forward, together, is to be ambitious and not stand still. That was the backdrop to this encounter with a side who have firmly established themselves as a Premier League force and shown ambition that is close to being rewarded with European football. For Elland Road, some of which was bathed in sunshine, it was not a time for worrying too much about what is to co...

Leeds United never do things the easy way but under Daniel Farke, they make a way Isaac Johnson Leeds United reporter This season has been one of grit, resilience and showing teeth. Daniel Farke has engineered a side that the Leeds United fans love to get behind - one that fights to the end and thereby represents the club in the best way. It might not always be pretty but it gets the job done. Leeds started the season with a grinding 1-0 win over Everton and ended it with an attritional 1-0 victory over Brighton & Hove Albion yesterday. The Seagulls were playing for something, needing a win to keep their outside Champions League hopes alive. That made the result all the more pleasing, and it showcased United’s mentality given they themselves had nothing to play for. This was best typified by Wilfried Gnonto - who has had limited game time this season with interest from Freiburg sure to be the first of many summer enquiries - heading away a vital header towards the end. ...