Leedsunited.com 26/11/08
CLUB STATEMENT
26 Nov 2008
Leeds United announce accounts show profit of...
The directors of Leeds United Football Club Limited are pleased to be able to confirm that the audited accounts for the 14-month period to the 30th June 2008 show a profit of £4,553,000.
During the period the club made an operating profit before player trading of £902,000 from a turnover of £23,249,000.
On the field the club are seeking to gain promotion to the Championship at the earliest possible opportunity and to continue strengthening the club's Academy.
Off the field, the directors have identified that the re-purchase of both the Thorp Arch Training Facility and Elland Road as a priority within the next 12 months.
We are also seeking to gain planning consent for the development of the East Stand of the stadium to both increase income generated by the club on non-matchdays and improve matchday facilities for fans.
We would like to thank the club staff and fans for their support.
BBC 26/11/08
McAllister tells Leeds to battle
Leeds United manager Gary McAllister has called on his side to toughen up after their 2-1 defeat at Northampton.
The result saw Leeds slip outside the League One play-off places and McAllister told BBC Radio Leeds: "We've got to be up for these battles.
"When we're going away to grounds - I don't watch Northampton week-in week-out, but the effort used by them, is that the same every week here?
"If it was, they'd maybe be up in the similar position as us in the league."
The defeat came just eight days after Leeds won 5-2 at Sixfields in the FA Cup, and McAllister's prediction that Tuesday's League One clash would be a different affair proved prophetic.
"We knew it would be different from the cup tie," he said.
"They made it very difficult, they got in our faces and in the first half we never got going at all.
"In the second half we responded well and got on the front foot, but two bad goals again.
"We go in at half-time and I'm looking for a response again and I did get that - it was like night and day.
"I'm not looking for excuses for the first half but Northampton came and pressed and pressed and we were a little bit naive I felt - still trying to play too many passes when it might have been a night for knocking it a little bit longer.
"Second half we did knock it a little bit longer and got up behind it and looked a better team."
Jermaine Beckford's second-half equaliser was his sixth goal in just three games, but United's top scorer had to be withdrawn 10 minutes from the end.
"He's got a hamstring so we need to wait to see the degree of the problem," McAllister said.
But should Beckford be sidelined, McAllister said he would not rush into the loan market, which closes on Thursday.
"There's no point in bringing people in that aren't going to better the side - if there's somebody that can come in and make us better then we're going to be there trying to act.
"I don't think there's any need to panic and make massive changes - the crux and the ethos is going to stay the same and the 20 players have bought into that."
Yorkshire Evening Post 26/11/08
Cobblers gain quick revenge
By Phil Hay
Northampton 2 Leeds United 1
It was, as Gary McAllister predicted, a different game at Sixfields last night.
Victors by a healthy margin on the same pitch two games ago, Leeds United were not reckless enough to think that they would be allowed to take liberties with Northampton Town twice in the space of a week, but their unassuming attitude could not prevent the result which came at their expense last night.
The feeling among Northampton's staff that a second home game against Leeds could not possibly prove more humiliating or dissatisfying than their first was justified by a 2-1 victory that displayed the will to win they had lacked eight days previously.
Stuart Gray's team were cut down in last week's FA Cup first round tie by a hat-trick from Jermaine Beckford and their own lack of authority, losing 5-2 in front of a live television audience, but they tackled yesterday's game with more authority and refused to allow Beckford – or any of United's players, for that matter – to decide the outcome.
That honour was left to Nicholas Bignall, Northampton's on-loan striker who won the game with his first senior goal three minutes from time.
The odds were piled in Leeds' favour after their heavy defeat of Hartlepool United on Saturday, but United allowed Gray's team to edge ahead before the interval last night during their least convincing half of football for some time.
Liam Davis' opening goal was a splendid finish from 20 yards but it was not a strike from nothing, more the cumulative effect of one of the rare periods of League One football in which Leeds have been thoroughly dominated this season.
A midfield that, on its day, has had the measure of better teams than Northampton, saw their time on the ball limited and watched Gray's players control the flow of the game in a way which had seemed unlikely after United's excellent win at Sixfields nine days ago. The inevitable effect for 45 minutes was a complete lack of service to a set of forwards who had hit a purple patch before yesterday's game.
The improvement from Leeds after an inexplicably poor first half was unmistakable and deserving of praise, but Northampton had a goal to defend by the start of the second period and were under no obligation to show risky ambition.
United hit the post before the break and the crossbar after it, and Beckford's strike on 69 minutes placed a victory within their grasp, but McAllister will rue the time taken by his team to find a way into the match as greatly as he rues Bignall's basic winner. United's defending was again required to take its share of the blame for that goal.
Gray had hinted that he would counter the ability of Beckford with a man marker, but he did not follow through with the threat, leaving his defenders to share the responsibility of sticking to the striker like glue.
The task was carried out to good effect for over an hour, but was ultimately shown to be fallible.Included in their back four was the experienced figure of Andy Todd, signed by Gray on an emergency loan from Derby County, and the sense that last night's fixture would be more competitive than the most recent game between the clubs was borne out by the early skirmishes.Northampton's creativity was apparent from the fourth minute when Scott McGleish headed a flighted cross wide from six yards out, and there was more sting in the shot from Ryan Gilligan which clipped the frame of Leeds' goal five minutes later. David Lucas, United's goalkeeper, would not have reached the long-range effort had it curled inside his right-hand post.The energetic style of the hosts' marking and pressing contrasted with the ill-advised manner in which they stood off United's players during their FA Cup tie.
That they held the lead after 45 minutes was hardly a surprise after a half in which Leeds continually danced to their tune and played at the pace set by their hosts.
The opening goal came from the right boot of Davis, a screaming finish on the volley that beat Lucas' full-stretch dive on 28 minutes but which McAllister might have expected his defence to prevent.
The midfielder lost his balance as a cross from Gilligan rolled across the field from the right wing, but Davis regained his footing before Andrew Hughes could reach the ball, controlling it and dispatching it beyond Lucas with speed and precision.
United's performance before the goal had lacked the inspiration and ingenuity they had shown at Sixfields in the FA Cup, and Northampton were worth no less than their narrow lead.
Gray's defence lost Beckford momentarily in the 31st minute, calling on their keeper Frank Fielding to palm away a lovely curling strike from the forward.
But the examination of Fielding – a player whose previous two performances against Leeds had been more than a little eccentric – was disappointingly tame until the 10-minute spell before the break.
Beckford tested Fielding again when he reacted first to a loose ball inside Northampton's box and drove it against the keeper's legs, and he crashed another shot against the foot of a post after Kyle Walker misjudged Andy Robinson's high cross and let it drop over this head. It was through their leading scorer that Leeds looked most likely to reply.
Less pleasing was the foul committed by Fabian Delph on Luke Guttridge which incurred the midfielder's fifth booking of the season and an automatic one-match suspension, and the break was of far more use to McAllister than it was to his counterpart. Gray's team who left the pitch to a standing ovation.
The patting of backs was soon halted, however, as Robinson forced Fielding into two goalline parries after the break and then crossed to Becchio who drilled a sliding effort against the underside of the bar.
Fielding was as helpless at that moment as Lucas had been when his own goal was rattled in the first half.
By that fine margin, Northampton were allowed to retain their lead, though they succumbed to the temptation to defend increasingly deeply, perhaps through tension but also because of United's lingering and threatening presence inside their half. The pressure told in controversial fashion after 69 minutes.
Becchio and Jason Crowe contested a high ball 30 yards from goal and Northampton's defender crumpled to the ground under the challenge, but in the absence of any decision from referee Chris Foy, United played the ball out to Robinson whose cross from the right wing took a small deflection and found Beckford waiting to dispatch a fierce header at the far post.
McAllister sensed a victory at hand but Beckford then left the field with a hamstring strain, removing United's most vibrant attacking player and lessening their hope of crafting a second goal.
With three minutes to play the opposite occurred when Bignall rose to head home a Danny Jackman corner in a perfect copy of the two strikes conceded by Leeds at Sixfields last week, unchallenged in the air inside the six-yard box.
Deja vu, at a much higher cost.
CLUB STATEMENT
26 Nov 2008
Leeds United announce accounts show profit of...
The directors of Leeds United Football Club Limited are pleased to be able to confirm that the audited accounts for the 14-month period to the 30th June 2008 show a profit of £4,553,000.
During the period the club made an operating profit before player trading of £902,000 from a turnover of £23,249,000.
On the field the club are seeking to gain promotion to the Championship at the earliest possible opportunity and to continue strengthening the club's Academy.
Off the field, the directors have identified that the re-purchase of both the Thorp Arch Training Facility and Elland Road as a priority within the next 12 months.
We are also seeking to gain planning consent for the development of the East Stand of the stadium to both increase income generated by the club on non-matchdays and improve matchday facilities for fans.
We would like to thank the club staff and fans for their support.
BBC 26/11/08
McAllister tells Leeds to battle
Leeds United manager Gary McAllister has called on his side to toughen up after their 2-1 defeat at Northampton.
The result saw Leeds slip outside the League One play-off places and McAllister told BBC Radio Leeds: "We've got to be up for these battles.
"When we're going away to grounds - I don't watch Northampton week-in week-out, but the effort used by them, is that the same every week here?
"If it was, they'd maybe be up in the similar position as us in the league."
The defeat came just eight days after Leeds won 5-2 at Sixfields in the FA Cup, and McAllister's prediction that Tuesday's League One clash would be a different affair proved prophetic.
"We knew it would be different from the cup tie," he said.
"They made it very difficult, they got in our faces and in the first half we never got going at all.
"In the second half we responded well and got on the front foot, but two bad goals again.
"We go in at half-time and I'm looking for a response again and I did get that - it was like night and day.
"I'm not looking for excuses for the first half but Northampton came and pressed and pressed and we were a little bit naive I felt - still trying to play too many passes when it might have been a night for knocking it a little bit longer.
"Second half we did knock it a little bit longer and got up behind it and looked a better team."
Jermaine Beckford's second-half equaliser was his sixth goal in just three games, but United's top scorer had to be withdrawn 10 minutes from the end.
"He's got a hamstring so we need to wait to see the degree of the problem," McAllister said.
But should Beckford be sidelined, McAllister said he would not rush into the loan market, which closes on Thursday.
"There's no point in bringing people in that aren't going to better the side - if there's somebody that can come in and make us better then we're going to be there trying to act.
"I don't think there's any need to panic and make massive changes - the crux and the ethos is going to stay the same and the 20 players have bought into that."
Yorkshire Evening Post 26/11/08
Cobblers gain quick revenge
By Phil Hay
Northampton 2 Leeds United 1
It was, as Gary McAllister predicted, a different game at Sixfields last night.
Victors by a healthy margin on the same pitch two games ago, Leeds United were not reckless enough to think that they would be allowed to take liberties with Northampton Town twice in the space of a week, but their unassuming attitude could not prevent the result which came at their expense last night.
The feeling among Northampton's staff that a second home game against Leeds could not possibly prove more humiliating or dissatisfying than their first was justified by a 2-1 victory that displayed the will to win they had lacked eight days previously.
Stuart Gray's team were cut down in last week's FA Cup first round tie by a hat-trick from Jermaine Beckford and their own lack of authority, losing 5-2 in front of a live television audience, but they tackled yesterday's game with more authority and refused to allow Beckford – or any of United's players, for that matter – to decide the outcome.
That honour was left to Nicholas Bignall, Northampton's on-loan striker who won the game with his first senior goal three minutes from time.
The odds were piled in Leeds' favour after their heavy defeat of Hartlepool United on Saturday, but United allowed Gray's team to edge ahead before the interval last night during their least convincing half of football for some time.
Liam Davis' opening goal was a splendid finish from 20 yards but it was not a strike from nothing, more the cumulative effect of one of the rare periods of League One football in which Leeds have been thoroughly dominated this season.
A midfield that, on its day, has had the measure of better teams than Northampton, saw their time on the ball limited and watched Gray's players control the flow of the game in a way which had seemed unlikely after United's excellent win at Sixfields nine days ago. The inevitable effect for 45 minutes was a complete lack of service to a set of forwards who had hit a purple patch before yesterday's game.
The improvement from Leeds after an inexplicably poor first half was unmistakable and deserving of praise, but Northampton had a goal to defend by the start of the second period and were under no obligation to show risky ambition.
United hit the post before the break and the crossbar after it, and Beckford's strike on 69 minutes placed a victory within their grasp, but McAllister will rue the time taken by his team to find a way into the match as greatly as he rues Bignall's basic winner. United's defending was again required to take its share of the blame for that goal.
Gray had hinted that he would counter the ability of Beckford with a man marker, but he did not follow through with the threat, leaving his defenders to share the responsibility of sticking to the striker like glue.
The task was carried out to good effect for over an hour, but was ultimately shown to be fallible.Included in their back four was the experienced figure of Andy Todd, signed by Gray on an emergency loan from Derby County, and the sense that last night's fixture would be more competitive than the most recent game between the clubs was borne out by the early skirmishes.Northampton's creativity was apparent from the fourth minute when Scott McGleish headed a flighted cross wide from six yards out, and there was more sting in the shot from Ryan Gilligan which clipped the frame of Leeds' goal five minutes later. David Lucas, United's goalkeeper, would not have reached the long-range effort had it curled inside his right-hand post.The energetic style of the hosts' marking and pressing contrasted with the ill-advised manner in which they stood off United's players during their FA Cup tie.
That they held the lead after 45 minutes was hardly a surprise after a half in which Leeds continually danced to their tune and played at the pace set by their hosts.
The opening goal came from the right boot of Davis, a screaming finish on the volley that beat Lucas' full-stretch dive on 28 minutes but which McAllister might have expected his defence to prevent.
The midfielder lost his balance as a cross from Gilligan rolled across the field from the right wing, but Davis regained his footing before Andrew Hughes could reach the ball, controlling it and dispatching it beyond Lucas with speed and precision.
United's performance before the goal had lacked the inspiration and ingenuity they had shown at Sixfields in the FA Cup, and Northampton were worth no less than their narrow lead.
Gray's defence lost Beckford momentarily in the 31st minute, calling on their keeper Frank Fielding to palm away a lovely curling strike from the forward.
But the examination of Fielding – a player whose previous two performances against Leeds had been more than a little eccentric – was disappointingly tame until the 10-minute spell before the break.
Beckford tested Fielding again when he reacted first to a loose ball inside Northampton's box and drove it against the keeper's legs, and he crashed another shot against the foot of a post after Kyle Walker misjudged Andy Robinson's high cross and let it drop over this head. It was through their leading scorer that Leeds looked most likely to reply.
Less pleasing was the foul committed by Fabian Delph on Luke Guttridge which incurred the midfielder's fifth booking of the season and an automatic one-match suspension, and the break was of far more use to McAllister than it was to his counterpart. Gray's team who left the pitch to a standing ovation.
The patting of backs was soon halted, however, as Robinson forced Fielding into two goalline parries after the break and then crossed to Becchio who drilled a sliding effort against the underside of the bar.
Fielding was as helpless at that moment as Lucas had been when his own goal was rattled in the first half.
By that fine margin, Northampton were allowed to retain their lead, though they succumbed to the temptation to defend increasingly deeply, perhaps through tension but also because of United's lingering and threatening presence inside their half. The pressure told in controversial fashion after 69 minutes.
Becchio and Jason Crowe contested a high ball 30 yards from goal and Northampton's defender crumpled to the ground under the challenge, but in the absence of any decision from referee Chris Foy, United played the ball out to Robinson whose cross from the right wing took a small deflection and found Beckford waiting to dispatch a fierce header at the far post.
McAllister sensed a victory at hand but Beckford then left the field with a hamstring strain, removing United's most vibrant attacking player and lessening their hope of crafting a second goal.
With three minutes to play the opposite occurred when Bignall rose to head home a Danny Jackman corner in a perfect copy of the two strikes conceded by Leeds at Sixfields last week, unchallenged in the air inside the six-yard box.
Deja vu, at a much higher cost.