Mighty Leeds Weblog

BEEN HERE BEFORE Written by: Rob Conlon If there’s one person who can keep a healthy perspective on Leeds United’s 2021/22 season, it’s Eddie Gray. The weekend marked two anniversaries with very different vibes for Gray at Leeds. He was among the heroes of 1972 parading the pitch pre-match, celebrating fifty years since the club’s only FA Cup win, now immortalised by plaques outside the East Stand designed by Paul Trevillion (and, cough cough, a special issue of The Square Ball). But Sunday’s draw was played forty years on from a fixture involving eerily familiar circumstances: Brighton visiting Elland Road, the penultimate game of the season, Leeds facing the all too real prospect of relegation. Gray was wearing the number 7 shirt that day against Brighton in 1982, 34 years old, the glory years he spent under Don Revie consigned to a different era. Just like on Sunday, Brighton were winning 1-0 at half-time, and going into the final ten minutes Leeds were looking doomed. Allan...

YorkshireSquare A fifth round FA Cup tie against Mansfield town fifty years ago may not seem like it should be one of the most important in Leeds United’s history, but it stands out for one reason. Everyone can name the great Revie era team can't they? The one that trips off the tongue; Sprake, Reaney, Cooper, Charlton, Hunter, Bremner, Giles, Lorimer, Gray, Clarke and Jones. Well those eleven were only at the club together for four years between 1969 when Allan Clarke joined and 1973 when Jack Charlton left. Saturday, 7th February 1970 at Elland Road against Mansfield was the only occasion that famous eleven started a game together. It was one of the few games missed by Don Revie’s Rolls-Royce, Paul Madeley. A near ever present during those four seasons, Madeley was most versatile player ever to wear the Leeds shirt. He made 724 first team appearances, spread over an incredible 17 year span at Leeds, scoring 34 goals, playing in every position except goalkeeper. Perhaps the Ma...