[Archived] PREVIEW : Rovers vs Leeds Utd - Saturday Feb 23rd 3.00pm

[majorstyre]

ROVERS V LEEDS UNITED - FEBRUARY 23rd - EWOOD PARK KO 15.00

As a lad back in the eighties , the Yorkshire derbies were the games i always looked forward to -

the likes of Leeds, and the two Sheffield clubs always used to bring a large crowd and made for a great atmosphere

However that was then and this is now, and the one thing that will be certain, is the fact that the game will not be a sell out...

The heady heights of days past have both escaped these teams....

Both teams will approach this game as a must-win, with the play-off positions starting to move out of reach, and a loss for either side would surely see the hope of an end of season finale disappear once again........

A LEEDS POTTED HISTORY

Leeds United

Formed : 1919

Home Ground : Elland Road

Nickname : The whites

Honours :

First Division Winners 1968–69, 1973–74, 1991–92

FA Cup Winners 1972

League Cup Winners 1968

FA Charity Shield Winners 1969, 1992

FA Youth Cup Winners 1993, 1997

European Cup Runners Up 1975

Cup Winners' Cup Runners Up 1973

Inter-Cities Fairs Cup/UEFA Cup Winners 1968, 1971

Back in the late sixties & early seventies the Leeds were the best team in the land bar none. They were a hard uncompromising side with players of the ilk of Billy Bremner & Eddie Gray. Between 1965 and 1974, Revie's Leeds United side never finished outside of the top four, winning two League Championships the FA Cup, the League Cup and two Inter-Cities Fairs Cups

The eighties brought harder times and they shared the second division with other teams of olde, but won promotion back to the big time in 1990

This was once again a echelon period for the Leeds culminating in becoming the last team to win the old English Division One 1992 (the season afterwards, the new FA premier league started)

They rubbed shoulders with the big boys in Europe over a number of seasons, including a Champions League semi final in 2001 against Valencia.

But they reached to big, and financially imploded, and were relegated 2004. More financial penalties left them relegated to league One in 2007, but under new owners and steadying of the financial ship saw them promoted back to the championship in 2010

HEAD to HEAD

The bragging rights for this match sit very firmly with the Leeds

Blackburn Wins = 26

Draws = 22

Leeds Wins = 40

Last meeting in the league was 1st September 2012, at Elland Road

Leeds United 3 - 3 Blackburn Rovers

(Diouf/McCormack/Becchio) (Olsson/Gomes/Rochina)

The last Ewood meeting in the league was 10th April 2004 (in the premier league)

Blackburn Rovers 1-2 Leeds United

(Short) (Caldwell/Viduka)

The last home meeting in this division was way back on 13th January 1990

Blackburn Rovers 1-2 Leeds United

PLAYERS WHO PLAYED FOR BOTH in recent years include:

El-Hadji Diuof (Rovers 2009-2011)(Leeds 2012-present)....sometimes "controversial" striker....

Stephen Warnock (Rovers 2007-2009)(Leeds 2012-present)....sound solid full back

Paul Robinson (Leeds 1998-2004)(Rovers 2008-present)....goalkeeper, currently sat on a beach somewhere..?....

Simon Grayson (Leeds 1988-1992) (Rovers 1999-2002)(Leeds Manager 2008-2012)

Robbie Fowler (Leeds 2001-2003) (Rovers 2008).....ok, he played 3 times for Rovers..!!..

Jason Wilcox (Rovers 1989-1999)(Leeds 1999-2004)....Winger, Title medal winner at Rovers, how i wish for his kind of service to Rhodes nowadays

David Batty (Leeds 1986-1993)(Rovers 1993-1996)(Leeds 1998-2004)...Hard midfielder, won the Title both with Leeds & Rovers

Duncan Mckenzie (Leeds 1974-1976)(Rovers 1978-1981)....was the record transfer purchase for Rovers for many years until Uncle Jack tipped up with his wallet

QUESTION TIME

I called upon an old colleague of mine, who i worked with a few years ago, who supports The Whites, for the almost mandatory opinions of the opposition

So many thanks to Trevor Blackburn (! Leeds fan with Blackburn surname, may be confusing for some of you)

I fired him some questions and these are his answers......

1) How long have supported Leeds?

I've supported Leeds for 48 years

2) Best & worst memories?

The best memory winning the Cities Fairs Cup the first time, the worst getting beat by Sunderland in that F.A. Cup final.

3) How do you think this season has gone so far for you, and ultimately what are your expectations for the end of the season?

We began the season full of hope, exited about the takeover talks but it dragged on too long. I think it actually spoilt our season, so now a play-off place would be a bonus.

4) How much attention have you been paying to the circus at Ewood this season, and what are your opinions...if any?

Only taken a slight interest in Ewoods troubles.

5) Your man to watch out for on Saturday?

The man to watch is Ross McCormack, and hopefully also Morrison

6) Who is the player for us who you need to be most wary of?

Jordan Rhodes

7) Go on - Give me a Prediction????

A draw 2-2

MY PREDICTION

Tough call, as Warnock has his troops working hard. With the loss of Becchio, do they have enough quality scorers to dig out a win?

Fingers crossed, a home win - 2-1 , a brace for Rhodes, to fire us closer to the play offs and bring Leeds season to a end...

FOOTNOTE:

This will be the first ever Rovers game for my step-daughter, so hopefully she can bring us the luck

COYB

Tony

[gumboots]

leeds fans on the train from Manchester were pretty depressed yesterday. They were hearing rumours that warnock had gone and were hopeful it was true. They are not generally happy with their lot at the moment if the ones I spoke to were anything to go by

[Plastics]

Hopefully playing them at a good time.

[ABBEY]

I will never forget Leeds scum throwing a pint glass in a babies pram outside debahams

[m1st]

Good preview, Major; it's very easy to forget how many people have played for both clubs and those names certainly brought back some memories. I can't imagine a Duncan McKenzie fitting into the current regime at Ewood!

Gumboots is spot-on about the Leeds fans if the article I read in yesterday's Observer containing the following quote is also a good reflection:

Nor that Leeds's travelling support, who have had to endure some truly tedious Neil Warnock-devised tactics with no room for width, initiative or vivacity that have brought nine defeats and four draws from 16 league games on the road, are willing to stomach much more. The manager maintains that Leeds fans demand a certain type of player, ones who are, to use his ultimate accolade, "honest". Talk to them, though, and you learn that they would settle for ones who were merely skilful or good, hence the barracking the manager has received recently after losing at Hull, Barnsley and Middlesbrough.

It certainly sounds like "Colin" is not a very popular man with their fans!!

I also read somenwhere over the weekend that they've not kept a clean sheet in League away games in the for about 11 months. I can't see them having much success against the fortress our defence has become in recent weeks and I think that our recent recruitment in midfield and up-front will be too much for them. I'm not saying we'll fill our boots but our goal difference could certainly do with a boost.

Oh; and won't it be nice to see Diouf again?!

[Stuart]

A very tidy effort Tony, cheers!

Great to have another new blue down at Ewood too.

Hoping for the attendance to nudge over 20k on the back of a wave of Appletized euphoria and sell out away allocation. Should be a very good atmosphere on Saturday.

COYB!!

[1864roverite]

Its my birthday so Rovers must win !!

[Amo]

Its my birthday so Rovers must win !!

Appleton's pre-match team talk writes itself.

[Robertson]

_{I am travelling across for this one, looking forward to it and been a while since I could say that! Nice to focus on the football for a change rather than the boardroom dramas. A few of my mates support Leeds and aren't too confident of getting a result.}

_{I'm going 2-0 Rovers.}

[Plastics]

Given recent results (therefore looking at things in the context of the entire month) I'd be happy with 4 points in the next three games. This game being the most likely to pick up the three points since Leeds are lower down than the others and we play them at home.

[riverside returns]

Well a big miss on players is the mercurial Scott Sellars.

[JAL]

Excellent stats majorstyre think its about time Rovers started to improve on that wins defecit against leeds.

[Andy]

Comfortable win for me, 2-0 or 3-0.

[Plastics]

A 2-0 defeat here will see us with 11 wins, 11 draws, 11 losses and a goal difference of 0.

[majorstyre]

Well a big miss on players is the mercurial Scott Sellars.

Ah yes.....forgot bout him....

perhaps that is a hang-up from the time when he stole my pint in the Woodlands Hotel all those years ago ;-)

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

How many seats have they been allocated - apparently only 700 left to sell - and Rovers web site says all the DE has been allocated to Leeds !

[K-Hod]

How many seats have they been allocated - apparently only 700 left to sell - and Rovers web site says all the DE has been allocated to Leeds !

I think this is one of the games where DE ST holders have to move- so presumably circa 7,500 if that's the DE capacity?

[majorstyre]

How many seats have they been allocated - apparently only 700 left to sell - and Rovers web site says all the DE has been allocated to Leeds !

i would suspect that after "safety restrictions" and all that Bull, the actual amount given to Leeds would be circa 5 to 5.5K

[tomphil]

On their site it said intial allocation 4k DE lower tier with a possible extra 2k but not confirmed. So it's unclear whether they've shifted 3,300 or 5,300 but it does say no sales on the day so it's likely the latter.

[windymiller7]

Well a big miss on players is the mercurial Scott Sellars.

Thought the same myself, first player's name that came to my mind. an apt description afterwards could be - "currently tryng to stay awake when driving" given his recent conviction.

One of my favourite players back in the day though!

[Mike Graham]

got my brother-in-law coming over for the weekend for this one. Big Leeds fan, we will start in the Brown Cow and later be in the JW Upper with me kicking his ankles

[ross-shire rover]

Sad to see two once great clubs kicking around now in the "2nd Division". I'm pretty sure we'll be playing each other again next season too.

A dreary draw I fear.

(Must have got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning...)

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Going for 1-1 here,Leeds seem to be hitting some form at the right time.

Never forget Towton!

[Glosrover]

Well a big miss on players is the mercurial Scott Sellars.

a less big miss, but my favourite Rovers right back, the mercurial, if slightly skinny Kevin Hird.................

[jim mk2]

Leeds got their first win in six against Blackpool the other night so they might have turned the corner. Two mid-table teams lacking in quality likely to fight out a lacklustre 1-1 draw. Saturday at the DIY beckons....