born-to-win - Comments

A Latvian side this will be interesting and as ever I will be following this.

Great work at Cowdenbeath, what a turn around from last season to this, and I am glad you have stayed and rejected other clubs.

HOME KIT FOR SEASON 2013-14 IS REVEALED.

14 May 2013.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
First look at the new kit.



We are delighted today to unveil the new home kit for the 2013-14 season, with goalkeeper Paddy Kenny and defender Sam Byram modelling our new kit.

Once again our kit is manufactured by the Italian sportswear company Macron, while our kit sponsor is again insurance company Enterprise Insurance.

In terms of the new outfield home kit, the shorts and socks are white with detail as usual, but the shirt is something a little different this year, it is a white shirt as usual, but it has two blue stripes down the centre of the shirt, the collar on the shirt is also blue, while the back of the neck features a stitched on Leeds United rose.

The goalkeeper kit is something a little different for next season, we have gone for shorts which are black with a little green on them, socks which are green with some black on them, while the shirt is primarily green with black and white detail on the front.

The shirt will be worn for the first time against Nottingham Forest tomorrow night, with us hoping it can help us to the play-off final at Wembley, and then to promotion back into the Premier League.

The new kit will be on sale at our club shop from 9am on Thursday morning, the prices have not been confirmed yet, but they will be announced in the match programme tomorrow, as well posters in the window of the club shop, and announcements before and at half time tomorrow night.

Kisnorbo out for three months.

Last updated: May 12, 2013 10:15am.





It has been confirmed that Leeds United will be without Patrick Kisnorbo for the play-off semi-final second leg.

Centre-back Kisnorbo, 32, picked up a hamstring injury in the 36th minute of the defeat at Nottingham Forest yesterday, and further scans by the West Yorkshire club have shown it to be torn, which has ruled him out for three months.

The injury will be a blow to Leeds United because as well as losing Kisnorbo yesterday, they went down to a 3-1 defeat at Nottingham Forest, meaning they will have to win by three clear goals on Wednesday, if they want to reach the play-off final at Wembley, or by two clear goals if they want to take it extra time and penalties.

FIVE SIGN PRE-CONTRACT AGREEMENTS.

11 May 2013.
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Youngsters agree professional deals to begin when they turn 17.



Five players in our Under-18s squad have this evening put pen to paper on pre-contract agreements.

The five youngsters who have signed pre-contract agreements only signed youth deals less than a month ago, but after impressing Richard Naylor, Neil Redfearn and Phil Walker, they have signed pre-contract agreements to turn professional.

The five players to agree deals are Lea Ashton, Steve Benjamin, Noah Broad, Rob Cooper and Terry Spilman.

Young striker Lea Ashton, 16, will sign a two-year professional contract, when he turns 17 years old, on February 4 2014.

Fellow young striker Steve Benjamin, 16, was born in Port Elizabeth in Saint Vincent, which is a volcanic island in the Caribbean, but moved to England at a young age. In terms of the contract he has agreed, he will sign a three-year professional deal, on April 4 2014.

Midfielder Noah Broad, 15, is a local lad having been born in Leeds, and he will sign a deal until June 2017, which will begin on September 4 2014.

Young Rob Cooper, 15, is a player who can operate at either left-back, or on the left side of midfield, and he will sign a deal until June 2017, which will begin on July 20 2014.

Terry Spilman, 15, is another midfielder to sign a pre-contract agreement, with him agreeing a deal until June 2017, which will begin on July 11 2014.

Ok Rick it will be interesting to see who you manage next.

Unlucky on the sacking. You keeping this thread going or you going to start a new game with another club?

11 May 2013
Last updated at 18:05


Nottingham Forest cruised to a 3-1 victory over Leeds United this afternoon, to put one foot in the final of the Championship play-offs.

Nottingham Forest came into the play-offs on the back of a 2-2 draw against relegated Charlton Athletic, and manager Sean O'Driscoll made four changes from that draw, out went Chris Herd, Andy Reid, Billy Sharp and Lewis McGugan, with Dan Harding, Guy Moussi, Henri Lansbury and Chris Cohen coming in.

Leeds United came into the match at The City Ground on the back of a 1-1 draw at home to Barnsley, and only Tom Lees, Aidan White, Ross McCormack and Luciano Becchio remained from that draw, with manager Phil Walker making seven changes in total.

The first chance of the match fell to the home team on 14 minutes, with Henri Lansbury forcing a save from goalkeeper Paddy Kenny. The chance for Lansbury was created by Dustley Mulder, he received the ball from a Robert Snodgrass pass, before whipping the ball in from the right into the far post, and that cross found Lansbury, whose header was saved by Kenny at his near post.

Robert Snodgrass had the next chance in this match, and he fired Nottingham Forest into the lead on the 20th minute, to score against his old club yet again. The assist for the goal went to right-back Dustley Mulder, he played a good ball down the line to Snodgrass, who then cut inside and fired a low drive, which beat Paddy Kenny at his near post.

The home side doubled their lead just four minutes later, with Henri Lansbury finding the net from just inside the box. The goal for Lansbury was created by midfielder Chris Cohen, he picked the ball up in his own half and ran with the ball into the opposition half, before slotting the ball into the run of Lansbury, who skipped past a challenge from Patrick Kisnorbo, before firing home a shot from just inside the box, which beat Paddy Kenny to make it 2-0.

The afternoon went from bad to worse for the visitors, when centre-back Patrick Kisnorbo limped off with a hamstring injury. The defender picked up the injury on 36 minutes, after the Australian stretched to cut out a pass from Adlene Guedioura, but it went wrong and saw Kisnorbo pick up the injury, and that allowed Lee Peltier to replace him on the pitch.

The home side found the net for the third time on the 41st minute, thanks to a looping header from club captain Danny Collins. The assist for the goal came from a free-kick by Henri Lansbury, he took the free-kick from out on the right, and he then crossed the ball into the box to find Collins, who looped his header over Paddy Kenny and into the net.

The next chance of the match did not come until the 77th minute, with Leeds United midfielder Paul Green finding the back of the net, with what was their only shot on target of the match. The goal was rather a scrappy one, the assist for the goal went to Argentinian striker Luciano Becchio, he was found in the box by Aidan White, before pulling the ball back to try and find Rodolph Austin, that pass was cut out by a sliding challenge from Daniel Ayala, but the ball fell to Green who slotted it home.

At the full time whistle the Nottingham Forest players looked delighted with this 3-1 victory, as it looks like they will be off to Wembley, to take part in the play-off final. The Leeds United players looked down, but if they can win the return match by three clear goals, they will be the team going to Wembley.

Nottingham Forest manager, Sean O'Driscoll, on the victory. "This was a great victory for us this afternoon, and one which has seen us put one foot in the final at Wembley.

"We know that the trip to Elland Road will be tough, as they will want revenge on us for this defeat, and the three defeats they have suffered against us this season, so we will have to be professional when we go there."

Leeds United manager, Phil Walker, on the play-off defeat. "We played absolutely terrible out their this afternoon, and it seems like this is all I am saying in my recent press conferences.

"If the lads want to get to the play-off final at Wembley, then we have to produce more than one shot on target, because that was the worst thing about today the lack of chances we had."

Nottingham Forest starting line-up (4-3-3). Ikeme, Mulder (Halford 67), Collins (c), Ayala, Harding, Guedioura, Moussi, Cohen, Snodgrass (Ephraim 83), Cox (Sharp 83), Lansbury.
Subs not used. Evtimov (gk), McGugan, Herd, Reid.
Goals. Snodgrass 20, Lansbury 24, Collins 41.
Booked. Guedioura.

Leeds United starting line-up (4-4-2). Kenny, Lees, Kisnorbo (c) (Peltier (c) 36), Pearce, Pugh, Green, Austin, Tonge, White, McCormack (Poleon 64), Becchio.
Subs not used. Ashdown (gk), Thompson, Byram, Brown, Norris.
Goal. Green 77.
Booked. Austin.

Attendance. 30,576.
Referee. Mike Dean.
Man of the Match. Henri Lansbury (Nottingham Forest), rated at 8.9 over 90 minutes. What a performance from the ex-Arsenal man, not only did he score a goal and create a goal, he caused problems for the visitors all afternoon.

Well done on avoiding relegation

Are Leeds United going down the youth route again?

Last updated: May 6, 2013 3:15pm.





Sky Sports have today looked ahead to the future of Leeds United, with us looking at the younger players who could have a big part to play under manager Phil Walker.

The West Yorkshire club are famous for bringing through the youngsters from their academy, with this season being no different, with manager Phil Walker handing a number of their youngsters their chance this season.

Manager Phil Walker has played a total of 11 players, who are 22-years-old or younger, in the first-team this season, with the majority of those coming through the famous academy at Thorp Arch.

The Yorkshire derby against Barnsley on Saturday saw eight young players take to the pitch, with the whole of the starting back four either 22 or younger, and more impressively having progressed through our Under-18s at one stage in their career.

Many fans and the media have likened the current manager at Elland Road to ex-boss David O'Leary, who brought through many young players while in charge of The Whites, including the likes of Alan Smith, Paul Robinson and Jonathan Woodgate from the academy, as well as playing the likes of youngsters Ian Harte, Lee Bowyer and Stephen McPhail regularly in the first-team.

One player to impress the Elland Road crowd this season has been Sam Byram, the 19-year-old had never played senior football before the start of this season, but he has played 33 times in all competitions in his debut season, with many tipping the York-born player for Premier League football in the future.

Other notable youngsters to feature this season have been Simon Lenighan, Monty Gimpel and Dominic Poleon. All three players are still in their teenage years, but have made their senior debuts for the club this season, and could be big stars in the future for The Whites.

Other youngsters to have made their debuts for The Whites this season are Sanchez Payne, Patrick Antelmi and Chris Dawson, while left-back Charlie Taylor has made a couple of appearances this season.

Good start and its good to see someone managing in a different country.

Thanks am not even bored of writing this story yet neither. I hope you continue to read this and comment on it.

With that squad I believe you should get back into the Premier League straight away, and you should win the league.

I will be following this and keep up the good work.

11 PLAYERS TO BE RELEASED IN THE SUMMER.

6 May 2013.
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Release list is announced by boss Phil Walker.



We can today confirm that a total of 11 players will be released in the summer, with the players being released when their current deals expire.

The 11 players who will not be offered new deals are Paul Rachubka, Leigh Bromby, Lewis Turner, Ross Killock, Nathan Turner, Michael Brown, Joe McCann, Robbie Rogers, Patrick Antelmi, Luke Parkin and Lewis Walters.

That list will see us releasing a lot of our reserve team players, with only Michael Brown being a regular in the senior squad this season, although Patrick Antelmi was brought off the bench against Middlesbrough, in what was his senior debut in football, but he has not played since.

Other notable players who are being released are defender Leigh Bromby, midfielder Robbie Rogers and goalkeeper Paul Rachubka, who has spent the season with Rotherham United.

Meanwhile young strikers Luke Parkin and Lewis Walters will not be offered professional deals, and that is despite Walters hitting 12 goals for the Under-18s this season.

Leeds United do wish all these players being released the best for the future, and would like to thank them for their efforts while with us.

Who will play who in the npower Championship play-offs.

Last updated: May 6, 2013 9:00am.





We can confirm today who will play who in this seasons npower Championship play-offs, and when they will play each other.

The teams who will take part in the play-offs this season are Leeds United, Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers and Nottingham Forest, with all four ex-Premier League clubs and looking to get back into the top flight.

There will be a Lancashire derby at the Reebok Stadium in one of the semi-finals, with Bolton Wanderers facing Blackburn Rovers at home in the first leg, with the return leg being played at Ewood Park. Both these clubs suffered relegation from the top flight last season, and one of them will win a trip to Wembley to try and get back there.

Meanwhile in the other semi-final, Nottingham Forest will take on Leeds United, with the first leg being played at The City Ground, and the return leg will be played at Elland Road. Nottingham Forest have been a bogey team for Leeds United this season, with them losing both clashes against The Tricky Trees, with the most recent defeat coming last month.

As normal we will show every play-off match live, so fans of these teams can tune in if they fail to get tickets from their clubs.

The fixtures, dates and kick-off times are below.
Play-off semi-final first leg.
Friday 10th May 2013. Bolton Wanderers v Blackburn Rovers. 7:45pm.
Saturday 11th May 2013. Nottingham Forest v Leeds United. 3:00pm.

Play-off semi-final second leg.
Tuesday 14th May 2013. Blackburn Rovers v Bolton Wanderers. 7:45pm.
Wednesday 15th May 2013. Leeds United v Nottingham Forest. 7:45pm.

DAWSON DELIGHTED TO MAKE HIS SENIOR DEBUT.

5 May 2013.
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Teenager handed a second-half debut.



Young midfielder Chris Dawson has spoken today about his delight at making his debut for us yesterday.

Dawson, 18, was brought off the bench at half-time in the 1-1 draw against Barnsley yesterday afternoon, with him replacing Sanchez Payne and playing 45 minutes in front of nearly 30,000 fans at Elland Road, in which he put in a good performance and impressing our fans.

The young midfielder was a number of players on the pitch yesterday, who have come through our academy, with them impressing the fans and manager, and a number of them will be hoping for regular places in the starting line-up next season.

This season has been a good one for Dawson under Richard Naylor in the Under-18s, not only has he featured in 30 games for them, he has also scored two goals and improved as a footballer, with Naylor recommending him to Phil Walker earlier this season.

Chris Dawson on making his senior debut. "I am delighted to have made my senior debut for the club, especially as I am still in the Under-18s, I did not expect it to come as quickly as it has, and it may have only been 45 minutes but I am really happy, and I will use this to improve my progress for next season.

"I was very nervous ahead of my debut, the gaffer (Phil Walker) told me on Friday afternoon that I would be in the squad for the match, and I think I only got about 3 hours sleep on Friday night, but the boss made me feel at ease on Saturday morning over my nerves, and also all the players who was in the squad they helped me with my nerves, especially the younger ones, which is something which I am grateful for.

"It is also an honour that Richard Naylor recommended me, that means I must have done something right this season, and I hope I can produce that football in the reserves next season, but also in the senior side if I get the chance."

Great story so far, its different to what everybody else has done and I like that. Keep up the good work.

You have done great at Arsenal, well done and keep it up.

Derby County are relegated.

Last updated: May 4, 2013 6:30pm.





Derby County will have to plan for League One football next season, after they were relegated earlier today.

Despite beating Crystal Palace 1-0 at Pride Park this afternoon, The Rams have been relegated to League One today, after Middlesbrough beat Peterborough United 1-0, and Leicester City cruised to a 4-0 victory away at Cardiff City, which meant that the win for The Rams could not save them from relegation to League One.

The relegation will come as more of a shock to people in football, as the club has had the second best defence in the Championship this season, conceding just 46 goals, but scoring goals has been more of an issue for them, with them finding the net just 46 goals, which has seen them end the season with the joint second worst attack, and on a 0 goal difference.

Relegation this season for the East Midlands club will be a massive disappointment, after they was tipped to finish in 13th place this season, but this campaign has been a massive disappointment for them, but they will be hoping to keep players like Will Hughes at the club in the summer, and keep him from the clutches of teams in the Championship and the Premier League.

The club have been in the Championship since 2008, after they was relegated from the Premier League as the worst team ever, after only winning one game, picking up just 11 points and finishing with a goal difference of -69.

The club have never recovered from relegation in 2008, with The Rams having finished in the bottom half in three of their last four seasons, with a finish in 12th place in the other, which was last season.

Next season will also be the first time Derby County have played in the third tier of English football since 1986, which was a total of 27 years ago, but The Rams supporters will be hoping they can bounce straight back into the second tier.

The Pride Park club have been managed by two managers this season, first was Nigel Clough, but he was sacked in October, the club named Gordon Strachan as manager just two days later, and it will be interesting to see if Strachan will start next season as manager at Pride Park.

4 May 2013
Last updated at 17:55


Leeds United will enter the Championship play-offs on the back of a 1-1 draw with Barnsley, after the South Yorkshire side came from behind to secure a point.

Leeds United came into the Yorkshire derby after drawing away to Blackburn Rovers last weekend, and manager Phil Walker made five changes in total, out went Paddy Kenny, Patrick Kisnorbo, Danny Pugh, Rodolph Austin and Michael Tonge, with Jamie Ashdown, Monty Gimpel, Charlie Taylor, Michael Brown and Sanchez Payne coming in. Youngster Chris Dawson was also named on the bench, with him being handed the number 33 by boss Phil Walker.

Barnsley who had lost 3-1 to Birmingham City at Oakwell in their last match, so manager Danny Lennon made eight changes in total, with only John Stones, Rob Edwards and Martin Cranie keeping their place from that defeat.

Leeds United created the first opportunity of the Yorkshire derby, and they found the net with the chance, with Ross McCormack finding the net on eight minutes. The assist for the goal went to midfielder Aidan White, but the move for the goal started from the back, centre-back Monty Gimpel picked the ball up from a Tom Lees pass, he then played the ball into Luciano Becchio, who then played the ball out to White, he then broke down the left before crossing the ball in, that was flicked on by Becchio into McCormack, and he took a touch before slotting the ball into the roof of the net.

The next chance of the match came 18 minutes later, with Ross McCormack going close to scoring his second goal of the match, but he hit the crossbar with a header. The move for The Whites again involved Aidan White and Luciano Becchio, it was the Argentinian who played the ball out wide to White, he then exchanged passes with Sanchez Payne, before crossing the ball into the penalty area to find McCormack, and he flicked the ball on with his head, but saw his header hit the crossbar with Luke Steele beaten.

The home side had another great chance just ten minutes after that Ross McCormack header, and this time Aidan White went close. The move started when David Norris latched onto a loose ball out on the right, he then cut inside before spotting the run of Sam Byram to his right, he then played the ball out to the right-back, but his cross into the box could only find Stephen Foster, who only headed the ball clear as far as Sanchez Payne, he then found White in space with a pass, and he hit a low drive which went just wide of the far post, with the sliding Luciano Becchio just failing to make contact with the shot to turn it in.

The visitors equalised just before half-time, with Craig Davies firing home from the penalty spot. The penalty was won by Barnsley midfielder Jim O'Brien, he was found by a pass over the top by David Perkins, but as he turned away from Sam Byram he was brought down for a penalty, and Davies fired the ball home under Jamie Ashdown for 1-1, a strike which took his tally for the season to 23 goals.

The first chance of the second-half fell to the home side, with Luciano Becchio putting his header wide of the goal. The move for the chance started with debutant Chris Dawson, he had replaced Sanchez Payne for the second-half, and he played the ball out wide to David Norris, who then crossed a dangerous looking ball into the box for Becchio, but he put his header just wide of the target.

Barnsley had a great chance to put themselves into the lead with 13 minutes left, but Craig Davies fired his shot wide of the target. It was Sammy Ameobi who created the chance for Davies, he picked the ball up from a pass by Martin Cranie, before slotting a brilliant ball behind the home defence for Davies to latch onto, but the striker fired across the face of goal and wide.

Full time at Elland Road and the Yorkshire derby has finished all square this afternoon, despite the home team taking the lead through a Ross McCormack strike, the visitors came back to equalise from the penalty spot, with striker Craig Davies firing home the spot kick. The majority of the Leeds United fans stayed behind to applaud their team, who did a lap of honour for the supporters, but they will be back here later this month, as The Whites are in the play-offs. The Barnsley fans also applauded their players off the pitch, after they finished the season in 13th place, which is their highest finish for 13 years.

Leeds United manager, Phil Walker, on the draw. "A disappointing result for us today, especially with us having taken the lead and being the better team, so to draw the match was highly disappointing for me, but I have told the lads that.

"I know there will be a lot of people questioning my team selection today, but at the end of the day I wanted to give some of my key players a rest, and when you look at the amount of players out there today who have progressed from our academy, I think it is quite impressive.

"We will face either Nottingham Forest or Bolton Wanderers in the play-offs, and both of those teams will give us a test, but we have had a great season and whatever happens I am pleased with how it has gone."

Barnsley manager, Danny Lennon, on claiming a point at Elland Road. "This was a fantastic end to a fantastic season in my opinion, it might have been an understrength Leeds United side out there today, but they still had a number of first-team regulars out there today, so to claim a point is a fantastic result.

"This is also the clubs highest finish in 13 years, but we must now go away and come back for pre-season looking to improve on that, and who knows we might be fighting for the play-offs next season."

Leeds United starting line-up (4-4-2). Ashdown, Byram, Lees, Gimpel (Peltier 66), Taylor, Norris (c), Brown (Thompson 85), Payne (Dawson 45), White, McCormack, Becchio.
Subs not used. Kenny (gk), Pearce, Lenighan, Poleon.
Goal. McCormack 8.
Booked. Brown, Norris, Dawson.

Barnsley starting line-up (4-3-3). Steele, Stones, Edwards, Foster, McNulty, Perkns, Cranie, Hassell (c), O'Brien, Davies (Harewood 83), Ameobi.
Subs not used. Alnwick (gk), Golbourne, Wiseman, Etuhu, Collins, Hunt.
Goal. Davies pen 44.

Attendance. 29,779.
Referee. Lee Probert.
Man of the Match. Tom Lees (Leeds United), rated at 7.8 over 90 minutes. The Leeds United centre-back put in a good performance this afternoon, with a number of well-timed tackles to deny Barnsley.

What a great signing for where you are at this time, he should bang goals in for fun for you and could become a first-team regular, with him playing for you for a few years.

Good luck with this, if you can keep most of the squad together then you should walk this league, and it also good to see someone going with somebody different.

April awards announced in the npower Championship.

Last updated: May 1, 2013 9:45am.





The Championship awards for April have been confirmed this morning, with all four awards going to people at different clubs.

Hull City manager Steve Bruce has been awarded the Manager of the Month award, after guiding The Tigers to four league victories in six games, and he has also guided the club back into the Premier League. Ipswich Town midfielder Jay Emmanuel-Thomas has received the Player of the Month award, after bagging a remarkable seven goals in six games for The Tractor Boys. Lewis Dunk has won the Young Player of the Month award yet again, after he put in a series of solid performances last month. Finally the Goal of the Month award has gone to Colin Kazim-Richards, for his strike for Blackburn Rovers against Birmingham City, in which he took the ball past two players, before calmly scoring an effort from 15 yards out.

The champions and runners-up have been confirmed before the final game, with Wolves returning to the Premier League as champions, and Hull City will be promoted as runners-up. In the play-off places are Leeds United, Blackburn Rovers, Nottingham Forest and Bolton Wanderers, although only The Whites and Rovers are guaranteed to be in the play-offs, so Forest and Wanderers do need to win on the final day, to guarantee their place in the play-offs. At the other end of the Championship table, both Charlton Athletic and Sheffield Wednesday know they will be in League One next season, and the last relegation place will go to either Derby County, Leicester City or Middlesbrough, with that place being decided on Saturday.

Manager of the Month. Steve Bruce (Hull City).
Player of the Month. Jay Emmanuel-Thomas (Ipswich Town).
Young Player of the Month. Lewis Dunk (Brighton and Hove Albion).
Goal of the Month. Colin Kazim-Richards. Birmingham City v Blackburn Rovers.

Charlton Athletic and Sheffield Wednesday are relegated.

Last updated: April 27, 2013 6:50pm.





Charlton Athletic and Sheffield Wednesday have both been relegated from the npower Championship this afternoon.

Both The Addicks and The Owls have lasted just one season in the Championship, after winning promotion from League One last season, with The Addicks winning the league and Sheffield Wednesday finishing runners-up.

The news of relegation will come as a disappointment to both sets of fans, as they were hoping successfully fight against relegation this season, with us expecting them to succeed in that area, but that did not happen and they face next season in League One.

Charlton Athletic started the season off with Chris Powell as manager, but he was sacked in November, with Karl Robinson taking over after being brought in from League One side MK Dons, so The Addicks board will be hoping he will stay, along with a number of key players, to help bounce straight back into the Championship.

South Yorkshire side Sheffield Wednesday began the season with Dave Jones in charge, but he was sacked in the middle of December, with John Sheridan taking over in a caretaker role, he was then replaced by Michael Appleton in February, who had moved from Portsmouth to takeover, but he has failed to keep them up this season, despite the club having won three of their last four games. The Owls fans will be hoping for a success next season, they will also be hoping the big names will stay at Hillsborough, and help fight for a return to the Championship.

The fight against being the third relegated side will go into the last day of the season, with one of three sides looking to avoid relegation, with Derby County, Leicester City and Middlesbrough looking to avoid relegation.

27 April 2013
Last updated at 18:15


Blackburn Rovers came back from a goal down to rescue a point against Leeds United today, with Ruben Rochina equalising in the 89th minute for Rovers.

Blackburn Rovers came into the match with their place in the play-offs secured, so manager Alan Curbishley made ten changes from the 2-0 win over Birmingham City, with only Grant Hanley keeping his place in the starting line-up.

Leeds United came into this match on the back of a 1-0 victory against Millwall, and manager Phil Walker made just the one change from that match, out went Jason Pearce to be replaced by Tom Lees.

The visitors should have found the net inside the first minute, but Luciano Becchio saw his chipped shot pushed wide of the goal. The move for The Whites started from a goal kick by Paddy Kenny, he cleared the ball long and into midfielder Michael Tonge, who then brought the ball down and played it into Ross McCormack, and he slotted the ball into the feet of Becchio, who got away from Blackburn Rovers centre-back Henrique, before chipping the ball at towards the far post, but somehow Grzegorz Sandomierski got to the ball and pushed it wide.

The next chance of the match fell to the hosts, with midfielder Gary Gardner hitting the post from a free-kick. The free-kick was won by fellow midfielder Jason Lowe, he was brought down by Leeds United midfielder Michael Tonge, on the edge of the penalty box, and that allowed Gardner to hit a low free-kick, which went under the wall and beat Paddy Kenny, but hit the post and fell to Sam Byram to clear.

Leeds United went close again to finding the net on 36 minutes, with centre-back Tom Lees heading the ball across goal and wide. The chance for Lees was created from a corner taken by Ross McCormack, he crossed the ball into the far post to find the centre-back, and he sent a header across goal beating Grzegorz Sandomierski, but it went just wide of the far post.

The next chance in the match did not come until the 61st minute, but the away side managed to put the ball in the net with that chance, with Patrick Kisnorbo heading home. The chance yet again for the visitors was created from a Ross McCormack corner, he whipped the ball into the near post to find Kisnorbo, who flicked the ball on and into the net for 1-0.

Blackburn Rovers had a goal disallowed 14 minutes from time, with Jordan Rhodes being found offside. This time it was the home side that started an attack from a corner, midfielder Morten Gamst Pedersen whipped the ball into the penalty area, but Patrick Kisnorbo headed the ball away, which saw Ruben Rochina fire a volley back in at goal, but Paddy Kenny could only push that shot away, and that allowed Rhodes to head home, but the offside flag was up to rule the goal out.

Just 13 minutes after that disallowed goal, the pressure on the Leeds United goal from the home side worked, with Ruben Rochina firing home an unstoppable shot via the crossbar. The assist for the goal went to Colin Kazim-Richards, the midfielder who was getting stick from the travelling fans all afternoon, as he is on loan at Ewood Park from Galatasaray, was found out on the right by a pass from Ryan Shotton, he then skipped away from Aidan White before cutting the ball inside, a pass which allowed Rochina to run onto the ball, and fire a shot which gave Paddy Kenny no chance, and found the goal via the underside of the crossbar.

At the end of the match it has finished all square here at Ewood Park, with Blackburn Rovers coming from behind to secure a point, after Leeds United had took the lead. The visitors did have the chance to clinch third place in the league today, but will now have to beat Barnsley next weekend to make sure they finish in third, and if they slip up Blackburn know they can sneak into a third place finish.

Blackburn Rovers manager, Alan Curbishley, on snatching a point. "It is a great feeling to have grabbed a point this afternoon, especially as we got the equaliser on the 89th minute, so we now go into the final day with third place in our reach, which would be a big boost in the play-offs.

"I felt though we were a little bit unlucky to only draw today, we hit the woodwork a total of four times, so to only get a point is unlucky, but we did well to equalise with us finishing with just ten men, after Jason Lowe limped off with just 12 minutes remaining.

"It was also good to clinch a point as we had a number of debutants out there today, especially Bradley Bauress who played at left-back, he is only 16 and did well for 51 minutes, but with us already clinching a play-off place, this has enabled to hand debuts out to players."

Leeds United manager, Phil Walker, on the draw. "Well I thought we was going to win the game this afternoon, so to concede a goal when we did is not great, especially as we could have wrapped third place up today.

"It was good to see Lee (Peltier) make his comeback today, he only featured for 12 minutes, but after two months out injured, it is important just to bring him back slowly, also I would like to congratulate Sanchez (Payne) on his debut for us today, he came on just before the hour and did okay on his debut."

Blackburn Rovers starting line-up (4-4-2). Sandomierski, Shotton, Hanley, Henrique (Dann (c) 45), Bauress (Olsson 51), Kazim-Richards, Lowe (c), Gardner, Rosado (Pedersen 45), Rochina, Rhodes.
Subs not used. Urwin (gk), Best, Etuhu, Cotton.
Goal. Rochina 89.
Booked. Lowe, Rochina.

Leeds United starting line-up (4-4-2). Kenny, Byram, Lees, Kisnorbo (c), Pugh (Taylor 71), Norris, Austin (Peltier 78), Tonge (Payne 58), White, McCormack, Becchio.
Subs not used. Ashdown (gk), Thompson, Brown, Somma.
Goal. Kisnorbo 61.
Booked. Austin.

Attendance. 27,151.
Referee. Phil Dowd.
Man of the Match. Patrick Kisnorbo (Leeds United), rated at 8.9 over 90 minutes. For the second match in a row Kisnorbo picked up this award, not only did he score a goal today he put in a good performance at centre-back, and this performance was watched by Australian national manager Holger Osieck.

Hull City secure promotion back to the Premier League.

Last updated: April 26, 2013 10:30pm.





Hull City have tonight secured their return back to the Premier League, with a 4-3 win away at Millwall.

The East Yorkshire club have secured second place in the npower Championship tonight, which has secured them a return back to the top flight, a division which they were relegated from three years ago, after winning promotion from the Championship via the play-offs in 2008.

The Tigers have secured their place in the top flight after a thrilling 4-3 victory away at Millwall, going into the final three minutes of normal time it was 3-2 to Millwall, but two goals from Aaron McLean, which completed his hat-trick, wrapped up a 4-3 win for City.

The promotion will come as a massive surprise for the fans of Hull City, as they saw their team start 2013 in 8th place in the table, but this year has seen them lose just twice in the league, and draw just five games, winning the rest of the games in the Championship to secure promotion.

This promotion for The Tigers will be a massive blow to local rivals Leeds United, who had held second place in the league for most of the season, but after winning just six league games since the start of February, Hull City capitalised and took over second place in the table.

Hull City manager Steve Bruce will be delighted with this promotion, not only were his side tipped to finish the season in 11th place, but he has won promotion in his first season in charge, he will now look to build towards next season, and avoiding relegation.

EIGHT YOUNGSTERS SIGN YOUTH CONTRACTS.

24 April 2013.
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Eight youngsters in while eight youngsters do not get a deal.



We can confirm today that eight youngsters have been handed deals with our academy, while eight others have not been handed youth contracts.

The eight youngsters have all been handed two-year deals with our academy squad, which will see them join us on contracts until June 2015, once they have completed their exams and left school.

We did have 16 players in total fighting for a youth contract for our academy, but eight of those have signed youth contracts, while the other eight who have not been so lucky have been released, after being accessed by our youth team boss Richard Naylor.

The eight players who have joined our academy are Lea Ashton, Steve Benjamin, Noah Broad, Andy Charles, Rob Cooper, Gary Fitzpatrick, Mark Kirkwood and Terry Spilman.

The eight players who have not been so lucky to be offered a deal with our academy are Phillip Duffield, Graham Grant, Bob Helliwell, Rupert Hollier, Bobby Huntley, Daniel Lacey, Akin Ndah and Louis Wheeler.

We would like to wish the eight players who have not been offered deals good luck for the future, and we hope they can earn a contract elsewhere.

Becchio signs a new deal at Elland Road.

Last updated: April 23, 2013 3:05pm.





Leeds United have confirmed that striker Luciano Becchio has put pen to paper on a new contract.

The Argentinian striker, 29, did have over a year to run on his contract at Elland Road, but Leeds United manager Phil Walker has handed him a new deal, which will see him remain in West Yorkshire for another three years.

The new deal that Becchio has signed is worth £17,000-per-week, which has seen him increase his wages by £6,000-per-week, to see him become the highest paid player at Elland Road, with his new deal running out in June 2016.

Becchio is currently having his best season since moving to Elland Road in 2008, with the striker having found the net 21 times in the league, and 22 times in all competitions, but even that amount of goals may not see him finish the campaign as top scorer at Elland Road, as Ross McCormack is just one goal behind him on 21 goals.

The West Yorkshire club could be on for their highest finish in the league since 2006, when they finished 5th in the Championship and reached the play-off final, where they lost 3-0 to Watford in Cardiff, and this news will delight everybody at Elland Road, and hope this can give them a confidence boost to gain promotion to the Premier League.

This news will also be a big confidence boost for the fans of Leeds United, who have seen a number of their key players leave the club in recent years, the likes of Robert Snodgrass, Jonny Howson, Jermaine Beckford and Fabian Delph to name a few, but the fans will be delighted with the news that Becchio is staying.

Leeds United striker Luciano Becchio on signing a new deal. "I am delighted to have signed a new contract this afternoon, I am having my best season goal scoring wise since joining Leeds United.

"Of course I miss Argentina and my family, but I feel this is the happiest I have been in my career, so why would I want to spoil that."

Leeds United manager Phil Walker on Becchio signing his new deal. "This news this afternoon is absolutely brilliant for us, as Luciano is one of our key players, so for him to sign this new deal is great.

"One word sums up this club tying our top scorer down to a new deal and that is ambition, it shows our fans we are ambitious in keeping one of our best players, when we try to sign new players it will sell the club, and also when trying to get current players to sign a new deal, as it shows we are moving forward as a club.

"I would also like to thank Luciano and his agent, I sorted the new contract out on Sunday night, and offered it to his agent at the training ground yesterday morning, so for them to sort out their side of things this quickly is great, as it did not mean a long drawn out process for the club."

Great start to life in the SPL, and you never know if you can get into the Europa League, this might be the team to try and win it with.

Unlucky on losing the cup final but good luck at Rangers