Leeds United v Plymouth 27th January 2024 at Elland Road, FAC 4th round please log in to view this image Before I start my blog today, I just want to pay my respects to Eddie, Linda Gray and all their family and friends on the devasting news of the death of their son Stuart today. My thoughts go out to them all. We had a change of plans before the game which meant that instead of going in my own seat in the Kop, I went in the cheese wedge. I nearly upended Nikki out of her wheelchair when we crossed the road outside Billy’s bar. I certainly needed L plates on but it also It made me realise how badly laid out the paths are around the ground. I never imagined that getting back onto the footpath at a crossing would be so difficult without having to turn around and go backwards. With it being an FA Cup game, it was not surprising to see many unfamiliar faces in the crowd, but it was nice to catch up with people that I did know. I know some fans were bringing their children to their first game, so I hope they enjoyed the day regardless of the score. Team: Meslier, Cooper (captain), Ampadu, Anthony, Gnonto, Rodon, Piroe, Byram, Shackleton, Rutter, Gruev. Subs: Poveda for Gnonto (74), Bamford for Shackleton (82), Firpo for Byram (82), Joseph for Rutter (89). Subs not used: Klaesson, Christy, Gelhardt, Cresswell, Kamara. Leeds drew the game 1-1 with Anthony scoring (31). Attendance: 35,247 with approx. 1,300 Plymouth fans. Referee: Lewis Smith. Booked: Anthony for removing his shirt. On his t-shirt below he paid respects to his mum who had died recently “Rest in perfect peace mum”. The first half was almost one way traffic with Leeds United constantly in possession or attacking the goal in front of the south stand. Plymouth had a let off when Anthony saw his shot hit the bottom of the post and Gnonto got to the rebound and saw the keeper save his shot onto the crossbar. Anthony then showed a flash of brilliance coming in from the wing beating three men, before hitting a great shot into the net then celebrating with fans in the opposite corner to us. When Anthony was booked, the referee received a loud chorus of boos from the Leeds fans especially with the message for his late mum displayed on his chest. The second half saw Plymouth come out with a renewed vigour. The game was crying out for a change especially when we were lucky to see Byram head the ball off the line after they lobbed the ball over our defence. It was no surprise when Leeds lost their shape, and their man ran into the right-hand side of the box to put the ball into the net to equalise. I had been screaming at Farke that we needed to change things so why wait until we let Plymouth equalise before doing so is beyond me. Bamford brought a save out of their keeper after coming on as a sub then Gruev saw his shot tipped over the bar, but it wasn’t enough to get us a win. At the end of the game, we couldn’t see the players coming around the pitch due to the number of stewards in front of us. Suddenly a young child ran onto the pitch to get to the players and was told to come back to the stand which he did. He was then stopped by more stewards and the look on his face when he realised, he couldn’t come back into the stand was awful to see. I know he shouldn’t be on the pitch but surely taking a child away without a parent becomes a safeguarding issue. The dad did try to join him so not sure what happened in the end as we left. Today felt very frustrating especially, after Leeds dominating the first half so much, the second half input was very disappointing especially as it now means we need a replay at Plymouth. If February wasn’t bad enough for away games in a short space of time, we now have two trips to Plymouth as well as Bristol City and Swansea making it a very expensive month. Thank you very much Leeds United, that’s not what was needed. Plymouth deserved their draw on the day though and will welcome the replay. We are back in league action next Friday for the trip to Bristol so see you there. LUFC – Marching on Together! please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image please log in to view this image
