October – Full Stop-tober, international break week. No proper football as the international teams get to play on the traditional footballing days of er- Thursday and Saturday (depending on which National team you support). Big Sam Allardyce is out of a job after 67 days – as if we as Leeds fans can joke about that! The Daily Telegraph doing its best investigative reporting to reveal the serious corruption problems that are going on in football. Its a shame it hasn’t done more “in depth reporting” about the scandal at the heart of football, FIFA and UEFA. It’s not like there hasn’t been MILLIONS of pounds, dollars, euros etc. changing hands in briefcases/envelopes/Swiss bank accounts, with major law enforcement companies like the FBI and Interpol/Europol, whatever it is called now, being drafted in.

No, The Daily Telegraph has obviously bigger fish to fry, in wait, London, with talk of princely sum of wait – £30 grand! Hours of “incriminating video footage” of people talking about what you can and can’t do in football. Some journo impersonating someone with money asking how to get round rules. What a load of rubbish. For crying out loud, you’ve got Blatter and ” French World Cup Hero” Platini with MILLIONS of actual money in bank accounts that they shouldn’t have. You’ve got Olympic committees GIVING MILLIONS away because they think its ok to do that. ENTIRE COUNTRIES dolling out money to “representatives on behalf of Nations” to get tournaments and events to be played in their countries, and The Daily Telegraph think that having a chat after dinner and some drinkies constitutes a major story. Talk about clutching at straws. It’s the equivalent of that bloke in the pub who knows someone, who knows someone else, who could have a word in the ear – like of someone else. No one gives a crap! Not public interest.

What is public interest is what deal the Premier League and Football League have with TV companies, so that they can move games at the drop of a hat to increase viewing figures. What influence they have over the police – yes, a public institution paid for by taxpayers – over fixtures that have to be moved for allegedly “public safety” reasons. How much British teams get paid by TV companies to reschedule games. What National teams and the FA do with the money they get from TV companies and advertising sponsors? Didn’t some FA Chairman get half a million in bonuses ontop of his FA wage and perks one year? What about that then?

You have sport being ruined by advertising, sponsorship, intellectual property and TV rights etc. and no one doing a thing about it. Cricket matches in India / the Middle East, with Test players being involved, played in empty stadiums because the ticket prices are too high, and then players being “rested” in County championships games because they might pick up a strain. Premiership teams crying out for the “Winter Break” because of too many games, then going to play in the US or Australia in “friendly” moneyspinners. Teams complaining about fixture build ups, but then having weeks of pre-season friendlies in Asia and the US, that’s public interest.

The FA Cup and the League Cup, OUR traditional Cups are basically being belittled by the “Premiership Elite” because, money is the most important thing my friend, not football. The “Glory of The Beautiful Game” is being ruined by money, you see it in the weakened sides being played in the early rounds of the Cup, as not getting relegated from the Premiership is more important. The “Champions League” is basically evolving into what the “Big European Clubs” want anyway, games that they think people will want to watch on telly so they can get the massive advertising revenues in. The longer Scum stay out of the Champions League places the better. AC Milan are in the same boat in Italy. So the next thing is that they (UEFA) want to be able to “invite” teams with a big European history to play in the Champions League. So not really a “Champions” league then, more like “who can generate more money for UEFA coffers” League. I bet they weren’t very happy with BT Sport getting the TV rights to it, as the viewing figures were down last season. Too right as well, who wants commentary by Has been Ferdinand and Michael Owen. It probably isn’t them anymore, but I remember thinking Michael Owen? Really?

This is what happens when there is no football, you start seeing what they don’t want you to see. So, the Mothership sends out the message to find some distraction, and hey presto – let’s blame Cellino! But if I was the new Cardiff manager – let’s blame Tom Lees….

International break week, so just a quick update.

Monthly Branch Meeting

Meeting was held on Sunday at the Londesborough Club. Thanks to all who attended. Discussion about the role of Leeds Uniteds Supporters Liaison Officer (SLO) Fiona Hanley. Dave Poole complained about the telly in the North East corner being disconnected for at least a season now. Apparently the wires are still there as is the telly, but no one has connected them up. The Secretary will pass this onto the SLO. The branch has won £15 and £20 in the last two LUSC 250 draws.

LUSC Annual Dinner

Our guest of honour has been confirmed as Peter Haddock for the event on Saturday 28th October. The Chairman has agreed to reacquaint himself with Peter, and definitely not take him for another dodgy curry after the do. We have already had several confirmations from branch members for tickets. Please can anyone else wishing to attend let us know as soon as possible, so we can make our requests for tables etc.

Away Games

The Derby coach is FULL.

The Wolves coach is full, pending on members tickets on Friday.

Brighton has been moved to Friday 9th December 7.45pm kick off, the branch will be running a bus to this fixture, bookings currently being taken.

Villa has been moved to Thursday 29th December 7.45pm kick off, the branch will be running a bus to this fixture, bookings currently being taken.

Membership

Membership Secretary unavailable for the meeting, no comment

Website

Overall it is going well. The rest of the old fanzine needs to be put on. The numbers of visits has increased and we are generating a few membership requests from it. If the branch flag makes an appearance at the Derby away game, we can look to posting a newer featured picture. Anyone wishing to contribute is encouraged to get in touch, all articles will be carefully considered

4 in 4, okay not quite a goalrush – but by our standards pretty damn good!

Who would have thought that we could be saying that given the turmoil of the last ten years. According to the BBC sport website, Chris Woods 5 goals so far puts him above Will Grigg, and he isn’t even on fire yet! The game on Saturday was the gift that just keeps giving, it was like getting two thirds down your Bovril and finding that you never stirred it properly and the last bit swilled around tastes that much meatier. From Janssons tackling, to a solid performance in midfield by Phillips and O Kane, Sackos pulsating runs to the goal, bit of nifty passing and we were dominant! It’s like driving past the Haribo factory in Pontefract on Starmix day and taking a huge gulp of sugary air in – buzzing!

From the off, Sackos heads to goal with a weaving run from the centre circle, but balloons it into the South Stand. Then, Ipswich goal kick, Pontus takes it off the receiving tractor boy, long ball to the waiting Wood, down the wing and bang – outside the box, just off the post. What a statement of intent! Cracking goal before half time, Bartley gets it, passes to Pablo, to Sacko, to Wood, to Dallas, to Taylor, ball across the goalmouth, Wood – goal. Fantastic bit of team play and Wood full of confidence, buzzing. Well deserved cheers from the 22k crowd at half time and everyone talking about what there is to come. The defence look rock solid, the midfield of Phillips and O Kane steadying the ship, and the interplay of Hernandez, Dallas, Sacko and Wood, showing so much creativity. Yes, the finishing could be tighter, but what matters is, they were in the right place at the right time to create the chance in the first place. It would have been great to increase our tally, we could and should have won that 4-0, but that cracking Phillips free kick saved and the chance handed to Wood on a plate by the goalie passing to him foiled, it all still shows that we have something left in the tank in the 2nd half. Last season, games were two, sometimes completely, different halves. This season, it looks like we start as we mean to go on, and it is good feeling inside.

Bristol City tomorrow, a long trip down but we have momentum on our side. There has been so much talk about Jansson, but Captain Bartley is doing a brilliant job, and even if Bridcutt is fit, I would still give the armband to Bartley anyday. Our defence is getting stronger and stronger with the 3 new lads, Bartley, Jansson and Ayling. At times on Saturday it was like watching Streets Of Rage with Axel and Adam Stone (if you don’t get this look it up). All it needed was the Pine Pot sign and that Casio keyboard music. Can’t say that Ayling bears any resemblance to Blaze apart from the hair, but Blaze was always the better kicker, and therefore the best two player combination was always Axel and Blaze……

Get your game on!

Let it grow, let it blossom, let it flow – Clapton – Genius. Just to be clear here – NOT the Disney princess song.

Slumming it in the West Stand on Tuesday made me think about what the Club needs to do to get itself back on kilter. To my left was a muted, sparsely populated Kop, to my right were the comfortable looking padded seats of the corporate enclosure, with even fewer Tuesday night adventurers, cue Stealers Wheel.

Hopeful that I was of seeing Tyler Denton and the side that satisfied against Luton, I must admit that the side that Monk started with was a bit more conservative than what I assumed he would play. 16 changes between us in the teams that played at the weekend apparently, Owen Coyle with bigger fish to fry than the Cup, after Blackburn glorious first win over Rotherham at the weekend. The first half was nothing to write home about after Coyle’s shot in the first minute and that save by Silvestri before the half time whistle, the game was desperate for changes by half time. There was nothing inventive in the midfield, Antonsson got little or no decent service and looked forlorn up front on his own. I’m still unsure where Roofe is meant to be playing, as he doesn’t look like a forward, but then seems detached from midfield, teething problems I suppose. Hernandez comes on in the 60th minute, and we start to see some change, a few good runs, but still lacking in the final third. Coyle sees that and raises the stakes by sticking Emnes on. The “predator” starts running amok in our defence, and Silvestri pulls off a save and clears the follow up with a punch out. Then, Hallelujah! We are definitely not going for extra time and penalties! Wood comes on for Antonsson at 70 minutes and he starts chasing everything down like a dog on a mission in a butchers shop. Then it starts coming together, first Roofe has a pop, then Hernandez balloons a shot into the Kop. Grimes comes on for a flat footed Mowatt, a couple more shots on goal and then bang, Hernandez has a shot, comes off the post or keeper pushes it to Roofe.  Roofe crosses it to poacher Wood, and in it goes! 4th round here we come! Grown, blossomed, flow-ed!

So that was the football. Now the rest….. Eight thousand and a bit! There are about 14,000 season ticket holders, granted, quite a few live a distance away, and you can’t always make it to midweek games on a school night. But come on…….I suspect that had we drawn Scum or Chelski or Arsenal, they would have found some way of getting to ER or they would have given their season ticket to someone who could. And our fans have the audacity to take the piss about other teams who don’t fill their grounds. Yes, it was expensive on the day, but given it was £15 for season ticket holders, the turn out was poor. On a previous social media post, I was told that even if ticket prices were lowered to £10 adult and £5 for kids, we still wouldn’t fill the ground. So what is the solution?

For a start, should we have got a “big” club in the draw last night rather than The Tweety Birds, and should we progress into the next round and get that “glory quarter final/semi final”, Leeds United should offer those who bothered to turn up on Tuesday first dibs £10 tickets and a bonus £10 ticket for a mate. After that, then they should charge £15 for season ticket holders. Ruthless but fair.

Secondly, we just need to put a decent run in, league and cup.

Thirdly, let’s get behind the team good and proper. Give them the confidence to go in for the kill and rather than sneak a one-nil win, lets win by a decent margin, that goal difference may count for something in the end.

What a difference 4 games makes! A fortnight ago Monk was close to losing his job and the naysayers were all doom and gloom. Now the little seedlings have sprouted, with a bit of care and attention the sky is the limit – well The Premier League is actually….

………….remember from tiny acorns do mighty oaks grow