Promotion Party! Monday 21st April 2025 - Elland Road 2024/25 Season At the end of the game, we went back to the Holbeck Working Men’s Club before heading back down to Elland Road to celebrate our promotion as Burnley were winning Sheffield United. Great scenes as we celebrated with the team and other fans although the flares let off stunk to high heaven. A nice gesture was my granddaughter being given a Leeds scarf to cover her face when the smoke was overpowering. The smoke lingered in my throat long into the night too. It was also very humbling to be told that I am an inspiration which were amongst some of the lovely words said to me by our fans today. With the hugs and thoughts about my late husband, I couldn’t ask for more support from so many of you which is why Leeds United supporters are second to none. Thank goodness we don’t have to go into the play offs as thousands of Leeds fans cancelled their hotel bookings including my daughter. To be able to go into the last two games knowing we are already up with no pressure on is immense. Saying that, I want to go up as Champions as we were robbed of celebrating properly last time due to covid. I had a film crew with me that night and now we’ve had a good result, I will be heading to Elland Road for 6pm tomorrow for an interview with ITV.  I’d like to dedicate this promotion to all those Leeds fans who have died this season and are unable to celebrate this with us including my husband Phillip/Captain, Halifax White. To everyone else, enjoy your celebrations as United Are back again, and we are promoted back to the Premier League. LUFC – Marching on Together!

Leeds United V Stoke City Monday 21st April 2025 - Elland Road 2024/25 Season I’d woke up at 3am and found I couldn’t sleep for hours. My mind had started racing thinking of all the permutations of what could happen at the game today. We could actually be promoted if things went our way and the excitement rising in me meant I’d gone into overdrive, which all contributed to the sleeplessness. Speaking to others at the game, I wasn’t the only one feeling this way. The worst thing was dropping asleep for an hour before getting up then feeling like I’d been hit by a bus and all my enthusiasm had waned so what would be, would be. Before heading to Elland Road, we went for our traditional bank holiday visit to Selby market and to get a Doubtfire’s ice cream. Leeds fans were out in force which was good to see. One a stall holder shouted to a Sheffield United fan who “wasn’t impressed” to see me, a Leeds United fan. There again we had a conversation, and he told me that we would win 4 or 5 nil today which I said I’d take. Never in a million years would we have expected to be 5-0 up at half time especially after being turned around at kick off. Team: Darlow, Ampadu, Rodon, Bogle, Firpo, Gnonto, Aaronson, Solomon, Piroe, Gruev, Tanaka. Subs: Ramazani for Gnonto (66), Bamford for Piroe (66), Byram for Firpo (77), Schmidt for Bogle (77), Harry Gray aged 16 making his first team debut for Aaronson (86). Subs not used: Meslier, Joseph, Guilavogui, Wöber. Leeds won the game 6-0 with Piroe getting four (6, 8, 20, 41), Firpo (26) and Gnonto (59). Attendance: 36,644, with approximately 1,900 Stoke fans. Referee: Darren Bond. Booked: Ampadu. Turning us round at the start of the game didn’t have the effect that Stoke thought there’d be. Leeds were on fire as Gnonto then Solomon with Piroe hitting the final ball into the net saw us take an early lead. Within two minutes we had doubled our lead when Bogle carried on running past the Stoke player taking the ball with him passed into the box for Piroe to score a second goal. Piroe then completed his hat trick after Tanaka sent a great ball into the box for Gnonto. He hit his shot at the second attempt which brought a save out of their keeper then Piroe came in at the far post and scored from a narrow angle. Wow, unbelievable scenes at Elland Road as the fans erupted hardly believing our eyes. We hadn’t finished yet as Bogle once again getting involved, got round their man in the penalty area and his pass saw Firpo hit a fourth into the net. Gnonto saw another shot saved by the keeper before Bogle once again saw his shot bounce back off the upright and Piroe hit the rebound into the net. It looked like a Stoke player and Aaronson tried getting a toe onto the ball, but it looks like Piroe was given the goal. It felt very surreal going into the break 5-0 up. Stoke had their first shot on goal but straight at Darlow just before the whistle blew. The second half saw Stoke bring on three subs and although we took a little while to settle, a fantastic cross by Solomon saw Gnonto head the ball into the net for a sixth goal on the day. There was no coming back for Stoke from the score then as we started to believe we were going up. They did have another shot on target on the 80th minute but in reality it was one way traffic for most of the game which was great for us fans too.  It was lovely to see the Gray family dynasty carry on when Harry Gray younger brother of Archie, came on as a sub at 16 years of age. A special moment especially for Eddie Gray who was extremely proud and full of emotion on seeing him come on to the pitch. LUFC – Marching on Together!

Oxford United V Leeds United Friday 18th April 2025 - The Kassam Stadium 2024/25 Season After a couple of bad days, I’d felt more upbeat on my way to Elland Road when a lorry with a lest we forget cab, passed me with a big Leeds United badge on the side. I automatically gave it the Leeds salute as I go onto autopilot when I see other Leeds fans. Listening to music helped me so in my reel I said I wanted Leeds to go and enjoy the football, forget about our target of automatic promotion but to keep fighting. My thoughts were that it would take the pressure off us. After other results didn’t help again (not that I expected any to), winning the game had to be a priority. At our pub stop it was nice to talk to some Oxford fans who still wished us good luck despite wanting their team to win, as they’d be fighting for the points as they were near the relegation zone. The last time we’d come to this ground was for a pre-season friendly, but I couldn’t remember when but was reminded that it was for Bielsa’s first game. It’s still unique with only three stands in place but it gave some Leeds fans the chance to watch from the car park and others in the distant trees. This was another ground where we were treated well as far as I was concerned. The only issue was getting soaked before the game when I switched the tap on in the ladies sink only for a torrent of water to overflow everywhere. I wasn’t the only one to find that out the hard way. Team: Darlow, Ampadu, Rodon, Bogle, Solomon, Gnonto, Gruev, Tanaka, Aaronson, Firpo, Piroe. Subs: Bamford for Piroe (75), James for Gnonto (75), Schmidt for Solomon (87), Guilavogui for Aaronson (90). Subs not used: Meslier, Joseph, Byram, Ramazani, Wöber. Leeds won the game 1-0 with the goal scored by Solomon (32). Attendance: 11,537, 1,434 Leeds fans. Referee: Dean Whitestone. Booked: Gruev, Bogle. I knew it wouldn’t be an easy game which turned out to be the case and very tense for us Leeds fans. Oxford were the first on the attack which saw Darlow make a good save before their keeper was called into action to save a shot from Aaronson. Oxford were having plenty of possession, looking quite dangerous at times. Instead of the flying Leeds fan at an Oxford game in the past, it was a flying Leeds player when Tanaka was pushed in the back. After soaking up the pressure, Leeds took the lead when Rodon sent an excellent ball for Bogle to run onto who sent a great pass across the box for Solomon to race in and put the ball into the net. That was a welcome relief to take the lead and meant we were in control then as we went into the break. The second half still saw Oxford with a lot of possession, and we had to be really patient in our build ups (not that us fans were), but we did manage some good play down the wing. We started attacking more as Farke was looking to bring our first subs on and a Firpo shot went over the bar but was not that far away. Darlow threw a long ball out to Solomon on the wing, and he would have been away bearing down on goal only for the game to be stopped for a foul. Tanaka was so unlucky not to score as his long shot hit the bottom of the post and bounced away sadly not near a Leeds player. From a free kick their keeper was able to make the save from Gruev easily. Oxford tried getting back into the game, but we were standing firm in defence and there were plenty of sighs of relief that we were one step closer to automatic promotion when the final whistle blew. It is still all to play for, and Monday will have a big bearing on the outcome of the table positions, as Burnley and Sheffield United play each other after our game has finished. Keeping us in pole position will be vital and put even more pressure on those two. As long as the challengers implode and not us, I’d be happy. I’d have no problem us all going up to have local derby games, but we have to go up automatically whereas one of them can go up via the playoffs I’ve tried for exchange tickets for Monday without success so it will be just the three of us with season tickets being at the game. I’m looking forward to a bouncing Elland Road, but we must get behind the team for the full 90 minutes. On the way home, I had a few tears as my husband won’t be there to share the chance of Leeds going up. We first met at a pre-season friendly in Molenbeek in 1977 so go back a long way. There are many more Leeds fans who won’t be there to share this with us either so the emotions and nostalgia will be hitting many of us if we succeed. See you there, LUFC – Marching on Together!

Leeds United V Preston North End Saturday 12th April 2025 - Elland Road 2024/25 Season With the sun blaring down, it was another glorious day as we headed to Elland Road for the lunchtime kick off. After a visit to the Holbeck Club, The Peacock and Billy’s statue, we queued at the turnstiles. After all the furore about the turnstiles not working correctly and fans being denied the chance to renew their season tickets, it looked like there were issues again with one. Fans were scanning their tickets and then having to come out of the queue, so I ensured I went to the adjacent one to get through. Luckily all was fine for myself and my granddaughter to get into the ground. I’d been asked a few times before the game about what the score would be today. I didn’t dare to say anything, one because I always get it wrong and two, I didn’t want to jinx the outcome so said I would see what transpired on the pitch. A big well done to everyone involved at the Chris and Kev remembrance dinner last week, as they raised £90,000 for Candlelighters, who support families facing children’s cancer in Yorkshire. An emotional night and well done to Charlie for getting his story about the night Chris and Kev were murdered out there. The article in the Telegraph was harrowing to read. Anyone who believed the lies told by the media about our fans that night, should read it and understand what really happened. My sister Erica was the lucky winner of two tickets for the game today courtesy of Cadburys. It was also lovely seeing the sea of yellow, white and blue shirts amongst the crowd in and out of the ground. I also bumped into the lads from Utrecht who had woken their friend up to bring him to Elland Road for his stag do. Team: Darlow, Ampadu, Rodon, Bogle, Firpo, Gnonto, Piroe, Solomon, Gruev, Tanaka, Aaronson. Subs: Bamford for Aaronson (80), Schmidt for Gnonto (80), Byram for Solomon (95). Subs not used: Meslier, Guilavogui, Joseph, Ramazani, Debayo, Wöber. Leeds won the game 2-1 with Solomon (4) and Bogle (13) scoring the goals which put Leeds back to the top of the table. Attendance: 35,747 with approximately 1,500 Preston fans. Referee: John Busby. Booked: Darlow, Gruev. Once again Leeds got off to a tremendous start with an early goal. Solomon got into a great position as I shouted, shoot. The words had hardly left my lips, as he unleashed a shot from the edge of the box that hit the top corner of the net in front of the South Stand as Elland Road erupted. Our celebrations were cut short as within two minutes Preston equalised with a similar long range shot from the edge of the box which beat Darlow. Although that was disappointing, Leeds continued to show that the best form of defence is attack as they continued to bombard the far goal. Before we knew it, we’d taken the lead again after a fantastic cross from Solomon on the left was met by Bogle in the middle of the goal, to put the ball into the net as Elland Road erupted once more. It took me a few minutes to realise that Piroe had a new hairstyle because it made him look taller and I’d wondered who it was. He was very involved in attacking the far goal and saw his attempt go narrowly pass the post, plus Gnonto saw a good shot saved by their keeper. Despite Piroe coming close again the score stayed the same as we went into the break. As we came out for the second half, Leeds had to be on their toes when Darlow made a great save from their shot from a corner. Piroe then saw his shot go wide after Aaronson sent him on his way past the defence. Solomon sent a great cross into the box and Piroe was unlucky once again as his shot came off the cross bar and away. Another attack and this time Aaronson crossed for Gnonto only to see the shot go over the top of the goal. We were very lucky not to be punished when Darlow punched the ball away from the goal. I hadn’t realised at the time that he was far out of his area and was booked for it. As someone said to me after the game, he thought it was lucky that Darlow wasn’t sent off. Their free kick was taken and luckily, we managed to clear it. As news filtered through that Plymouth had taken the lead against Sheffield United, the noise around Elland Road reached fever pitch. It carried on like this until the final whistle as Leeds emerged winners with another precious three points taking us back to the top. That’s the best atmosphere we’ve had at Elland Road for a long time, and I loved it. I was so happy at the end of the game then I became emotional and cried. I wasn’t the only one to do this and it shows how much it means to us all. I thought Piroe played well today so he needs to keep his new hairstyle. I also thought the referee kept the game flowing and although he played on when Bamford was rugby tackled and thrown to the floor, overall, he dealt with the game well. Well, I honestly don’t know how people are lucky buying tickets for home games because since the system changed, I haven’t managed to get extra tickets for my family once. I was 10,000 and 9,000 in the queue for Stoke tickets so I didn’t stand a chance and gave up. With the old site I was successful many times, so I am just thankful that I have a home and away season ticket otherwise I’d never get to a game! With four games to go, it still isn’t over, but we are in a good position but need to keep this automatic promotion place. We travel to Oxford on Friday before being back at Elland Road on Easter Monday.  Keep fighting Leeds and see you all there. LUFC – Marching on Together!

Middlesbrough v Leeds United Tuesday 8th April 2025 - The Riverside Stadium 2024/25 Season After an emotional week where our scores haven’t been at the forefront of my mind, I’d felt more upbeat today as we headed to the game. Thank you for the support and for caring because that means such a lot to me. I’d decided to go to Don Revie’s statue when I got to Elland Road as I wanted him to give some inspiration to the team. It was a beautiful sunny day, and I said it wasn’t over yet and we still stood a chance. Well, we got behind the team and we got that hard worked for three points. It was harder that it needed to be as we had two perfectly good goals disallowed but well done to the lads for the victory. Team: Darlow, Ampadu, James, Rodon, Firpo, Bogle, Piroe, Aaronson, Tanaka, Gruev, Solomon. Subs: Gnonto for Solomon (68), Byram for Firpo (68), Schmidt for James (injured possible hamstring 73), Bamford for Piroe (73), Guilavogui for Aaronson (90+1). Subs not used: Meslier, Ramazani, Joseph, Wöber. Leeds won the game 1-0 with James scoring (2). Attendance: 28,729, 2,622 Leeds fans. Referee: Andrew Kitchen. Booked: Byram. Leeds got off to a fantastic start after Firpo then Solomon passed the ball for James using his pace to get in front of the defence to put the ball into the net. Just what we all needed to settle any nerves. Boro had a goal disallowed when their player ended up with just Darlow to beat but he was miles offside. We kept attacking, which is the best form of defence, as Tanaka put the ball into the net from close range to take a bigger lead only to see that chalked off for offside. We started getting messages from people telling us it was onside and should have been allowed. That was typical as it would have dented Boro’s attacking in my opinion. As it was, we ended up going into the break with the one goal lead. The second half James was prominent in taking the ball forward, his pace caused all sorts of issues for Boro, and he was also my man of the match. Piroe had a shot saved by their keeper as Boro tried to get back into the game. They got into good positions but luckily for us, they’d mostly left their shooting boots in the dressing room although Darlow made a couple of good saves. We really came under the cosh then as Boro constantly attacked us putting us under severe pressure and we needed to change things as far as I was concerned. It wasn’t much longer before we did make the change then five minutes later Bamford came on making his 200th appearance for us. We ran straight up to the other end out of defence with Schmidt passing to Gnonto. With a great ball into the box for Bamford, he put the ball into the net as we started to celebrate only to see this one chalked off for offside again. We were indignant that it wasn’t offside and once again we were proved right when we got messages again saying it should have been allowed. The disallowed goals would have taken all the pressure off us but as there was only one goal between is, we had to battle hard until the final whistle blew. It was very nervy as Boro came close a few times but thankfully, we saw the game out for a very important win which took us back to the top of the table as Burnley drew and Sheffield United lost. Swings and roundabouts, ups and downs, it will never be easy supporting Leeds but, keep the faith, get behind the lads and make Elland Road a cauldron of noise on Saturday as we have another 12.30 kick off for the visit of Preston. See you there, LUFC- Marching on Together!

Leeds United V Luton Saturday 5th April 2025 - Kenilworth Road 2024/25 Season It’s been a very emotional week for me personally because yesterday saw the anniversary of my baby daughter’s sudden death from an undiagnosed heart defect. Tomorrow also sees my late husband’s birthday so alongside the Chris and Kev tributes it all hit home for me and plenty of tears have been shed. Thank you to everyone for the support you have given me with words and hugs because they are all greatly appreciated. With another 12.30pm kick off, it was an early start as we left Leeds at 5.30am stopping at Stevenage getting to the ground in bright sunshine. I needn’t have worried about being under the stand and not getting any sun, as my seat was at the side. As it was cold this morning when we left, I’d been well prepared despite knowing the weather would warm up by kick off. Well done to Luton for their support in the 25th minute with the round of applause for Chris and Kev with flags in the Leeds end and everyone turning their backs in tribute to the lads. With Farke making the decision to drop Meslier and put Darlow in goal, it had taken the sting out of the social media emotions. All I wanted from today was to keep things in our own hands, battle and fight for 90 minutes. As we all know now, we got a draw which means Burnley had leapfrogged us to go top. Although it is still not over yet as we have chances, we need to up our game if that’s the case. Team: Darlow, Ampadu, Struijk, Bogle, Firpo, James, Solomon, Piroe, Tanaka, Gnonto, Rodon. Subs: Bamford for Gnonto (63), Aaronson for Piroe (79), Struijk (injured) for Wöber (86), Byram for Bogle (87), Schmidt for Solomon (87). Subs not used: Meslier, Gruev, Ramazani, Guilavogui. Leeds drew the game 1-1 coming from behind with a James goal (28). Attendance: 11,867, 1,400 Leeds fans. Referee: Thomas Bramall. Booked: Bogle, Solomon. Leeds started off on the front foot which saw their keeper save from Firpo before another attack saw him save a Solomon shot. Luton then took an early lead after counter attacking and winning the ball on the far side before racing towards our goal in front of the Leeds fans. When they crossed over to our side their man was in loads of space having no one marking him, to hit the ball into the net. That was disappointing but Leeds fought back to equalise with a fantastic goal by James 15 minutes later. Level terms at half time gave us some hope. Darlow had to make an important save at the start of the second half. It took a while before Leeds suddenly looked to get the impetus to attack when Bamford had come onto the pitch for his first game after a long injury. After a powerful header out of defence by Rodon which was picked up by James to run onto, he passed to Bamford who saw his low shot parried by their keeper. James got behind the Luton defence again and sent a great pass across the box with Solomon coming in at the far post only to see the ball go wide. Bamford got on the end of a Tanaka forward pass, but their player caught up with him and closed him down. His pass to Schmidt saw the ball taken off the latter’s toes. With Leeds getting on top, Luton made subs that took the sting out of the game as they took such a long time. At times we were very slow in our build ups playing across the back, but it did feel that we wouldn’t get the winner despite 8 minutes of injury time. Looking back at the playbacks, their keeper spilled every shot from us but sadly no one was near enough to follow up and stick the ball into the net. It's still not over, there are going to be plenty more ups and downs and we go again on Tuesday against Middlesbrough. We’ve got to keep fighting despite the draw today and never give up. After hearing that our last home game against Bristol has now been moved to the Monday night with only three weeks’ notice, I feel sorry for so many of our fans who are now unable to attend. Hearing some of our Irish fans were not only attending the game but had flights and hotels booked, shows the high impact this will have had on many. It is time the 3pm kick off blackout is consigned to the bin so that games do not get moved at the last minute. Fans will still go to the games despite them being on TV, as well as ensuring fans around the world can watch their team too. Many of you will know about the CDs we recorded with over 200 songs and chants from the terraces from the 1960s until 2018. On 24th April we will have 99 of these songs and chants being available for downloading from sites such as Spotify. As before, any monies raised will go towards the Leeds United Foundation/Academy. Hopefully our fans who used modern sites to listen to music will help support this. Thank you to those who have given great feedback from my new website going live. If you haven’t seen it yet, please have a look at www.followmeandleedsunited.co.uk and you may just find yourself included in the photos from each game on the Matchday link. I will still post my blogs as I have been doing but the website will have everything in one place even though it is still work in progress. Also thank you to Kevin Smith from Harrogate for the Leeds United LP Marching on Together Leeds United Greatest Hits, Golden Anniversary Collection. I’m looking forward to listening to this. I pulled into Hartshead Moor services on my way home, rejoining the motorway a short time later with blue lights bearing down behind me. When I got level with the two cars at the side of the road, one was facing towards me and the other in the right direction. It puts it all in perspective for me. After having a robin serenading me in the garden yesterday as I was having a quiet moment, I do feel I’m being looked after by loved ones. See you Tuesday, LUFC – Marching on Together!

Remembering Chris Loftus & Kevin Speight – 25 Years On Friday 4th April 2025 - Elland Road 2024/25 Season After being at the plaque on Thursday, which was very emotional, yesterday saw at least 940 attend the remembrance dinner in the Pavilion with great support from Leeds United and their representatives. Leeds fans, friends, the families of Chris and Kev along with special guests Luke Ayling, Stuart Dallas, Glynn Snodin, Nigel Martyn, Gary Kelly, Josh Warrington, Peter Ridsdale along with compere Jed Stone came together to support Candlelighters, who support families facing children’s cancer in Yorkshire. A big well done to Gareth Senior too for his continuous support in getting the truth out about what happened that tragic night in Istanbul, with the murders of Chris and Kev. Sorry if I’ve missed anyone off. The one thing that resonated with me was the talk given by one of the lads caught up in the atrocities. It’s been swept under the carpet due to all the misinformation that was spread at the time, but there were at least 20 lads that sustained slashings, stab wounds and other traumas who have suffered the effects of that night for the last 25 years. Each one will have dealt with things differently, but it made me realise the long-lasting effects on some of those which are felt to this day. Well done to everyone who was there to give our unanimous support and respect to the families and friends of Chris and Kev. LUFC – Marching on together!