By James Riach-Sky Sports Football Insider

From despair to elation - so far it has been a season of contrasts for Leeds United.

Capitulations against Preston, Barnsley and Cardiff have left Whites fans tearing their hair out, but there have also been emphatic victories - most notably against Coventry, Burnley and Scunthorpe.

Saturday's mightily impressive 2-0 success over league leaders Queens Park Rangers made it three wins on the bounce for Simon Grayson's men, and thanks to a brace from Max Gradel Leeds are now unbeaten in nine.

It has been six-and-a-half years since the sleeping giants graced the Premier League, and in the time between that ill-fated implosion it is fair to say their fans have experienced the full spectrum of human emotion.

A play-off final meltdown against Watford was soon followed by relegation to League One - then came a 15-point penalty and more disappointment in the play-offs, losing in the… Read more

Leeds United 2 Queens Park Rangers 0

Leeds moved to second in the table after Max Gradel's brace gave us a deserved win over league leaders QPR in an entertaining game at Elland Road. Most important is that I've the bragging rights in the house as my good wife Marian, a life long QPR supporter is not too full of Christmas cheer just now ! Simon Grayson named an unchanged side for the visit of QPR while Neil Warnock recalled former United striker Rob Hulse to his starting line-up. United had to make an early change in the contest with Alex Bruce limping out of the action to be replaced by Leigh Bromby. QPR started brightly but Leeds took the lead through Max Gradel's close-range half-volley on 25 minutes following a knock down by Lucciano Becchio.

The winger struck again midway through the second half, capping a fine solo run with… Read more

Burnley 2 Leeds United 3

Captain Fantastic Jonny Howson grabbed a 85 minute winner as Leeds came back from two goals down to beat Burnley at Turf Moor. United were twice punished for failing to clear their lines as Brian Easton lashed in a shot on 27 minutes before a Jay Rodriguez strike put the hoststwo up ten minutes later. United manager Simon Grayson made two changes to his starting line-up with Paul Connolly returned in place of Andrew Hughes after serving a one match suspension and Neill Collins was back at centre-half after injury to Andy O'Brien. Burnley were by far the better team over the opening half and well deserved their two goal lead.

However the second half saw a complete transformation from Leeds and Max Gradel sparked a Leeds comeback when he angled in a shot on 52 minutes. Then our man in form Luciano Becchio swept in an… Read more

Leeds United 2 Crystal Palace 1

Leeds very own Argentinian hitman Luciano Becchio took his tally for the season to 11 with two late strikes to beat Crystal Palace and stretch Leeds unbeaten run to seven games. Palace came into the game on a run of three wins in four games and went ahead just before the break when Neil Danns side-footed home from eight yards.

Eagles keeper Julian Speroni was a busy man in the second half and looked to have earned his side victory until that late United rally. McCartney and Paynter headed a Kilkenny corner back into the box and Becchio got the decisive touch to level the scores on 81 minutes. Then Elland Road erupted as it was 2-1 within the space of two minutes. McCormack the ex Cardiff City winger who has not enjoyed too many opportunities since signing for Leeds was fouled while bearing down… Read more

Well if we thought we had a tough draw in the 3rd round of the FA Cup last year away to Man United at Old Trafford , it's just as tough once again for Simon Grayson's men this year. After todays draw Leeds find themselves off to the home of Arsenal on the weekend of the 8/9th of January for what will be one of the ties of the round.

Arsene Wengers men still talk about Sunday the 4th May 2003 when Leeds beat Arsenal 3-2 at Highbury to avoid relegation but cost The Gunners the Premiership title. Who will ever forget Harry Kewells opening goal and then Mark Viduka's wonderful winner when Arsenal has twice come from behind.It will be back's to the wall stuff for Leeds this time round but as we found out last season there is always hope. Marching On Together

Reading 0 Leeds United 0

Reading and Leeds produced some late drama but had to be content with a point apiece in a game of few chances. The home side came close to snatching a late victory when Michail Antonio's angled shot hit the post. United also came close late on when Jonny Howson's goalbound shot was brilliantly saved by Reading goalkeeper Adam Federici in stoppage time.

The Royals have now drawn four league games on the trot, while Leeds are unbeaten in six outings. A draw appeared the fairest result from a game in which the defences were on top for the most part.

A poor game but Simon Grayson won't mind as that stretches Leeds unbeaten run to six games. Paul Connolly will miss next weeks game vs Crystal Palace as he picked up his fifth booking of the season. Luciano Becchio made his 100th appearance for Leeds but… Read more

Our good friend Emmet Moloney who is a regular in Moroney's for Leeds games has just been appointed Chief Executive Of The Clare People newspaper. This is a tremendous accolade for Emmet who began his career in London with the Irish Word and then progressed to the Kerryman as Deputy Editor. After that it was on to the Farmer Journal as Editor, a role he has excelled at and received high praise for his excellent articles and positive reaction from all the farming community.

Emmet is also involved with the well know GAA internet forum An Fear Rua which has over 8,500 signed up members and is a great source of information for our exiles all over the world particularly with regards to match reports. On behalf of all his friends at Ennislusc we sincerely wish Emmet our best wishes in his new role and look forward to catching up with… Read more

Norwich City 1 Leeds United 1

Leon Barnett's second-half header on 65 minutes salvaged a point for Norwich against fellow League 1 promotion boys Leeds United at Carrow Road. Winger Max Gradel gave Leeds the lead when he fired low into the bottom corner for his third goal of the season after 13 minutes,a lead that was thoroughly deserved by Grayson's men.

However defender Barnett levelled midway through the second half when he headed in David Fox's corner to ensure a fourth straight draw for Norwich. Gradel saw another effort tipped over by Norwich keeper John Ruddy, while Kasper Schmeichel denied Chris Martin. Norwich desperately went looking for a winner but were denied again by Schmeichel, who superbly blocked Elliott Ward's effort.

Leeds are now a point ahead in fifth, having won three and drawn two of their games since successive home defeats. Going to East Anglia this morning I'm sure Simon… Read more

Leeds United 3 Bristol City 1

Waking up on Friday morning the first feeling was relief that the high winds had abated. All was in readiness for our trip to Knock Airport and arriving at the West County there was a pep in the step. Our coach driver PJ Keogh arrived at the stipulated time of 6.45am and Bryan Woods, Marty Brennan, James O Neill, Mike Jones and myself boarded the coach on route to the Auburn Lodge to collect the main group.Last to arrive were the Lissycasey 8 and at 7.18 we headed north for Father Horan Airport. One must say that we had a pleasant surprise with the facilities at the airport and despite a delay of over an hour and a half with the incoming flight the lads enjoyed the bar facilities !

However when we were on approach to Leeds /Bradford airport we hit cross winds of over… Read more

Tomorrow morning 37 members (7 more are departing from Dublin on Saturday) of Ennislusc will set off from the Auburn Lodge, Ennis on a bus to Knock Airport for our 11am flight to Leeds / Bradford airport.Unfortunately there are no available flights from Shannon on Friday so hence our early morning rise. The only consolation in this case is we won't have any traveling when arriving like here to fore when we arrived in East Midlands, Manchester or Liverpool and had a two hour bus journey to look forward to. Furthermore we'll be in Leeds at 12.30pm,our earliest arrival time yet and when flying home it will be into Shannon from Manchester.

As always these trips would not be possible without the tremendous and unselfish work of our superb secretary Paul (Nuggy) Nihill. It's no mean feat collecting all the money for flights, printing the boarding cards ( which is a… Read more

Leeds United 2 Hull City

A late own goal from Bradley Johnson clinched an unlikely point for 10-man Hull at Yorkshire rivals Leeds. The Tigers broke the deadlock when John Bostock fired in a superb 30 yard free-kick. Leeds equalized on 33 minutes when Johnson hammered home from the edge of the area before Andy O'Brien's header gave the men from Elland Road the lead. Hull were reduced to 10 men when Bostock received a second yellow for a foul on George McCartney but they snatched a point when Johnson sliced a corner into his own net.

The result means Leeds have now gone four straight league matches without a home win, having lost their three previous games.If we could only right our home form then we would be genuine promotion contenders. There is no doubt that Simon Grayson will be terribly disappointed with this result as it was a… Read more

Coventry Town 2 Leeds United 3

Robert Snodgrass sparkled as Leeds edged a thrilling match at Coventry. Last week hat trick hero Jonny Howson nodded an early opener for the United before Snoddy cut in from the right curling home a 20-yard stunner to double the lead. Coventry's Lukas Jutkiewicz converted Ben Turner's header to pull one back but Leeds soon extended the lead with a Max Gradel penalty following a Richard Keogh foul.

Turner poked in Coventry's second after some very poor Leeds defending but then had to produce a fine tackle to deny Leeds a fourth in the closing stages. Leeds preparations were hit when goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel withdrew on Friday to attend the birth of his son but they performed admirably throughout against a side also pushing strongly for promotion to the top-flight.

Hopefully if United can sort out the back four and stop the concession of poor… Read more

Tomorrow night the legendary Leeds United midfield genius Johnny Giles will appear as a guest of Ryan Tubridy on the Late Late Show. He is launching his autobiography and also the Johnny Giles Foundation.

So tune in a hear one of the all time greats of Leeds speak his mind about his time in football. We're hardly likely to see his likes play for our beloved Leeds in the next few decades. A true great in every sense of the word.

Scunthorpe United 1 Leeds United 4

Leeds captain Jonny Howson scored a 15-minute hat-trick to help his side claim a commanding victory at Scunthorpe. The visitors took the lead when Max Gradel drilled a low finish across Tony Warner after a neat ball from Howson on eight minutes.

Scunthorpe hit back as Cliff Byrne rose highest at the back post to bury a header beyond Kapser Schmeichel. United rallied after the break and Howson crashed home a Paul Conolly cross, nodded in after a Gradel centre and then slotted a fourth.

One of just three starting survivors from Leeds last visit to Glanford Park in August 2008, Howson scored with his right foot, his left foot and his head as Simon Grayson's men returned to form after a run of one win in five. Grayson made three changes to the side that were thrashed 4-0 by Cardiff on Monday, and it… Read more

Leeds United 0 Cardiff City 4

Jay Bothroyd (who after a horror tackle on Becchio in the first half should not have been on the field) struck twice as Cardiff City ruthlessly took apart Leeds United to go joint-top of the Championship and score their biggest ever victory at Elland Road. A terrible up between fit again goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel and Alex Bruce let in Bothroyd to give Cardiff the lead with his first of the night after 22 minutes.

Michael Chopra beat the offside trap ( BUT REPLAYS SHOW HE WAS IN AN OFFSIDE POSITION ON RECEIVING THE BALL BUT WHAT THE HECK WE ARE ONLY CLUTCHING AT STRAWS) to score the second from the edge of the box, before Bothroyd guided in a Chris Burke cross for his 11th of the season.

Left back and ex Celtic defender Lee Naylor's long-range strike rounded off an emphatic win for… Read more

Middlesbrough 1 Leeds United 2

Striker Luciano Becchio scored a stunning winner as Leeds added to Middlesbrough's problems with victory at the Riverside. Davide Somma opened the scoring for the visitors with a low left-footed shot into the bottom corner. Ex Rangers striker Kris Boyd nipped in front of Richard Naylor to prod the equalizer just after half time from Matthew Bates inviting cross. But our new hero Becchio lashed home a fine volley from Bradley Johnson's cutback to secure all three points for Leeds.

Boro fans greeted the final whistle with a crescendo of boos after a defeat which leaves them in 20th place, just one point above the Championship relegation zone. The following day ex Leeds hero Gordan Strachan was sacked as Boro manager after their horrendous start to the season. Sad to hear but that's football in today's world.

Leeds United
30 Brown
02 Connolly
05 Collins
06 Naylor
29 McCartney (Hughes 34)
14… Read more

Leeds United 1 Leicester City 2

Leicester withstood a late Leeds rally to win at Elland Road (their second this season as already beaten Leeds in Carling Cup at Elland Road in September) and give Sven-Goran Eriksson his first Foxes win. On-loan defender Kyle Naughton gave Leicester the lead after 63 minutes when his deflected long-range effort looped over goalkeeper Jason Brown.

Substitute Steve Howard ( he seems to always score against us,this is his third consecutive winner against United) doubled the visitors' advantage with a neat finish after good work from Andy King. Once again Luciano Becchio pulled one back with seven minutes remaining but try as we might we were unable to find an equalizer. It was mistakes at the back once again that cost us and unless we shore up our defense we won't be challenging for a top six position as was our dream at the… Read more

Ipswich Town 2 Leeds United 1

Leeds made four changes from Tuesdays terrible defeat to Preston but once again our defense was at fault after Snodgrass had got us back into the game with 13 minutes remaining. Tommy Smith turned from villain to hero for Roy Keane's Ipswich as they saw off 10-man Leeds. But when Smith and Gareth McAuley both jumped for the same ball, Leeds won possession and the ball was played out to Robert Snodgrass, who equalize.

Guess who wasn't a happy camper on the Ipswich bench but due to more poor defending from Leeds they got the three points with seven minutes remaining. Smith was never meant to start the game, but got his chance when Irish International Darren O'Dea was injured in the warm-up. Ipswich's first goal came when on loan Spurs man Jake Livermore slotted a perfect pass through to ex Wigan forward Jason Scotland… Read more

Leeds United 4 Preston North End 6

To say this was an embarrasment is an understatement and one hopes the players feel the same after letting down the supporters with this horror show. Indeed it was the first time EVER that a team had scored six goals at Elland Road and it's time now that Grayson stood up and confronted his problems in the back line. True Casper Schmichel is out injured and Shane Higgs didn't cover himself in glory but our back four was torn apart once more this season. As George Graham our ex manager used say if you sort out the back four the rest will take care of itself.

Preston fought back from 4-1 down to beat Leeds in an extraordinary match. Jon Parkin gave Preston the lead from close range, before headers by Luciano Becchio and Alex Bruce and a double from Davide Somma put Leeds in… Read more

Leeds United 1 Sheffield United 0

Bradley Johnson's 84 minute goal gave Leeds their first win over Sheffield United for 17 years in front of the biggest Championship crowd of the season (33,622). Sheffield are now managed by former Leeds favourite Gary Speed who signed schoolboy forms along with Leeds boss Simon Grayson on the same day in 1984.

After a frantic start Ched Evans thundered an early free-kick into the Leeds wall on the edge of the penalty area, but it was the home side who dominated the first 25 minutes without creating any clear-cut chances. Johnson had Leeds best chance of a dour first half when he directing a superb header towards the top corner, only for Blades goalkeeper Steve Simonsen to push the ball away at full stretch. Former Leeds skipper Lucas Radebe (The Chief) received the biggest cheer thus far when introduced to the crowd during the interval,… Read more