For most of the second half Leeds were overrun, but we must be doing something right, as for the third league game running we won through a goal in the last ten minutes.

Leeds made a couple of enforced changes for this game, having lost two left sided players to injury in the past week. Clapham came straight in at left back at the start of his loan period, and gave us a steady if unspectacular debut. Carole got his first start of the season, but out of position on the left, and it wasn’t until he was switched to the right for the closing stages that he really showed us what he can do. I would rather see young Ben Parker at left back, Clapham pushed further forward and Carole in his favoured position wide on the right.  

Leeds began brightly, and had the better of the first half in front of the weekend’s largest crowd outside the Premiership, and it took only 17 minutes to create the opening goal that our play deserved. Kandol controlled a through ball in midfield and played it out to Beckford on the right, who flicked it up and played the ball back to his strike partner on the edge of the box. Kandol did well to take it on his chest, and hammer the ball past the keeper from a distance of 12 yards. He’s starting to look  far cry from the donkey of last season , so could it be that some confidence is beginning to flow through his veins and that he is forming a good understanding with Beckford? 

We continued to play well for the rest of the half and create the better of the chances, with Prutton having a header tipped over the bar, and Beckford shooting over when Kandol put him through. The best the home side had to offer was a couple of free kicks that went straight into the wall. Forest might have had a bit of a rocket at half time, because they cam out looking far more determined after the break, and it took them only four minutes to get back on level terms. 

Commons whipped a free kick into to area from their right hand touchline, and though he can’t have intended it as a shot from so far out, it bounced past Casper into the net with the aid of a deflection. The goal seemed to knock the stuffing out of Leeds and one or two players seemed to wilt, especially Thomson, who was a pale imitation of his usual creative self. Perch and Commons went close, while Rui and Frazer managed to fling themselves in the way of a couple more goalbound efforts as things started to look a bit desperate. 

A draw would probably have been a fair result in this game of two halves, and it looked like that would be the best Leeds could hope for. But Wise had other ideas, and he took Prutton off to play Flo as an extra striker, a move which had the added benefit of moving Carole over to the right. And once again the move worked, with yet another of our trademark late goals. Carole did most of the damage with a surging run that took him past several players, but we were fortunate that his inoccuous shot was deflected and bounced over to find Beckford racing through just beyond the far post. He made no mistake in tucking the ball home in front of the ecstatic Leeds fans, and the victory was ours. 

I don’t know if these late goals are coming through a never-say-die team spirit, superior fitness, or the benefits of playing Carole on the right towards the end of games, but it’s certainly working. This was certainly a fortunate win, but the momentum is now with us, and long may it continue!

Photo: Action Images

Queens Park Rangers Polls