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August 1970: Despite the numerous Everton bodies in the way, Billy Bremner adroitly threads the ball through them and into the net to help United to a 3-2 victory against the reigning League Champions.

THE ELLAND ROAD playing surface had become one of the country's best the year before, when the old pitch was dug up and a new drainage system and turf installed, as part of the long term scheme to make the home of Leeds United second to none. Before the start of the 1971-72 season an additional improvement was made when under-soil heating cables were laid, yet ironically United were unable to make use of the excellent facilities at Elland Road during the first three weeks of the new campaign, as a result of what had happened during the controversial match with West Bromwich Albion a few months earlier. Not only had the defeat suffered in that match, in the end cost Leeds the First Division title, but the outcome of the pitch invasion and can throwing incidents was a fine, a reprimand and, worst of all, a ban on home League matches being played at Elland Road for a 21 day period, during which time four scheduled home fixtures had to be staged on neutral grounds. Two of those games were played at Huddersfield and a point was dropped in one of them, whilst at Hull another point was lost in a drawn encounter with Tottenham Hotspur, but at Hillsborough the match with Newcastle United produced a 5-1 victory, so all in all Leeds had done well to overcome such a handicap at the beginning of the title race.

Strange things were happening in the newly named U.E.F.A. Cup (formerly the Fairs' Cup) for United beat the Belgian club S.K. Lierse by two goals away from home, and the second leg was considered a formality, or so it seemed, particularly when manager Don Revie selected a team with only a light sprinkling of regulars in it, but the move backfired loudly and Lierse cantered to a 4-0 win just as easily as the scoreline suggests. So Leeds United, the Cup holders, were knocked out in the first round by a side who were not highly rated, and when, less than a month later, West Ham United won a third round League Cup re-play by the only goal after extra time at Elland Road, it meant that only two competitions still held any interest for Leeds with three quarters of the 1971-72 season still to go.