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| That victory put Leeds nine points in front at the head of the table - with only Liverpool having even a remote chance of catching them - while the whole country was enthralled by the quality of the football that the Elland Road outfit was producing and just to rub it in, as it were, the behaviour of the players had been exemplary with Don Revie's promise being carried out to the letter. By now every match that United played in was like a red hot cup-tie, with the opposition knowing what glory could be gained from being the first to defeat the League leaders, and some sides even indulged in special training to prepare for their meeting with the masters, while massive crowds inevitably attended when Leeds were the visitors. All this just had to have an effect and gradually United's performances began to lose some of their earlier zip, as the pressure started to tell, and when Second Division Bristol City forced a draw at Ashton Gate in the fifth round of the F.A. Cup and then pulled off a startling, but fully merited, one goal victory in the Elland Road re-play, the danger signals flashed ominously for Leeds. Four days after that, on the 23rd February, Stoke City came back from two goals down to beat Leeds United 3-2 at the Victoria Ground, in what was United's 30th League fixture of the 1973-74 season - so consequently it had been the longest unbeaten start to any season in Football League history. |
 May 1973: Action from a memorable night at Elland Road for Jack Charlton's testimonial match when Glasgow Celtic defeated United 4-3 in a superb game. |
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It was thought that with the heavy burden lifted from their shoulders Leeds would recapture their form and cruise on to the League Championship, yet it seemed to have an opposite effect with United only scraping draws in two successive home matches, before narrowly defeating Manchester City at Elland Road as a result of a disputed penalty goal. To coincide with all this, second placed Liverpool were running into peak form and closing the gap at the top of the table, and when they avenged an early season defeat by Leeds, and beat them by the same 1-0 scoreline at Anfield, there was no doubting that Bill Shankly's 'Red Army' were in with a real chance of retaining their First Division title. Things went from bad to worse for United as they suffered defeat in their next two games as well, so that when Derby County came to Elland Road with only six fixtures remaining, the situation was rather desperate and it seemed as if Leeds might well finish as frustrated runners-up - something that had happened too often in the past. Despite the team not playing at their best, Peter Lorimer and Billy Bremner scored precious goals to give United two most valuable points, and after goalless draws with Coventry City (Away) and Sheffield United (Home), Lorimer scored twice more at Bramall Lane to give Leeds a victory over Sheffield United that put the Elland Roaders back in the driving seat. Liverpool were heavily committed, with a backlog of matches in both the League and F.A. Cup to fulfil, and when they dropped a point at home to Everton it appeared that they were showing a few signs of fatigue, while on that same day United managed a 3-2 win in a tight, tense, tussle with Ipswich Town. All the same, it was a wonderful surprise when, four days later Arsenal pulled off a shock win at Anfield which meant that Liverpool could no longer reach United's points total and that the 1974 Football League Champions were - Leeds United. To celebrate taking the honour for the second time, Leeds won their final League match of the season, in London against Queens Park Rangers with an expertly taken goal from Allan Clarke, and in the end finished five points ahead of runners-up Liverpool. But although such a margin flattered them a little, United were very worthy Champions if only for the unforgettable football they had played in the first half of the season. |
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