The formation of Leeds United came about towards the end of 1919 following the expulsion of Leeds City Football Club and United were eventually elected to the Football League in 1920.

Manager Arthur Fairclough had had to sort out a team from scratch but United made a reasonable start to life in the Second Division and finished in 14th place. They weren't the most prolific of scorers in this campaign, managing just 40 in their 42 league games but they still won 14 times and drew in ten others.

Top marksman that season was Robert Thompson, who in his only season with the club, scored 11 goals in 23 appearances, though Tommy Howarth, who signed late in the campaign from Bristol City for £1,750, chipped in with six goals in 11 outings.

Howarth was United's top scorer the following season with 13 goals in 28 league appearances as Fairclough's side got off to a great start, going seven games unbeaten. County Durham born Jack Swan, joined United from Huddersfield Town and scored ten goals in 22 league outings as United finished in a creditable 8th place.

The 1922-23 season saw United finish one place higher but Fairclough's team was beginning to look much stronger. He had signed Glasgow-born Percy Whipp, an inside-right from Sunderland, who had marked his debut for United with a hat-trick in a 3-1 home win over West Ham United in November 1922.

When the 1923-24 campaign kicked off, United had Durham centre-forward Joe Richmond in action and he, Whipp and Swan spearheaded a promotion charge which took United into the top division for the first time, scoring 44 goals between them as the Elland Road side finished as champions.

It had taken Fairclough only four seasons to lead United into the top flight and when they started the 1924-25 campaign a crowd of 33,722 saw them kick off with a home game against Sunderland which ended 1-1, Swan scoring for United.

Elland Road's top crowd that season was 41,800 for the visit of Huddersfield Town and again the game ended in a 1-1 draw, Swan again being the United scorer. Life in the top flight, however, wasn't easy. United found it tough going but they avoided the drop by finishing 18th, just outside the relegation zone.

Fairclough had pulled off a masterstroke when he signed Scottish centre forward Tom Jennings from Raith Rovers, who became one of United's greatest goalscorers. He made his debut towards the end of their first season in Division One but made a major impact in his first full season for United.

He was an ever-present and in 42 appearances he bagged 26 goals, as United finished in 19th place but the following season (1926-27) he topped that tally finishing with 35 goals in 41 league appearances - an impressive achievement by any standards.

Sadly, his goals were not sufficient to keep United in the top division - they finished bottom of the league. Fairclough left the club and was replaced as manager by Dick Ray, pictured , and he guided the club back at the first time of asking, clinching the runners-up place.

Another Scottish striker, John White, an international, who joined United from Hearts, notched 21 goals in 41 games, Russell Wainscoat, signed from Milddlesbrough, chipped in with 18 in 41 appearances while Jennings scored 21 times in 26 outings.

Young Charlie Keetley managed 18 goals in 16 appearances, including three hat-tricks!

In all for United, Jennings netted 112 goals in 167 league games and was United's record goalscorer at the time - a record that was to be broken by John Charles in the 1950s before Peter Lorimer took over that honour in the 1980s.

United had three successive seasons in Division One before ending the 1920s with relegation.

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