It will be a rousing return to football at Elland Road for Leeds United on Saturday as they host a West Yorkshire derby in the Sky Bet Championship. Huddersfield Town the visitors for a 1230 kick-off and ahead of the match, Ben Scott takes a look back at a memorable encounter from the 2013/14 campaign.
Leeds will return to home comforts this weekend after two consecutive away matches. Daniel Farke will be hoping his side can continue the unbeaten run at home in the league with three wins and three draws so far achieved. In contrast from the six away games Huddersfield have played, they’ve won just once, drew three and lost the other two.
We take a look back at a Championship meeting on the first day of February in 2014. An attendance of 31,103 would see Leeds fall behind after 25 minutes, but end the match winning 5-1 after bagging all five goals in an emphatic 37 minute period.
The Whites nearly went behind even earlier than the 25th minute, as Oliver Norwood was left unmarked some 10 feet outside of the penalty area and he was able to drill a low effort across goal, but it came back off the goalframe. Not long after, the visitors did break through when Paddy Kenny was beaten by Danny Ward from an acute angle.
The Terriers didn’t make into the half-time break in the lead though, as the leading scorer in the league, Ross McCormack showed great predatory skills in the last minute of the half by firing home a low volley.
Five minutes after the break and the scorer became goal provider this time, as he set up Jimmy Kebe. McCormack received the ball just outside the penalty area then fainted in one direction, before playing a clever backheel which Kebe raced onto and tucked away past Alex Smithies in the Town goal.
Leeds kept up a pace of attacking that Town couldn’t deal with and eventually the visitors folded twice, within 11 minutes. The first came with 62 minutes played, as McCormack bagged twice more, to complete a memorable hat-trick.
The first of the quick brace was when McCormack glided unmarked into the centre of the goalmouth and calmly tapped in Sam Byram’s low ball into the box from the right. Then on 73 minutes, he was found at the far post as Cameron Stewart crossed from the left and again, the striker coolly tucked the ball away.
The celebrations soon got even better when Alex Mowatt scored his first professional goal, from just outside the penalty area, as the midfielder seized on an opportunity fire beyond Smithies to make it five.
That would be that for the scoring and a memorable win in this West Yorkshire derby was confirmed for Leeds.