Allan Clarke

Allan “Sniffer” Clarke’s goal in the 1972 FA Cup final is arguably the single most cherished strike in the club’s history.  A goal-poacher supreme, Clarke was renowned as one of the most clinical finishers around.  After making his debut for Walsall at 16, Clarke moved to Fulham where he impressed enough to be bought by Leicester City for a British record fee of £150,000 in 1968.  Don Revie brought him to Leeds, for another British record fee of £165,000 just weeks after he won Man Of The Match for the Foxes in the 1969 FA Cup final (although they reached the final, Leicester were relegated that season).  Clarke, sensing opportunities in a flash, soon formed a formidable partnership with Mick Jones and proved deadly when one-on-one with a keeper.  In 1969/70 he top-scored with 26 goals, before scoring on his full England debut against Czechoslovakia during the World Cup finals in Mexico.

After scoring in the Fairs Cup final win against Juventus in 1971 and winning a second Man Of The Match award in the FA Cup final the following year, he won Leeds Player Of The Year in 1972/73.  He finally won a Championship medal 1973/74 — his strike against Ipswich Town clinching the title.  Following Revie’s departure, Clarke helped Leeds reach the 1975 European Cup final.  Revie had often kidded the FA his star striker was injured when England squads were named so Clarke won just 19 caps, - but he still scored 10 international goals.  A knee injury signalled the end of his top-flight playing career before he joined Barnsley as player-manager in 1978.  Guiding them to promotion, his 1980 appointment as Leeds manager seemed ideal, but Leeds suffered relegation in 1982, even after breaking the transfer fee record buying Peter Barnes for almost a million pounds to bolster the attack.  Clarke, therefore, is best remembered as top scorer in four seasons and the club’s third highest goal scorer of all time.

Strange but true: Clarke was one of five brothers to play professionally.

Mark Viduka

David O’Leary’s search for an experienced target man to compliment his young strikeforce ended in the summer of 2000 with the £6 million purchase of an Australian international of Croatian descent, Marco Viduka from Celtic.  A prolific goalscorer in Scotland, Viduka took only a few games to settle at Elland Road, scoring 22 goals in all competitions, including a four-goal performance in the memorable 4-3 victory over Liverpool. 

Strong both in the air and incredibly skillful on the ball for a big man, Viduka’s contribution to United’s Champions League campaign trebled his value, with the cream of Europe’s clubs asking about his availability.  His second season mirrored that of the team, with high expectations leading to ultimate disappointment, though Viduka did boost his goal tally late on to finish top scorer again.  His consistency and fitness were questioned by some, and his future with the club was never 100 per cent clear, after fall outs with ex-boss Peter Reid. “The Duke” signed for Middlesbrough following United's relegation from the top flight, where he continues to score goals.

Strange but true: Croatia’s president personally persuaded Viduka to join the country’s premier club, Croatia Zagreb, from Melbourne in 1995.

Tony Yeboah

After Howard Wilkinson paid Eintracht Frankfurt just £3.4 million for Yeboah, the Ghanaian international’s Leeds career began slowly due to lack of fitness — but he wasted little time in proving that shooting, not running, was his strongest suit.  Twelve league goals from 16 starts helped Leeds into a UEFA Cup berth but the following campaign was even more spectacular.  Stunners against Liverpool at Elland Road and another from distance at Wimbledon won him consecutive Goal Of The Month awards; the former also scooped Goal Of The Season, before a hat trick in Monaco made him the toast of Europe. Sadly, it didn’t last.  He got injured in March 1996 and never regained his form or place.

Strange but true: Yeboah marked his last appearance in a Leeds shirt by throwing it at the bench when substituted by George Graham at White Hart Lane.

Mick Jones

Unselfish, great in the air and hard-working, Jones was one half of a lethal partnership with Allan Clarke.  A £100,000 buy from Sheffield United, he quickly repaid the fee, scoring the winner in the 1968 Fairs Cup final, then finished as top scorer in United’s first Championship season of 1968/69.  Clarke’s arrival brought the best out of Jones, and he deservedly regained international recognition with England, albeit in just one match.  Jones was integral to every subsequent success under Don Revie.  The 1973/74 title proved to be his swan song, but again he was top scorer.  He retired a year later, succumbing to a serious knee injury.

Strange but true: Having supplied the cross for Clarke’s winner in the 1972 FA Cup final, Jones dislocated his shoulder in a near identical move.  He struggled up to the Royal Box to collect his medal from the Queen, collapsing in pain soon after.

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink

Leeds’ top scorer for two successive seasons, the Surinam-born Dutchman Hasselbaink added intelligent link-up play to his obvious power and striking ability.  Plucked from relative obscurity at Portuguese side Boavista for £2 million, Jimmy burst onto the Premiership scene with a goal on his debut in a 1-1 draw. Though he failed to score in Leeds’ next seven games, he bagged an impressive 22 in 37 starts that season.  In 1998/99, he finished joint top scorer in the Premiership (alongside Owen and Yorke) with 18 goals. Then, after demanding Leeds break their pay structure to keep him, he joined Atletico Madrid for £12 million, days before the start of 1999/2000.

Strange but true: Having made his debut with “Jimmy” (not “Hasselbaink”) on the back of his shirt, the Premier League ordered it changed.  Fair play, especially as his real first name is Jerel.

Lee Chapman

Chapman was signed by Howard Wilkinson — who had managed him at Sheffield Wednesday — midway through the 1989/90 season for £400,000 from Nottingham Forest.  There were plenty of doubters as Leeds were his eighth club in eight years, but Chapman quickly established himself, scoring 12 goals in his first (half) season as Leeds were promoted.  He went on to be the club’s top scorer in every full season he spent at the club.  He did return to Elland Road for a short loan spell in January 1996, playing against West Ham and Liverpool, but it was not a happy homecoming as, goal-less alongside Mark Hateley, he was sent off against the Hammers.

Strange but true: Chapman left Leeds after Brian Deane was signed as his replacement.  He went to Portsmouth.

Joe Jordan

Manager Don Revie described the uncompromising Scot as a “rough diamond” when he paid Morton £15,000 for his services.  Seen as the successor to Mick Jones, Jordan initially found himself in the reserves.  But as Jones’ injury problems grew, 1973/74 proved to be Jordan’s breakthrough — he won the title with Leeds and starred in Scotland’s World Cup campaign.  United’s march to the 1975 European Cup final saw Jordan become the most sought-after centre-forward in Europe but he didn’t leave for three more years when Man United made a record £350,000 bid.  He later played in Serie A for AC Milan and Verona.

Strange but true: Bayern Munich tried to buy him after the 1975 European Cup final but Leeds blocked the move.

Tom Jennings

Jennings is our fourth highest goalscorer of all-time.  Signed by manager Arthur Fairclough from Raith Rovers, Jennings might have scored even more if he had not suffered with attacks of blood poisoning.  In those seasons Fairclough’s successor, Dick Ray, could replace him with Charlie Keetley — but Jennings was even more prolific than him.  After scoring 26 as an ever present in the 1925/26 league season, he missed one game the following campaign but scored nine more — his total of 35 including a run of seven consecutive games on the score sheet that began with matches when he bagged a hat trick, four and four.  Despite all that, Leeds were relegated that season.  Probably the best Scottish striker never to play for his country.

Strange but true: With Raith Rovers he was shipwrecked on a team voyage to the Canary Islands.

John Charles

Uniquely, “King John” was renowned as both a world-class centre-half and centre-forward.  Major Frank Buckley gave him his Leeds debut at 16.  At centre-half he helped Leeds reach the FA Cup quarter-finals for the first time in 1950 and a year later he became Wales’ youngest international (going on to win 38 caps and starring at the 1958 World Cup finals).  Powerful in the air and a strong tackler, Charles was a formidable defender but an injury crisis in 1952 resulted in Buckley switching him to centre-forward with stunning effect.

Up front, his aerial prowess allied to a terrific shot, saw Charles terrorise defences; scoring 26 goals in 28 games, including three hat tricks.  In 1953/54 Charles scored 42 goals and five hat tricks — both totals still club records.  Raich Carter began Charles in defence in 1955/56, but switched him to attack when he blooded Jack Charlton.  In another sensational campaign Charles scored 28 league goals as Leeds clinched promotion.

During his first Division One campaign, Charles top-scored for the fourth time with 38 goals, including hat tricks both home and away against Sheffield Wednesday.  Offers flooded in.  The Leeds board finally accepted a world record £65,000 bid from Juventus.  In a five-year spell in Italy, Charles won three championships, the Italian Cup, a Footballer Of The Year award and was fondly dubbed the “Gentle Giant” for his supreme sportsmanship.

With his best years behind him, Charles played briefly again for Leeds, then Roma and Cardiff City before coaching, among a number of clubs, Swansea City.  In 2001 he was awarded a CBE for services to football.  Second on Leeds’ all-time scoring list, John Charles is a legend among supporters even though only the oldest of them ever saw him play.

John Charles sadly lost a long battle with illness and passed away on February 21st 2004. Click here to read tributes and more on the life of this true Leeds United Legend.

Strange but true: Among his club record 11 hat tricks for Leeds, Charles scored three times in three consecutive games against Rotherham United.

Alan Smith

Smith scored his first goal at senior level with his very first touch of the ball, within three minutes of taking the field, as a substitute at Anfield in a 3-1 victory.  He went on to establish himself as first choice striking partner for Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink seducing Leeds fans with his commitment to the team he has supported since he was a lad.  The 1999/2000 season was a disappointment for Smith as niggling injuries to his ankle reduced both his appearances and effectiveness as a goal scorer.  The following season saw Smith form an impressive partnership with Mark Viduka, not least in Leeds’ memorable Champions League run — in which he contributed seven goals.

The 01/02 season saw Smith drop down the strikers’ pecking order following the signing of Robbie Fowler but Smith remained in David O’Leary’s team largely deployed in a new midfield role. Smith reacted characteristically putting in spirited performances, earning his first England call-up in 2002.

Alan sadly left the club at the end of the ill-fated 2003/4 season when United were relegated from the Premiership and forced to part with their most prized assets. To the horror of all Leeds fans, he chose their most fierce rivals, Manchester United, and the love affair was over.

Strange but true: Smith is a confirmed teetotaller.