September 29th, 2007,
KRBS priest field stadium,
Today leeds were facing Gillingham FC and honestly, Ryan was quite concerned for the game.
Due to recent easy victories, some of the players were slowly getting overconfident. He did warn them in the training sessions but was still a little worried. while In any sports, self-confidence is one of the driving forces for better performance and a key factor for success but an excess amount can easily turn confidence into overconfidence propelling the team towards the opposite, especially against a team like Gillingham FC who were on quite a decent form themselves. Gillingham was currently second on the league table having won six out of their seven league matches.
....
Leeds squad for the game.
" Goalkeeper: Ankergren "
" Defenders: Richardson, health, Koscielny, Alba"
" Midfielders: Prutton, Houston, Douglas(c), Carole "
" Forwards: Beckford, Kandeol "
" In bench: Lucas, Parker, Clapham, Whittingham, Huntington"
....
After the referee made sure it was time the match between leeds and Gillingham started at 3;00 pm sharp.
For the first few minutes, the play was mostly centered in the middle as both teams failed to make any sort of attack on the opponent's half. After a few scuffles in the middle, Leeds slowly began to gain momentum.
In the 12th minute, Leeds had their first goal attempt when kandol's right-footed shot missed the goal assisted by Prutton.
The very next minute leeds launched another attack when Prutton sent a through ball near the Gillingham goal but Beckford who received the ball was caught offside.
In the 19th minute, Leeds nearly scored their first goal when Carole headed the ball for the goal on a corner but was denied by the Gillingham goalkeeper.
The deadlock however was soon broken.
In the 24th minute, a stunning strike by Beckford helped Leeds to open their goal account.
Beckford who picked up a misplaced pass in the Gillingham half dribbled passed Ian Cox the Gillingham defender and sent a right-footed shot into the corner of the net.
After the goal, Gillingham did show some aggression on the Leeds goal for an equalizer but didn't manage to score one courtesy of the well-run Leeds defense.
Just before the referee could blow the whistle signaling end of the half, Leeds managed to get their second goal of the game when alba managed to score a goal on the counter.
Casper Ankergren who managed to intercept the ball from Delroy Facey quickly sent the ball towards alba who was already racing forward. Alba who received the ball quickly outpaced the Gillingham defenders and scored the second goal for Leeds extending their lead to two goals to nil.
....
After the whistle for the end of the half was blown all the Leeds players moved back to their dressing room. the players seemed in a joyous mood from their 2:0 lead.
After the players had their drinks and rest Ryan quickly analyzed the first-half performance and discussed with the players their strategy for the second half.
....
When the second half started Leeds approached the game in a relaxed manner where they mostly focused on possession of the ball and preserving the lead. Gillingham was also continuing playing conservatively and defensively making the game rather dull. Dalroy facey the Gillingham forward was the only player up front. He would press forward for a counterattack occasionally. From the play, it seemed Gillingham was focused on preventing Leeds from scoring any more goals.
Seeing the lack of attack from Gillingham, Leed's defense relaxed with each passing minute. This however turned out fatal as In the 76th minute utilizing Leed's slacking defense Gillingham managed to find the back of Leed's net courtesy of a fantastic counter-attack goal from David Graham.
Ryan seeing such sloppy defense from his team was furious and scolded his defenders.
"It's just a goal, don't worry manager we will win this game "was the reply he got which angered Ryan even more.
Ryan slowly made his way to a water bottle for a drink to relieve his anger. As he just turned the cap, he saw Mick Docherty the Gillingham manager jumping out of the manager's seat again on the other side.
Eh?
Ryan quickly turned and saw the Gillingham players celebrating again which left Ryan confused for a second.
Ryan quickly caught glimpse of the screen and it clearly showed the score of 2:2!
Ryan was so furious he threw the bottle without drinking.
In the replay, on the screen, he could clearly see Steve Lomas stealing the ball due to a missed pass from Douglas and sending the ball towards Barry cogan who attempt a long shot on the goal and managed to catch Casper Ankergren completely off guard.
Leeds easily lost their two-goal lead in two minutes. Wasnt this too easy? Gillingham made the whole process like a walk in the park.
"This is really unbelievable! After Leeds scored two goals and when everyone thought that they will win this match Gillingham showed why they are a team to be feared by scoring two goals in two minutes bringing the score to a two all draw"
"Leeds have been really sloppy in their defense in this second half contrary to their earlier matches "
After the equalizer, both teams went full gun on the attack.
In the 80th minute, Leeds made a double substitution Bringing in Paul Huntington and Ian Westlake for Jonathan Douglas and Andy Hughes.
Soon the regular time for the play came to an end and both teams failed to score the winning goal regular time.
After The fourth official signaled for the addition of four minutes the game went towards Extra time.
In the 92nd minute, Steve Lomas sent a long-range loft pass to find Barry cogan on the other side of the pitch.
Barry cogan after receiving the ball quickly skipped past Prutton and Huntington.
Cogan seeing Delroy Facey ahead quickly sent a through ball towards him. Facey was quick to receive the ball and quickly dashed towards the Leeds goal but when he made it into the Leeds box someone suddenly tugged his shirt backward bringing him down.
"FWEEEEEE"
The referee was quick to react and quickly blew the whistle pointing towards the Penalty spot. The Leeds players tried to argue with the referee but he was adamant about his decision.
The referee also showed a red card to Beckford who was responsible for tugging Facey down.
Delroy Facey who won the Penalty for Gillingham stepped forward and decided to take the Penalty himself.
Facey easily fooled Casper Ankergren to the other side and managed to score an easy penalty goal.
Finally, Gillingham was ahead of the game with a 3:2 scoreline having trailed the game 2:0 for the majority of the game.
After the goal, Leeds tried to find an equilizer in the remaining time but failed to do so and thus Leeds finally lost the game 3:2 ensuring their first defeat in the league this season.