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Blues to Relegate Leeds?
Blues to Relegate Leeds?
Friday, 27th Apr 2007 11:20

Town go into Saturday's game at Leeds United looking for a victory which could see the Whites relegated to the third tier of English football for the first time. A win for the Blues at Elland Road and a victory for Hull at Cardiff would confirm Leeds' drop into League One.

Boss Jim Magilton has confirmed that Shane Supple will keep his place in goal with Lewis Price still suffering with his foot injury: "Lewis is still sore and will not train until Friday. He will be OK to be on the bench at Leeds."

The Blues are unlikely to be changed at the back with Alex Bruce free to play having escaped a ban for his post-red card clash with Derby's Stephen Bywater, with his dismissal suspension already quashed.

Bruce will be partnered by Fabian Wilnis, who will again skipper the Blues, with derby goalscorer David Wright on the right and Dan Harding at left-back. Harding, a Leeds supporter, joined the Blues from the Whites in the summer in a deal which saw Ian Westlake move in the opposite direction.

Another Leeds supporter, Richard Naylor, is out of action for the season with bone bruising to a toe, while Jason De Vos underwent foot surgery last week and won't return until pre-season.

In midfield, Owen Garvan is an injury concern due to the thigh injury which he suffered during the Derby County match, but is likely to be OK to join Gavin Williams in the centre.

Gary Roberts and Jaime Peters should be on the left and right of midfield respectively, although Magilton has not always been keen to use the Canadian in away games and there could be a role for either George O'Callaghan or Matt Richards. Player of the Year Sylvain Legwinski is out for the season with a broken metatarsal.


Up front, Magilton has partnered loanee Franny Jeffers with Jon Walters in recent weeks, but could recall top scorer Alan Lee ahead of Walters. Danny Haynes has been left out of the squad after picking up a crack to his jaw bone in Monday's reserves victory over Northampton Town. His role from the bench is likely to be filled by Billy Clarke. Haynes is expected to be OK for next Sunday's final game against Cardiff City.

Manager Magilton will begin his two-match touchline ban and will watch from the directors' box, which he says might provide a useful perspective from which to keep an eye on proceedings: "I'm not sure how I will feel on the day but perhaps it's a good time to watch from a different viewpoint."

Leeds boss Dennis Wise says keeping his side in the Championship would be the greatest feat of his career: "If we stay up, it will be my biggest achievement in football because of the circumstances and the whole situation of this football club.

"It would mean more to me than whatever else I've won. This was something that we took on and it was a real battle and a real challenge.

"The last five months have been crazy in so many ways. The next seven days will be crazy too. They could be terrible or they could be fantastic."

Wise says victory over Town is a must: "It's the biggest in the club's history, a massive game for everyone. Although other teams are not completely out of it, it's going to be very difficult to catch them now. It's between us and Hull.

"We need to put Hull under pressure. If we get a result against Ipswich, it goes to the wire."

The Whites could recall Norwegian striker Tore Andre Flo to the bench after a lengthy spell out with a broken foot, while former Celtic midfielder Alan Thompson has had the red card he was shown against Southampton last week rescinded.

Midfielder Jonathan Douglas is suspended for the rest of the season having amassed 15 bookings and former Blue Ian Westlake is out of action having undergone surgery for a groin problem in March.

Loanee centre-back Lubomir Michalik has been recalled by Bolton, but Michael Gray's spell has been extended by Blackburn. Also in the Leeds side is Northern Ireland striker David Healy, a long-time friend and former international colleague of Town manager Jim Magilton.

Veteran full-back Gary Kelly will play his final home game for Leeds after making 500 appearances during 16 years at Elland Road. Kelly plans to retire in the summer and a presentation will be made to the former Irish international after the match. Leeds are expecting a crowd approaching the 30,000 mark.

Prior to the game there will be a minute's applause for World Cup winner Alan Ball, who died earlier in the week.

Town won the corresponding fixture 2-0 last season with Sam Parkin scoring twice. The Blues defeated the Whites 1-0 at Portman Road in December, courtesy of a Gavin Williams goal.

Saturday's referee is Nigel Miller from County Durham, who has shown 97 yellow and 10 red cards in 37 games so far this season. Miller's last Town game was the 1-0 FA Cup victory over Swansea City in January in which he booked eight players, six from the Swans and Alan Lee and Sito from the Blues.

Squad: Bruce, Clarke, Garvan, Harding, Jeffers, Lee, Miller, O'Callaghan, Peters, Price, Richards, Roberts, Sito, Supple, Walters, Williams, Wilnis, Wright.

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Photo: Action Images



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