Just a few words to say thank you to all the fans who have travelled on the bus , attended the meetings / night do’s , sponsorsed the website , become members etc , and generally got behind the team that we all follow and support . We came up short again but i am sure we will all be there again come August . The buses will be on once more and we hope to arrange a few nights out as the season goes on . Before i go can i just say that i am not a great admirer of the spanish but that second glass of wine i had at the end of the champions league final sure did taste nice . Mif .      Thank’s again for keeping Whitby on the Leeds United map once more , from  Dave , Frazer , Jeff , Mif  .

The Whitby Whites Annual General Meeting is on Thursday 2nd July at Whitby Rugby Club.

Future Meeting Dates:
Thursday 4th June 2009
Thursday 2nd July 2009 (AGM)
Thursday 6th August 2009
Thursday 3rd September 2009
Thursday 1st October 2009
Thursday 5th November 2009
Thursday 3rd December 2009

Leeds United legend Peter Lorimer marked the 20th anniversary of the passing of Don Revie by hailing our former manager as a visionary.

The Don masterminded the club’s dominance of English and European football during a 10-year period, and Lorimer, who was handed his Leeds United debut by Revie, says he was a manager way ahead of his time.

“He was so far ahead of his time,” said Peter, who made 703 appearances for Leeds, scoring over 200 goals.

“He was very clever with the things he did and what he introduced. Things such as travelling away the day before game and pre-match diets – things that are normal in football now, he was into all these things 40 years ago.

“We didn’t have the facilities that clubs have nowadays, but we worked on weights, there were dossiers on the opposition, and it was all about preparation.”

Revie was credited as a fatherly figure by his players, and Lorimer says the bond forged by the manager with his players is still as strong as it was 40 years ago when they were battling for Football League titles and European trophies.

“If you come to Elland Road on any matchday when all the old boys are together you will still see that bond,” said Lorimer.

“When I see other players from our era, they don’t have re-unions or get-togethers like we do. We still see each other, and there was an amazing bond and comradeship created by Don.

“We used to meet at Roundhay for lunch before games, we played bingo, there’d always be a room to play carpet bowls in the hotel when we were away, and he loved us playing golf. We were all competitive – he liked that – but it was great fun.

“Don would always ask about your family and your life outside of football, and he really was a fatherly figure.

“He treated us as his own – as did Elsie his wife – and I think we were more like a family than a group of footballers. There was a great bond. We knew we could go to him if there was a problem. He was a caring person.”

All Leeds fans who can still recall the Revie era will have their own special moments. There was the first Football League title success in 1969, the second title in 1974, the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup final wins against Ferencvaros and Juventus, the Football League Cup triumph in 1968, and the FA Cup final win of 1972 to name just a few.

“We had lots of great moments,” recalled Lorimer.

“There was the time when we won the FA Cup final and the first time we won the league. Don wasn’t a great drinker, but occasionally he would have a drink with us and it was great to see the happiness he got out of what he was doing.

“It’s had to pick one single moment out because there’s so many great memories. It wasnt just Don, it was Don and Elsie as well – people used to say she picked the team! She was very much into football. We had lots of great days, so many…”

Look Back Through The Decades

The Revie-era Leeds side were also remembered for the near misses. Leeds finished runners-up in the old first division five times in the space of eight years, missing out on one occasion having been ordered to play a game just over 48 hours after winning the FA Cup final at Wembley.

Leeds also lost three FA Cup finals under Revie, three European semi-finals, and tasted defeat in the European Cup Winners final in controversial fashion in 1973.

“Don didn’t suffer defeat well but he didn’t shout and bawl and throw things,” said Lorimer.

“Sometimes he would say to us ’that was rubbish – have a think about it and come back on Monday’. He would tell us on the Monday, but never in a heated way. He never laid into anyone after a match.

“He would be honest to everyone about how he felt, and no one ever argued back. He told you as he saw it in his own way.”

The legacy of the Revie era is something that is still cherished by everyone connected with Leeds United. He transformed the club from being a second division side to being to one of the great clubs in the game, and turned Leeds United into a worldwide name.

“There are so many people in the city of my age who still thank us for the times Don Revie gave them,” added Lorimer.

“And when you see our fan base and the belief in the club that is still there, it just shows what an amazing thing Don set-up.

“Before he came we had never won anything but that period established Leeds United as a big name in football when you think where he had taken us from.

“It was a shame he didn’t have a good time when he left Leeds to become England manager.

“But I never felt he stood much of a chance because of the anti-Leeds feeling and he was always going to have a hard time. Hs record wasn’t bad, but he never had it easy.

“The legacy of this club is down to him and I only hope we can get there one day because that’s where this club should be.”

Tuesday May 26 marks the 20th anniversary of the passing of our greatest ever manager Don Revie.

The Don sadly lost his battle against motor neurone disease on May 26 1989 in Edinburgh when he passed away, at the age of 61.

Don, a former England international who had won an FA Cup winners medal with Manchester City, joined Leeds United as a player in 1958 and became player manager three years later.

Within three years he had guided the club back to the top division and in 1965 he led the team out at Wembley for the first time ahead of the FA Cup final defeat at the hands of Liverpool.

It was to prove the start of the most illustrious period in the club’s history.

He led Leeds into Europe for the first time during the 1965/66 season and won his first trophy two seasons later when United beat Arsenal in the final of the League Cup. United also claimed a first European success, beating Ferencvaros in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup final, held over until the start of the 1968/69 season.

The following season the club, captained by Revie’s on-field general Billy Bremner, won the Football League title for the first time after a then record-breaking campaign.

Revie went on to guide the club to Inter-Cities Fairs Cup success once again in 1971, while he also led the club to three further FA Cup finals, in 1970, 1972, and 1973.

Leeds lost to Chelsea after a replay in 1970 and to Sunderland in 1973, but Allan Clarke’s goal sealed our only FA Cup triumph in 1972 when Arsenal were beaten 1-0.

United missed out on a league and cup double that season after losing 2-1 to Wolves in a game controversially played just 48 hours after the FA Cup final win.

The following season, Revie took Leeds United to the European Cup Winners Cup final, where a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Milan was overshadowed by allegations of bribery against the match referee, who was subsequently banned from refereeing by UEFA.

Leeds never finished out of the top-four in the first division, finishing runners-up five occasions, during a 10-year period that culminated with a second league title success in 1974.

Revie was also named English Manager of the Year in 1969, 1970, and 1972, and was awarded the OBE in 1970.

That title success proved Revie’s last act as Leeds United manager before he accepted the post as England manager. After three years in charge of England, Revie headed for the UAE where he coached the international team. He also managed in Egypt in 1984 before returning to the UK.

Three years on he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease.

Just to say, thank you for your support during the season and I would like to say it has been one of ups & downs, but you’ve stuck by them and that is great to see.

The highlights page will now not be updated till either August or July because there are no more games this season.

The interview with Lucas Kop Cat is now up on the interview page

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For the next few days, the Puzzle & Chatbox will be removed whilst I do some site maintenence, the puzzle will return on Tuesday (maybe even before), but so far, it is unknown whether the chatbox will return.

On Saturday, you can watch Leeds on the big screen at Whitby Rugby Club, so get there and cheer on the Whites in the company of fellow Leeds United fans.

MOT

Graeme is block booking tickets in advance for wembley so if you want to apply, email him at graemesmith1919@yahoo.co.uk or ring him at 01947 604742

To book you must state the following:

Name
Adult/Junior/Senior Citizen
Customer Number (on back of members card or season ticket card)
Postcode