Dave Tomlinson

Doing a Leeds charts the roller-coaster ride of Leeds United over two dramatic decades in 1996–2005, exploring how the Whites went from living the Champions League dream to bankruptcy, relegation and a fire sale within four years.Follow-up to the critically acclaimed The Man with the Plan: Howard Wilkinson''s Leeds United.Under chairman Peter Ridsdale, Leeds seemed to be on the brink of glory, but then the nightmare began. The Bowyer/Woodgate trial and financial collapse were followed by a player fire sale. Then came another sale and relegation. This eye-opening book brings you:A no-holds-barred analysis of what went wrong, including the personal ambitions and misjudgements that took the club off course to make this a cautionary tale of how not to run a businessNew revelations of what went on behind the scenesExclusive interviews with the likes of former Leeds United manager Howard Wilkinson and striker Michael Ricketts, who joined Leeds from Middlesbrough in 2004 following the takeover by Gerald KrasnerThe inside track from Leeds United Supporters'' Trust chairman John Boocock, who had first-hand dealings with board members at the club, including Peter Ridsdale, and worked with some of the men who were looking to buy the club in 2004Dave Tomlinson gives us the fans'' perspective, revealing how their trust was abused and their hopes and dreams crushed in a story of controversies, legal disputes, faux white knights and false dawns. So, strap in and get ready for the ride!

Rarely has any club courted as much controversy, ill feeling and bad press as Leeds United in the 1970s. Manager Don Revie had transformed them from a struggling Second Division outfit at the beginning of the 1960s to being arguably the best team in Europe, but they were dogged by the ‘Dirty Leeds’ tag for years. This book covers the period from Leeds United winning their first league championship in 1969 through to the end of 1979, including the heartbreaking treble disappointment of 1970, the FA Cup win in 1972, the shock defeat against Sunderland in 1973, the second title triumph of 1974 and the devastating defeat to Bayern Munch in the 1975 European Cup final. Read about the controversies of match-fixing allegations against Don Revie and the succession of managers who failed to match up to Revie’s legacy, including Brian Clough and Jock Stein. The period was littered with controversy, criticism and some famous feuds with Bob Stokoe, Alan Hardaker and Brian Clough as United singlehandedly ushered in an era of near-to-the-knuckle professionalism and gamesmanship.