United still going strong at top (From Advertiser Series)

United still going strong at top

9:55pm Tuesday 1st December 2009

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Oldham Athletic 0, Leeds United 2

Leeds left out their big guns but were still good enough to win at rain-lashed Boundary Park for the second time within a month.

Not content with knocking Oldham out of the FA Cup in the first round, Simon Grayson’s League One leaders gathered three more points.

They have now won their last five league matches without conceding a goal as they approach Saturday’s home derby against Huddersfield, who drew 3-3 at home to Tranmere tonight.

Neil Kilkenny opened the scoring against his old club in the 37th minute and substitute Luciano Becchio added the second with eight minutes left.

Faced with a glut of fixtures during December, Grayson made four changes to the team that drew 1-1 at Kettering in the FA Cup on Sunday.

In came midfielder David Prutton for his first start since Grayson’s opening match in charge on Boxing Day 2008, winger Hogan Ephraim made his debut on loan from QPR and other loan men Sam Vokes (Wolves) and Max Gradel (Leicester) returned to form an attacking partnership.

The bench was the strongest this season with Becchio, Robert Snodgrass, leading scorer Jermaine Beckford, Mike Grella, Rui Marques, Aidan White and goalkeeper David Martin (on loan from Liverpool) the seven substitutes.

Oldham were without winger Chris Taylor with a knee injury and Paul Heffernan made his debut on loan from Doncaster.

Dean Furman should have given the Latics a tenth-minute lead. Leeds keeper Casper Ankergren was rooted to his line as Joe Colbeck crossed and Furman, a fellow former Bradford City man, failed with a free header.

Vokes was guilty of a similarly bad miss for Leeds just after the half-hour mark when the striker beat the offside trap, only to shoot straight at Darryl Flahaven.

With Gradel beginning to make his pace tell, United opened the scoring. Gradel made a strong run, beat his man and crossed for Kilkenny to stab home his third goal of the season.

Gradel then had a powerful shot saved and Leeds ended the first half on top.

Vokes missed two more good opportunities after the interval. First he shot too close to Flahaven, who is on loan at Boundary Park from Crystal Palace and had a spell on loan at Leeds without making a first-team appearance. Then Vokes lifted the ball over the bar when in the clear.

Ideally, United needed the cushion of another goal to be safe but Oldham almost equalised when Heffernan blasted a shot into the side-netting.

Snodgrass and Becchio replaced Ephraim and Vokes respectively and, after the busy Flahaven denied the Scot with an excellent save, Snodgrass set up a goal for Becchio as the substitutes saw Leeds safely home.

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