One fears for their future popularity: 1931/32 season, part six

"This team can gain promotion to the First Division if they put their shoulders to the wheel," Bob Jack told his Plymouth Argyle players, at a dinner being given by the club president in February. Jack was in the 22nd of what would become 28 seasons of managing Plymouth, and didn't stop at talking up their own chances.

"The best football teams in the Second Division are Plymouth Argyle and Leeds United," he said, "but the keenest, strongest, and most vigorous team in the league are Wolverhampton Wanderers, and they are favourites." But, he emphasised, "The best football comes out on top in the end."

That ought to mean Leeds, but if Jack thought Plymouth had a chance, that meant several other teams had a chance as well. By the end of February Argyle were 4th, behind Leeds, Wolves and Stoke, level on points with Bury and Bradford Park Avenue. All the top six reckoned they had a chance. But the young squad Dick Ray was depending on to go straight back to the First Division had got, crucially, the lead; crucially, now, they would have to keep it, through upcoming visits to their closest rivals in the top three.

The match with Wolves, at Molineux, was highly anticipated. An away trip favoured United: they'd won nine away, scoring 34 and conceding 20, away from the misgivings at best and barracking at worst of their home crowd in Leeds. But Wolves had only lost once at home, scoring 51 and letting in just nine. Their manager, Major Frank Buckley, did not yet have the high profile that injecting players with 'monkey serum' was going to bring him, on his way to upsetting Beeston residents as manager of Leeds in 1948 by berating his players through training over the stadium public address system. But he'd been marked in Wolverhampton already as a 'personality', and an innovator, who was five years into a difficult, controversial but planned out transformation of the Wanderers. He'd been using his knack for selling players at high prices and replacing them low to transform a club that had been struggling for years on the pitch and at the bank, and his football methods were now beginning to make 'the sun shine', as he put it, over Wolverhampton. His team were exceptionally fit, the players were well practiced by training and sometimes playing in each others' positions, and new ideas were being tried out: Buckley had just hired former Wolves player Dick Bradford as a physiotherapist, and was using electrical stimulation and massages to keep the players fit.

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United's trip to Molineux, as reported back to the public in Leeds, lived up to its billing. Some purists might have disagreed, for 'It was not any particularly artistic quality in the play that fascinated', but the Peacocks were on the front foot of creating excitement from the first moment. Well, the second minute, when Willie Bennett, while hurting himself in a tackle, sent the ball to Tom Cochrane, who drilled his cross shot firmly into the back of the net. Wolves, as expected at Molineux, rose to the challenge of going behind and United's youngster Stan Moore won more plaudits as an impressive addition in goal. He was beaten, though, before half-time, inadvertently barged by his own Jack Milburn and leaving the goal empty for Charlie Phillips. There was more drama around Moore midway through the second half when a penalty was awarded against him for retaliating against Phillips' provocations. Wilfred Lowton, a sure-footed spot-kicker, missed, and had to race back to his own goal where he stopped a certain shot, by Cyril Hornby, just before it crossed the line. That was a rare chance for Leeds, who were more concentrated on defending under Ernie Hart's direction and against Wolves' siege, keeping the score one-all to the whistle.

You didn't feel like you were watching this game, wrote Hugh Whitfield in the Leeds Mercury, 'you were on the field with the players, feeling the breathless excitement of it all'. The Birmingham Gazette decided Leeds deserved to keep their lead at the top of the Second Division: 'It was an entertaining game with plenty of thrills and the pace was maintained till the end. Leeds were faster on the ball and their play was more controlled. Their sturdy backs, the brothers Milburn, were steadier, and generally their craft was superior.' The Yorkshire Post had a line in their match report backing up Alderman Clarke's call for United to have more home support: 'Public enthusiasm and confidence at Wolverhampton was boundless, and a crowd of 34,000 paid £2,100 to witness a thrilling struggle.' And despite all that home backing Leeds had gone there and been equal to the task. Surely this must be a team worth paying to watch?

Not against Charlton in the next game, 20th out of 22 in the division. They had new players in their ranks and a 'third back' adding more work to their defence, bringing more fight than expected to the league leaders at Elland Road. Leeds won 2-0, but didn't win many friends from the 11,092 crowd. The Daily Herald reporter was wondering, at half-time, which was the team at the top of the league. Charlton missed two big chances while United's goals came at the end of each half, and the last quarter of the game was almost comical as Leeds kept making chances and kept shooting straight at Charlton's goalie. The win was the thing, though: Wolves drew 1-1 at Swansea, and United's lead at the top was now two points. Worse for the Wanderers was news of Dai Richards' broken foot, ruling their Welsh international left-half out for the rest of the season.

Next Leeds had to defend their lead at the top again, against one of the division's strongest sides. They were travelling to promotion contenders Stoke City, who had not been beaten at their Victoria Ground. And again, an away match provided all the excitement that wasn't happening at home. 'In a game which gave 18,000 excited spectators almost every good thing that football can provide, Leeds United undoubtedly accomplished their best performance of the season', Hugh Whitfield wrote in the Mercury. As at Wolves, Leeds were off to a fast start, going ahead through Bennett after four minutes; half an hour later Stoke equalised, but they were behind again just after half-time due to Charlie Keetley's quick shot, after a bewildering dribble by Cochrane. With twenty minutes to go Stoke made it 2-2, for three minutes, before Bennett scored again; and four minutes after that Hornby headed in Cochrane's cross to make it 4-2. It only took another minute before it was 4-3, setting up a thrilling and noisy end, but boosted by Willis Edwards' return from injury, the Peacocks held on. 'It was another triumph for United's young talent,' wrote Whitfield, 'all obtained at a cost that would scarcely buy an Arsenal man's left eyebrow.' Wolves, meanwhile, in beating Barnsley 2-0 at Molineux, were 'Weakened by injuries (and) a shadow of their former selves ... easily the worst display seen at Molineux this season'.

What, then, about Leeds United's performance in their next game, at home to Manchester United, who had finished nine points below them while coming down from the First Division and now languished far behind in 12th? Leeds, in fact, didn't play badly, having the better of midfield and scoring through Bennett. But they lost 4-1, to two early goals and two late, to a team that had 'little regard for artistry and embroidery. They adopt first time methods all through and go straight for goal.' Since a change of management, Manchester United had won fifteen of the last sixteen points available, making this result perhaps less of a shock. But it was a blow, allowing Wolves to go top again on goal average, and disrupting Leeds, who took another little holiday to Harrogate to prepare themselves for the Easter fixtures. Edwards had missed the Manchester United match but returned for a trip to 14th placed Preston, along with long-missed forward Billy Furness, but Leeds' away form returned nothing more than a 0-0 draw. That was still better than their next trip, to Bradford City, and coming back with another 4-1 defeat, not helped by an injury that put top scorer Keetley out of action. The return match at Elland Road, the next day, completed a miserable Easter weekend, as just 18,277 watched a 1-1 draw — this time featuring an injury to ever present Wilf Copping — that allowed Wolves to take a two point lead at the top, with Stoke, Bury and Bradford Park Avenue closing the gap below Leeds to three points.

The Argyle manager's prediction that "The best football comes out on top in the end," was being tested as Wolves took charge of the division, and Dick Ray's policy of promoting youth players was being tested by the injuries affecting his squad, making it hard for Leeds to play anything resembling good football. For the visit of Burnley Leeds were without Copping, missing a game for the first time since he came into the team at the start of the previous season; Tom Neal, signed from Unsworth Colliery, took his place. Harry Green, signed from Mexborough, came onto the wing, Harry Duggan moved inside to make room for him, and twenty-year-old Arthur Hydes carried on up front while Keetley was out. At least Billy Furness was back for the run-in, after just one appearance since Christmas Day. It helped that Burnley were near the bottom of the table, but didn't help that they took the lead and it was only 1-1 at half-time, Cochrane getting the equaliser. The experiment with Duggan and Green on the right didn't make it as far as the second half, Duggan swapping with Hydes to play centre-forward. Ernie Hart looked tired, Willis Edwards jarred his injured knee, but Neal did alright on his debut. Leeds did enough and Furness and Hydes got the second half goals in a 3-1 win.

A week later Edwards failed a late fitness test and couldn't play at his hometown club Chesterfield, who had lost seven home games, and despite having Keetley back Leeds couldn't win, conceding two minutes from the end to draw 1-1. It could have been worse. Back in goal after his injury, Jimmy Potts saved a penalty, given against Neal, and made 'half-a-dozen saves of great brilliance' and another six that were more mundane. Wolves, meanwhile, were beating Oldham 7-1, the third time they'd scored seven that season. They'd also won three games 6-0 and, three points ahead of Leeds with four games to go, were looking ready to take the title.

Leeds looked ready to throw promotion away. 'A happy point in United's favour,' wrote Yorkist in the Mercury, 'is that only one of the last four games must be played away from home.' A mystifying idea, given the arguments and poor home form of the season so far. Leeds had seemed much happier away from Elland Road, but the team was perked up by being able to include Edwards, Copping and Keetley when Nottingham Forest came to Leeds. They were vital, they were playing, but were they fit? Certainly, the team was all out of form, and should have been far behind Forest at half-time. Instead Jack Milburn's penalty punished a handball and put Leeds ahead ten minutes before the break, but an easy equaliser was given away before the second half was marred by wind, rain, and inevitably an injury, to Harry Duggan. In front of 12,195 people Leeds took the point and were glad that Stoke had only drawn 0-0 at Bristol City; but worried that Bradford Park Avenue had won and moved up to 3rd, three points behind.

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Still the pundits were all with Leeds as they made their way to play Spurs. 'A point at White Hart Lane will, one imagines, satisfy Leeds United's followers,' said the Yorkshire Post, 'and then the team will be expected to get, without a deal of difficulty, the promotion points from their remaining fixtures with Southampton and Port Vale, who appear doomed to a spell in the Third Division.' Keetley was doomed not to play, through tonsillitis, and all that ended up certain from the day was that Wolves were the champions, by beating Port Vale 2-0. There were 28,744 people at Molineux, and at full-time:

The spectators surged across the pitch in front of the grandstand and sang a paean of promotion, pent up for 26 years ... Corner flags were uprooted and waved aloft, and, led by the Mayor (Ald. J. Haddock), who is an enthusiastic supporter, the joyful crowd gave three cheers for the club ... the crowd greeted Major F. C. Buckley, secretary-manager, with musical honours, to which he replied that now the Wanderers were in the First Division they were going to stop (up) there. The crowd clamoured for the players, and when Lowton, the captain, led his men into the grandstand enthusiasm knew no bounds.

Leeds, meanwhile, had played without confidence or balance at Spurs, but they did show some fight. Potts saved a penalty after just three minutes, and Hart equalised on seventeen minutes after Spurs had taken the lead anyway. But Leeds couldn't fight back after going behind early in the second half and conceded a third late on. The best news for Leeds, after the 3-1 defeat, was of Stoke's draw with Oldham, and about Bradford being beaten at home by Millwall despite the visitors having Jimmy Pipe sent off. With two games to go Leeds were still three points clear of 3rd and 4th, with a better goal average than either Stoke or Bradford. Southampton, their next opponent, were 12th. Their final day guests, Port Vale, were second-bottom. Most people would still back Leeds for promotion, wrote Yorkist, but, 'One fears for their future popularity in their own city if they don't justify' that backing. ⭑彡