Becchio the tormentor

TROUBLE: Luciano Becchio pounces on an error by Athletic goalkeeper Dean Brill to put Leeds United ahead

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Leeds 2, Athletic 0

Toothless Latics go down with a whimper

THERE are defeats, then there are defeats.

Against in-form Colchester at their home fortress three days earlier, Athletic controlled the game and attacked with gusto before unluckily losing to the only goal.

At Elland Road, against a Leeds side with only one win in their last eight Coca-Cola League One matches, Dave Penney’s side went down with barely a whimper.

Both games ended with Athletic failing to find the net and with no points added to an increasingly worrying total.

But those factors aside, set the performances side by side and they are like chalk and cheese.

Athletic defended well to keep the game scoreless at half-time. But as an attacking force, Penney’s men were woeful and it always seemed a case of when, and not if, Leeds were to make the breakthrough.

The first goal came as a result of another error from goalkeeper Dean Brill, who spilled a shot from Jermaine Beckford right into the path of Luciano Becchio.

After that, for a side that has now failed to hit the net on no less than 15 occasions in the league this season, there was no way back.

The lively Becchio made it a pair on the night to celebrate his recall to the side just eight minutes later and from then on the match was a non-event.

With a huge squad of players that other sides in League One can only dream about, it should be easy to simply forget this game — one that, despite an excellent historical record at Elland Road, Athletic were never expected to win.

But there was something deeply dispiriting about the meek nature of this defeat, especially with the team having been plunged back into the relegation zone.

The only real positives on the night were the thoroughly committed displays put in by the defensive unit and, in particular, Sean Gregan and Reuben Hazell.

Central midfield duo Dale Stephens and Dean Furman certainly put in a shift and they had to, given the speed at which the ball was constantly coming back at Athletic when it failed to stick with front pair Jason Price and Pawel Abbott.

Out wide, Chris Taylor and Deane Smalley weren’t able get behind the Leeds defence to create a supply line.

Taylor was booked for a dive on a miserable night for the man who has tormented the West Yorkshire outfit in the past, though he did at least force goalkeeper Casper Ankergren into his only real save of the night with a placed side-footed shot with just over 20 minutes to go.

The game began well from an Athletic viewpoint as Leeds, clearly jittery after their bad run of recent results, failed to find cohesion in their passing game.

The visitors were relatively comfortable in the first half.

Beckford’s snap-shot on the turn whistled past Brill’s near post after seven minutes but that, plus a long-range snorter from Robert Snodgrass that flew wide on the half-hour, represented the only goal-bound efforts of note.

Joe Jacobson was forced into an excellent cover tackle on Beckford as he waited to pull the trigger off a Becchio cross after 17 minutes, while Michael Doyle dallied too long when controlling a bouncing ball that fell to him in the area as half-time approached, allowing Brill to make a good block.

The pressure was mounting on Athletic though and, after the break, Leeds found a renewed sense of purpose.

Snodgrass was having more and more influence and the talented Scot forced Brill into a diving save from a free-kick after 52 minutes.

The relief for Athletic was brief. A minute later, Aidan White sent Beckford away down the left and, after turning inside Alex Marrow all-too easily, the 24-goal striker hit a low but not especially vicious shot towards the far post.

Brill spilled the ball right into Becchio’s path for the proverbial ‘my grandmother could have scored that’ opening goal.

It was a huge blow for Athletic, but the Argentine’s second was a high-quality effort.

Snodgrass turned Jacobson this way and that before reaching the byline, from where he dinked a perfect right-footed cross to the far post which Becchio headed home without ceremony.

Then came Taylor’s goal-bound effort after he was slipped in by Abbott, before the game petered out.

Tom Eaves gave another glimpse of the future when coming on to replace Abbott as time ticked away, but the 18-year-old was left with a thankless task.

With Norwich up next before a crucial month of fixtures in March, Athletic will have to put in far better performances than this to climb out of trouble.


Latics’ next game: Saturday, Norwich (H), Coca-Cola League One