Leeds Utd 0 Hull City 0: Wise words flatter Leeds

By Dan Murphy at Elland Road

Sunday, 24 December 2006

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"Is this the worst Leeds side ever?" mused one fan on his way out of Elland Road yesterday, adding the sincere caveat that he could only personally vouch for the period since the late 1950s.

After watching another frustrating performance against Hull City that was at least spirited, if limited, many fellow Leeds supporters would presumably answer in the affirmative. January and the eternal promise of the transfer window cannot come soon enough for Dennis Wise and his team, who remain rooted in the bottom three with the season now into its second half.

In contrast to the air of pessimism in the crowd, though, the ever-chipper Wise offered a more upbeat assessment, claiming that - although the results hardly bear him out - Leeds are improving.

"We're getting there," he said. "We look more solid and we're starting to play with a bit more confidence." Leeds did indeed have more possession, but in truth their chances of winning effectively ended when Robbie Blake limped off 20 minutes before the end.

The striker had come closest to breaking the deadlock with a shot into the side-netting in the first half. They did at least keep what was only their fifth clean sheet in the Championship, but against a Hull side also in the bottom three and without several first-team regulars, even Wise had to admit this was more a case of two points dropped than one gained.

As for Hull, their caretaker manager Phil Brown admitted that on a day when it was all he could do to remember the names of some of his young substitutes, a goalless draw was the best that could have been expected.

"It was a magnificent performance considering the players we had out," he said.

Now there is an adjective that has not been heard around Elland Road for some time.