Trips to Leeds 'daunting' but often 'memorable'
City were humbled by Luton Town on Easter Monday yet remain in fifth position in the Championship thanks to Coventry slipping up at Plymouth and Boro coming away from Hillsborough with nothing - due in no small part, I'm sure, to ex-City player Tommy Conway missing a first-half penalty and then crashing a shot against the underside of the bar in the last minute of added time.While City still remain odds-on favourites to qualify for the play-offs, they face the daunting prospect of a trip to Elland Road on Monday to face champions-elect Leeds United. They can only hope that the Yorkshiremen gave their end-of-season champagne performance in the 6-0 drubbing of Stoke over Easter, as they come up against opponents against whom they have an appalling record in recent years. This will be the 20th encounter since 2010, with Leeds racking up 15 wins and City winning just once.Thinking of encounters between the sides over the years, if you go back to 1968, there was an FA Cup tie which (naturally) Leeds won, the game memorable for the fact that goalkeeper Gary Sprake was sent off for unceremoniously knocking out City's Chris Garland. Roll the clock forward six years, and after a 1-1 FA Cup fifth-round draw at Ashton Gate, City made the national news headlines - such was Leeds' grandeur in those days - when a Donnie Gillies goal gave them a famous 1-0 victory in a game played on a Tuesday afternoon due to the three-day week and associated power cuts!One final game against Leeds sticks in the mind, although perhaps one should say one and a half.In December 1976 it was a very foggy day as I walked across Ashton Park to the ground. Taking my place in the enclosure, on the halfway line, you could not see either goal. Surprisingly, the game kicked off with 36,000 people in the ground.One occasionally caught glimpses of the orange match ball and heard the "oohs" and "aahs" of the crowd from either end when there was penalty area action. It was farcical and no surprise when the game was abandoned at half-time with no refunds. The replayed game in May saw a Chris Garland goal secure the points as City scrambled to avoid relegation.You can hear more from David Pottier on the fans podcast Forever Bristol City, external.
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Belgium will be ‘shaking in boots' ahead of Wales game in Cardiff
Belgium inflicted Craig Bellamy's first defeat as Wales head coach with an extraordinary 4-3 World Cup qualifying victory in Brussels on Monday. The Red Devils, ranked eighth in the world, let slip a three-goal lead before Kevin De Bruyne spared home blushes with an 88th-minute winner. The return fixture is in Cardiff on October 13 and new Stoke signing Thomas said of Belgium: 'That's a team that is top 10. People will say 'little old Wales' but we took the game to them. 'They're going to be shaking in their boots when they come to Cardiff to play us. We're hungry, we're a young group. 'I felt when it went to 3-3 it was in our hands. But it's a devastating game, football is a horrible sport sometimes. (Against) top 10 in the world and we feel we should have walked away with a win.' Wales seemed to be heading for a humiliating night when Romelu Lukaku, Youri Tielemans and Jeremy Doku struck inside the opening 27 minutes. There was a party atmosphere inside the King Baudouin Stadium as home supporters began a Mexican wave. Thomas said: 'Them behaving like that put it down to the pitch. The players got relaxed and we punished that. 'They might have been doing the Mexican wave but they weren't doing it when it went to 3-3. 'They're entitled to do what they want, but we deal with what's on the pitch. The whole game shifted. Your @EE Player of the Match after his first Cymru goal, @SorbaThomas 🌟 — Wales 🏴 (@Cymru) June 9, 2025 'They countered us a few times, but I felt we played their big players well. 'We're a young team and we're going places. That's one loss in 10. We'll learn from this and get better and better.' After Harry Wilson converted a penalty in first-half stoppage time, winger Thomas scored his first Wales goal and then set up Brennan Johnson's equaliser to cap a memorable week. The 26-year-old also started Friday's 3-0 victory over Liechtenstein and the following day left Huddersfield to join Stoke on a three-year deal. Sorba is a Stokie 🔴⚪ — Stoke City FC (@stokecity) June 7, 2025 'Personally it's been one heck of a week,' said Thomas, who has spent the season on loan at Ligue 1 club Nantes. 'I've secured my future and got my first Wales goal. I hope my family all watching at home were proud. 'I've loved my time at Huddersfield. They took me from non-league and made my dreams reality to play for Wales and put me in this moment. 'To get it (the move) done early was important because I can focus on my football. 'I want to play well in the Championship every week next season and give the manager a headache to keep putting me in the team.'
