The Times, Sunday Times and Telegraph now seem to require registration to view articles on their sites, with the Times and Sunday Times charging readers outside the UK. The Times/Sunday Times has also moved some of the older articles into an archive which requires separate registration and requires you to pay to access the content. The Independent now charges for access to articles more than a week old. Leeds fire blanks at poor West Brom - DunderheadAnother disappointing game and another two badly-needed points down the drain. Scores on the doors: full story and pictures at http://www.leeds-list.com vs WBA - Nick AllenAnother frustrating day at t'mill. Albion came for the draw, frustrated us, and by god they got the draw. Some might even say that they were unlucky, given that in today's paper Lucas admits that he handled it, wasn't pushed and expected a penalty to be given. The defence were steady under virtually no threat, apart from the occasional long ball hoofed at Dichio. Lucas and Matteo started like they'd never met before but gradually got going and were in command by the end. Robinson had almost nothing to do but he made one save at the end comfortably enough. Kelly was steady in defence but lacking going forward, and really didn't seem to know what to do with Milner when he came on. I'm glad to hear that Mills was injured because I'd be worried if TV prefered Kelly at RBack. Lucic at LBack was the biggest concern in this game, playing the whole game sideways on like a crab. He constantly tried to turn inside onto his right foot - he must have passed 30 or 40 times to Matteo the LCentre Half during the game, while not feeding anything down the line to Wilcox/Kewell. In the midfield Wilcox was the best player by a mile - challenging, passing, overlapping even getting a shot or two in. Bakke and Okon looked lost as Koumas ran around them. And Smith is still out of position. Johnson looked encouraging when he came on. I hope he gets a full game on saturday. Viduka and Kewell worked OK in the first 30 minutes when both of them (and Smith and Wilcox) had decent efforts that the keeper had to make good saves from, after good link up play. After that both faded. In this spell Bakke was pushing through and getting into the box beyond the front men for the through balls - although nothing came of this this is the kind of support play we've been missing all season. It struck us that one of our major problems is that the players being creative are the forwards - Smith, Kewell, Viduka and Wilcox - but they are having to drop into into the midfield to do it as there is absolutely nothing going on there. Hence there is no-one in the box to put the finishing touch to the move. We finished the game with 6 forwards on the pitch - and 0 shots on goal in the 2nd half - which can't be right...can it? Okon had a shot. On target. I think this is the first recorded sighting of him moving the ball forward, but as we were playing towards the Kop in the first half, which we don't normally do, he may have been confused. Poor lamb. A forward called Fowler allegedly took part in this football match. WBA will go down. We won't but I think that we have found our level for this seaason - bobbling around the middle scrapping with ManC, Villa, Brum, Boro etc. Rennie provides offering for Megson's video collection - Daniel TaylorCopy from Football Unlimited of
20/01/2003.
Somewhere at the FA's headquarters, filed away under complaints, there is a letter from Gary Megson together with a video compilation of the refereeing decisions which he claims have disfigured West Bromwich's season. The allegation is not just of incompetence but, more seriously, bias. "There have been so many bad decisions against us," Megson said. "I sent in the video because I wanted to know, is this normal? Are we missing something?" Megson does not intend to make a sequel and, doubtless aware that he is in danger of being pigeon-holed as a serial complainer, the West Bromwich Albion manager tried to bite his lip on Saturday. He is also acutely aware that when, as now seems certain, his team are relegated the inquest should concentrate on his players' inadequacies rather than those of officials. Blank end to Fowler's week - John WilfordCopy from Football Unlimited of
19/01/2003.
West Bromwich Albion survived having Andy Johnson sent off and held Leeds United at bay to earn the point they undoubtedly came to get. For most of the game they played an eight-man defence and frustrated Leeds, who did not have the individual initiative to break it down. As a spectacle it was poor in the extreme, but Leeds must take most of the blame. They had enough talented players to get the better of the struggling Baggies. Leeds, who are rarely out of the headlines, began with Robbie Fowler on the bench after his traumatic week of failed transfer negotiations with Manchester City. One of manager Terry Venables's persistent problems this season has been with centre- backs. Jonathan Woodgate is injured and may be out for six weeks. Dominic Matteo has just come back to first-team football and he was joined by another long-term absentee, Lucas Radebe. West Brom's manager, Gary Megson, welcomed back Sean Gregan after a week's suspension and gave a place on the bench to defender Ifeanyi Udeze, on loan from PAOK Salonika.
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