1980–81 Leeds United A.F.C. season

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Leeds United
1980–81 season
ChairmanManny Cussins
ManagerJimmy Adamson (until October 1)
Dave Merrington (caretaker until October 5)
Allan Clarke
StadiumElland Road
First Division9th
FA CupThird round
League CupSecond round
Top goalscorerLeague: Carl Harris (10)
All: Carl Harris (10)
Highest home attendance39,206 vs Liverpool, First Division, 18 April 1981
Lowest home attendance14,333 vs Brighton & Hove Albion, First Division, 29 November 1980
Average home league attendance21,377[1]
← 
1981–82 →

The 1980–81 season was Leeds United's 54th season in the Football League, and their seventeenth consecutive season in the Football League First Division, the top tier of English football, where they finished 9th. Alongside the First Division, the club competed in the FA Cup and the Football League Cup, being eliminated in the third round of the former and the second round of the latter.

Season summary[]

Leeds began the season in the same poor form that they ended the previous season in, leaving them in the relegation zone for the first few months of the season. Manager Jimmy Adamson resigned after a 4-1 thrashing at the hands of Sunderland, the club he had walked out on to take charge of Leeds two years earlier, and with attendances at their lowest level since the club's last spell in the Second Division, the board tried to win back the supporters by appointing former hero Allan Clarke, who had just steered Barnsley to promotion from the Fourth Division.

Leeds's form picked up greatly after Clarke's appointment, albeit they were knocked out of the FA Cup at the first hurdle by Coventry City, having already been knocked out of the League Cup by eventual Division One champions Aston Villa while Adamson was still manager. The club eventually finished a solid ninth place, and while their having the lowest goalscoring record of any top-flight club that season was cause for concern, it was offset by having one of the best defences in the division; however, their inability to score would foreshadow much bigger, and ultimately terminal, problems they would face next season.

Competitions[]

Football League First Division[]

Main article: 1980–81 Football League § First Division

League table[]

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
7 Nottingham Forest 42 19 12 11 62 44 +18 50
8 Manchester United 42 15 18 9 51 36 +15 48
9 Leeds United 42 17 10 15 39 47 −8 44
10 Tottenham Hotspur 42 14 15 13 70 68 +2 43 Qualified for Cup Winners' Cup
11 Stoke City 42 12 18 12 51 60 −9 42
Source:[citation needed]

Matches[]

Win Draw Loss
Date Opponent Venue Result[a] Scorers Attendance
16 August 1980 Aston Villa Home 1–2 Stevenson (pen.) 23,401
19 August 1980 Middlesbrough Away 0–3 — 19,470
23 August 1980 Norwich City Away 3–2 Hart, Graham, Connor 17,890
30 August 1980 Leicester City Home 1–2 Hart 18,530
6 September 1980 Stoke City Away 0–3 — 12,729
13 September 1980 Tottenham Hotspur Home 0–0 — 21,947
20 September 1980 Manchester United Home 0–0 — 32,539
27 September 1980 Sunderland Away 1–4 Parlane 29,619
4 October 1980 Ipswich Town Away 1–1 Sabella 24,087
8 October 1980 Manchester City Home 1–0 Harris 19,134
11 October 1980 Everton Home 1–0 Curtis 25,601
18 October 1980 Wolverhampton Wanderers Away 1–2 Connor 20,699
22 October 1980 Nottingham Forest Away 1–2 Harris 25,033
25 October 1980 Crystal Palace Home 1–0 Connor 19,208
1 November 1980 Coventry City Away 1–2 Connor 13,970
8 November 1980 Arsenal Home 0–5 — 20,855
12 November 1980 Middlesbrough Home 2–1 Hird (2, 1 pen.) 17,382
15 November 1980 Aston Villa Away 1–1 Sabella 29,106
22 November 1980 Southampton Away 1–2 Graham 20,278
29 November 1980 Brighton & Hove Albion Home 1–0 Harris 14,333
6 December 1980 West Bromwich Albion Away 2–1 Harris, Graham 17,771
13 December 1980 Nottingham Forest Home 1–0 Greenhoff 21,882
20 December 1980 Manchester City Away 0–1 — 31,866
26 December 1980 Birmingham City Home 0–0 — 19,214
27 December 1980 Liverpool Away 0–0 — 44,086
10 January 1981 Southampton Home 0–3 — 21,007
17 January 1981 Leicester City Away 1–0 Hart 16,094
31 January 1981 Norwich City Home 1–0 Harris 15,836
7 February 1981 Tottenham Hotspur Away 1–1 Harris 32,372
14 February 1981 Stoke City Home 1–3 Flynn 16,530
21 February 1981 Sunderland Home 1–0 Harris 23,236
28 February 1981 Manchester United Away 1–0 Flynn 45,733
14 March 1981 Everton Away 2–1 Parlane, Harris 23,014
21 March 1981 Wolverhampton Wanderers Home 1–3 Harris 19,252
28 March 1981 Crystal Palace Away 1–0 Parlane 15,053
31 March 1981 Ipswich Town Home 3–0 Hird, Harris, Hart 26,462
4 April 1981 Coventry City Home 3–0 Stevenson, Parlane, Flynn 15,882
11 April 1981 Arsenal Away 0–0 — 29,339
18 April 1981 Liverpool Home 0–0 — 39,206
21 April 1981 Birmingham City Away 2–0 Parlane, Hird (pen.) 14,505
2 May 1981 Brighton & Hove Albion Away 0–2 — 27,577
6 May 1981 West Bromwich Albion Home 0–0 — 17,218

Source: [2][3]

FA Cup[]

Main article: 1980–81 FA Cup
Win Draw Loss
Round Date Opponent Venue Result[a] Scorers Attendance
Third round 3 January 1981 Coventry City Home 1–1 Hird (pen.) 24,523
Third round replay 6 March 1981 Coventry City Away 0–1 — 22,057

Source: [4][5]

Football League Cup[]

Main article: 1980–81 Football League Cup
Win Draw Loss
Round Date Opponent Venue Result[a] Scorers Attendance
Second round, first leg 27 August 1980 Aston Villa Away 0–1 — 24,238
Second round, second leg 3 September 1980 Aston Villa Home 1–3 Graham 12,236

Source: [6][7]

Notes[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c Leeds United's score written first

References[]

  1. ^ Rollin, Jack (1981). Rothmans Football Yearbook: 1981–82. London: Queen Anne Press. p. 428. ISBN 0-362-02046-9. OCLC 868301130.
  2. ^ Jarred, Martin; MacDonald, Malcolm (1986). Leeds United: a complete record 1919–1986. Derby: Breedon Books Sport. pp. 132–133. ISBN 0-907969-17-8. OCLC 14977257.
  3. ^ Rollin, Jack (1981). Rothmans Football Yearbook: 1981–82. London: Queen Anne Press. pp. 194–195. ISBN 0-362-02046-9. OCLC 868301130.
  4. ^ Jarred, Martin; MacDonald, Malcolm (1986). Leeds United: a complete record 1919–1986. Derby: Breedon Books Sport. p. 155. ISBN 0-907969-17-8. OCLC 14977257.
  5. ^ Rollin, Jack (1981). Rothmans Football Yearbook: 1981–82. London: Queen Anne Press. p. 471. ISBN 0-362-02046-9. OCLC 868301130.
  6. ^ Jarred, Martin; MacDonald, Malcolm (1986). Leeds United: a complete record 1919–1986. Derby: Breedon Books Sport. p. 160. ISBN 0-907969-17-8. OCLC 14977257.
  7. ^ Rollin, Jack (1981). Rothmans Football Yearbook: 1981–82. London: Queen Anne Press. pp. 434–437. ISBN 0-362-02046-9. OCLC 868301130.
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