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Ankergren penalty save can rescue the season
CASPER ANKERGREN today set his eyes on the Championship's finishing line after helping Leeds United take a huge step towards survival.
The Danish goalkeeper saved an 86th-minute penalty at Elland Road to earn United a vital 1-0 victory over Luton Town and revitalise their flagging season.
Ankergren blocked Dean Morgan's weak shot with his legs, the second time he has repelled a penalty since joining Leeds from Brondby in January, and a first win in six games has given United the chance to move clear of the Championship's bottom three at Leicester City tomorrow night.
Richard Cresswell's finish secured the narrow victory early in the second half, but Ankergren was called on to prevent a draw at the death after Leeds had struck the woodwork on three occasions.
Ankergren said: "With penalties the keeper has everything to win because everybody thinks the other player should score.
"It was a win-win situation for me, and I won it. I've been a bit lucky but you need luck. It was very important that we won because it would have been so unfair if we'd drawn.
"At first I was thinking 'five minutes before time, this is just a nightmare'. We should have been 3-0 up at half-time and maybe won the game 5-0.
"It can give us a major boost and if we're one point over the line at the end of the season, that will do for me."
Ankergren's save was as much the result of Morgan's poor conversion as the Dane's excellent anticipation, and the 27-year-old keeper admitted his surprise at the weak finish produced by Luton's talented winger.
"I don't know what he was thinking about," said Ankergren.
"Maybe he thought I would go one way or the other and he'd put it in the middle of the goal.
"I could see he was a bit nervous. Of course he was; it was five minutes from time."
Survival is back in United's grasp, read here
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Weather for Leeds
Sunday 12 February 2012
Today
Light rain
Temperature: 1 C to 6 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: North west
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 4 C to 8 C
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