In Leeds We Trust: Coming up against the Premier League’s big hitters is looking appealing

Last weekend was perhaps the highest of the highs we have had this season as Leeds fans.

A win against a Man City side that look as though they’ll be taking home the title this year, and with ten men for the whole second half no less.

Through grit, determination and Stuart Dallas’ sheer brilliance, we managed to come away with three points more to add to our already impressive tally for a first season back in the top flight.

Having already claimed a huge scalp in City, the upcoming fixtures against even more Premier League big hitters are looking much more appealing.

It’s moments such as that second Stuart Dallas goal that leave us all aching to get back into the stands.

Tony Dorigo made a good effort to recreate the noise on his own while working on co-commentary, but with a full away end the scale of the scenes in the stands would have been monumental.

And as the UK lockdown restrictions begin to ease, the idea of finally getting back into the stands in the near future is becoming more and more realistic.

Our final day fixture against West Brom at home currently is earmarked as the date when at least some of us will be able to return to Elland Road.

For some fans however, it seems it could take slightly longer.

As noted by Leeds United Disabled Organisation (LUDO), strong guidance has been given that those people classified as ‘Clinically Extremely Vulnerable’ should not apply to attend the Carabao Cup final this year. The decision was made based upon the guidance of the government’s Events Research Programme (ERP).

While as of right now this doesn’t directly affect our fans, this move is extremely concerning, as any move to exclude a group of fans from having the same right to attend as everyone else should be taken very seriously.

This comes off the back of a similar move made by the ERP to prevent ‘CEV’ fans from being allowed into The Crucible for the World Snooker Championships and sets a worrying precedent for the way the return to live sport is being handled.

We at the Trust stand completely with LUDO and believe that form of exclusion or discrimination against fans is unacceptable.

Our beliefs are aligned with those of the organisation Level Playing Field, who do fantastic work campaigning for live sport to become a more inclusive space for disabled fans, in their belief that

‘CEV’ people should have the right to choose whether they wish to attend live sporting events in the same way as any other fan.

Potential risks should of course be made clear to applicants (as they already are in the ticketing information for the Carabao Cup) however every fan deserves the freedom to make their own decisions.

Adding your own voice to the Trust’s work is easy. Visit our new website at www.lufctrust.com and you can become a member for just £10 per year.

Marching on together.