'Over to you boys': Fans demand 110% as Leeds United prepare for relegation showdown with Brentford

Some good, some bad and some idolised.

The one constant, and the lifeblood of our club, will always be the supporters. As with anything that becomes successful, new fans will always follow and the template of the average Leeds fan has changed (some say for the better) from the days when football was very much the working class game and affordable and accessible to all.

The Revie era with a team of world beaters right through to the lacklustre 80s and reinvention under Howard Wilkinson, and my own era witnessing Leeds being promoted and going on to win the last First Division when the team was the last to win the league with an English manager.

Leeds fans historically have gotten a bad rep with the tagline “Dirty Leeds” carrying over onto the terraces – remember Bournemouth? Fast forward and we have become a family friendly club and our supporters are showing the Premier League how it’s properly done on the terraces.

You ask any neutral where they like going the most and they are likely to respond in Leeds’ favour. The atmosphere is second to none, win, lose or draw. In a league where investors and financial backing ultimately guarantees success, where do Leeds stand going forward?

This weekend will ultimately decide our status as survivors or a team bound for the second tier.

Some supporters will tell you that they don’t care how the results come as long as we win but the whole point of appointing a manager was for his style of attacking play and ultimately getting us promoted after years in the wilderness and whether replacing him will be revealed to be the right move in the passage of time also. The fans have ultimately done their part and have created an atmosphere worthy of the label “the best in the land”.

All we ask in return is for 110 per cent pride and passion on the pitch.

The magic of the match affects us all differently and the players can be forgiven for the odd lacklustre performance but for many, the chance to wear the shirt like the “babies” that got to an unheard of Champions League semi finals would be too good to imagine.

And that’s why the expectation is there for the players to feel the same way.

As long as they show the commitment, fight and effort for the 90 minutes against some of the best teams in the world.

All the fans deserve is to be shown that respect back and for the ones who are staying – hopefully they bear this in mind.

Pride, passion and loyalty in today’s game is rare these days and for a season of so much expectation and the long wait to be back in the big time - I think we can all agree, whether we stay up or not - the fans will always show the passion and devotion that we expect from every player on that pitch, no matter whether we have our ups and downs.

Over to you boys.