'It will be emotional' - Leeds United fans gear up for long-awaited Elland Road return

Since Luke Ayling’s thunderbolt volley against Huddersfield set alight the final stretch of Leeds’ title charge in March 2020, the stadium has been quiet as the coronavirus pandemic forced games behind closed doors.

Leeds fans watched from afar as Marcelo Bielsa’s outfit bagged promotion and impressed in their maiden Premier League season, and today’s much-anticipated return to full capacity offers an opportunity for supporters to show their appreciation for the team’s recent achievements.

As well as celebrations, fans will also get the chance to pay respects to Leeds United legends and Whites fans sadly lost over the course of the pandemic.

There’s also a brand new pitch to admire, and the Everton tie offers hundreds of younger supporters their first ever glimpse of Leeds United players facing up against top flight opposition.

“It’s a real kid-at-Christmas feeling,” said Robert Smith, lifelong Leeds fan and contributor to the Peacocks Roar podcast.

“There is a hunger for people just to get through the doors this time. Everyone has their own matchday routine, but I think this Saturday, a lot of people will break those rituals to get to the ground earlier.”

Smith has been regular matchgoer since his Grandad first took him to Elland Road aged seven, but since the Huddersfield game, he’s made just one visit to the stadium - to pick up the cardboard cut-out who had replaced him in the stands.

On a normal matchday, Smith likes to park in Holbeck and meet with members of the Bradford Supporters group at Billy’s Bar or the Old Peacock before taking his seat in N2, behind the goal in the Kop End.

“A lot has happened since Huddersfield - there’s a lot to talk about. A lot of people feel like ‘I can’t wait to get back to my football family.’

“There'll be a real sense of togetherness, and it will be crazily noisy.

“The best atmosphere I've seen in my adult life was at the play-off semi-final against Derby. Unfortunately, the result didn't go our way, but I'd not seen Elland Road like that before, not for a very long time.

“I think this Saturday will eclipse that.

“When it’s on form, Elland Road truly is a cauldron. And I fully expect Saturday to be an absolute terror for Everton players.

“But I think, for me, it’s one of the very few times in football when I can say this: the result will be secondary to the experience of being back.”

Elsewhere, the Old Peacock team are preparing to open their doors to matchday crowds once more.

“We’re really looking forward to the first home match of the season after 18 months away,” said Leanne Jackson, Groups Marketing and Events Manager at Ossett Brewery, who own the Old Peacock pub.

The brewery have released a special drink to celebrate the fans’ return, the ALAW lager, which will be available to buy at the Old Peacock this afternoon.

“The atmosphere on matchdays at the Old Peacock is unreal,” Jackson said. “You really have to be there to appreciate it.

“We’ve had generations of fans come to visit us over the years, so we’re really excited to get that back.”

Among those itching to return to the Old Peacock is Graham Hyde, Vice Chair of the Leeds United Supporters’ Trust

“The matchday experience is not just about football,” said Hyde, who holds a season ticket in N11. “It's about the social congregation, the chance to catch up with people that maybe you don't necessarily see otherwise.”

“How many people are going to be 100 per cent laser-focused on the game, and how many people are going to be trying to catch up with their mates?”

Hyde’s usual matchday begins when he parks in Beeston, taking in the stadium as he strolls down Wesley Street to catch up with friends over a pint at the Old Peacock.

As well as the thrill of returning to Elland Road, it’ll be back to business for the Trust as they spark up collections for food banks outside the East Stand again.

“Leeds fans have been phenomenal through these last 18 months,” Hyde said, after the Trust raised over one hundred thousand for the foodbank through the anti-Pay Per View movement and their ‘Donate the Price of a Pie and a Pint’ campaign.

“It’ll be emotional, I think. The first time the songs start up, when kick-off goes, the first wave of an attack, and who knows what's going to happen on the first goal… it’s going to be carnage.”

“Win, lose or draw, I’ll enjoy myself.”