high. The belief and confidence we gained from that one result set us up for the rest of the season.’
An eighteen-match unbeaten run between late November and mid-April proved Leeds’ resilience to cope with top-flight football. Two defeats in April, at home to Manchester United (0-1), and away at Sheffield Wednesday (0-3), coincided with the two league games Bremner missed that season.
‘Oh, I don't think you can relate my absence to those two defeats. Manchester United was a strong side, always capable of beating anyone on their own turf. As for Wednesday, it was just one of those games, they unsettled us, and Hillsborough is a tough place to go when you are Leeds – Yorkshire rivalry and all that. Those two results effectively killed off our championship aspirations.’
Despite the undoubted quality of the football they consistently delivered, the media, fuelled by information contained within FA News , condemned the club for their ‘dirty’ style of play. The FA News had published a league table of clubs with the worst disciplinary record for the previous 1963-64 season, Leeds were top. The club ignored it and declined to comment on the abuse directed at them from certain quarters of the press and also from their opponents, many of whom would refer to them during games, particularly the Southern-based sides, as ‘dirty northern bastards’ or ‘cheating Yorkshire thugs’.
Bremner in particular found himself identified as an instigator of the so-called ‘dirty Leeds’ style:
‘I remember being asked by one journalist why I was such a dirty player and why I seemed to encourage my colleagues to kick lumps out of the opposition. It came as something of asurprise to be confronted by such inane and insulting questioning. I was really offended by the accusation thrown at me and it hurt. Without thinking, I asked him why he was such a shit writer and why he wasn't writing for one of the top national newspapers. He went bright red and didn't answer, he couldn't. I followed this up by advising him that it was because he lacked any professionalism and that as long as he had a hole in his arse he would never make a good football correspondent. For good measure I told him that he was a complete and utter wanker and not to be bother me again. He was obviously very upset by my comments as he abruptly turned on his heels and walked away.
‘I wasn't always a dirty player, sure I was tough and I always wanted to win, and yes, I admit it, I was enthusiastic, perhaps a little too overenthusiastic on occasions, but I firmly believe that every footballer should give his all for his club. He gets to wear the club shirt on a match day because he has earned the right through individual qualities. That reporter was intimating that I possessed little in the way of talent and had got to where I was through fouling, cheating and kicking. To my knowledge, I never saw him again.
‘Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against football journalists or writers, many of them are extremely good at what they do, but there are limits as to how far anyone should pre-judge any individual, especially when the majority have never played professional football.
‘I remember Chelsea players (again) trying to have a go at us during a game at Elland Road. Each time we went into a tackle they would hit the ground as though they had been struck by a scythe; they were shouting out “cheats” and “dirty northern bastards” so the referee could hear. It was ridiculous. Eventually I had a word with the referee and explained that Chelsea were play acting. He told me that from where he stood, I needed to calm my players down, as they were being overtly clumsy in the challenge. What a prat – “overtly clumsy” – what kind of stupid talk is that! Why did he not come out and say – “I think you are dirty northern bastards too''? I told the boss at half time and he went to speak with himabout some of his decisions. A minute later the boss
An eighteen-match unbeaten run between late November and mid-April proved Leeds’ resilience to cope with top-flight football. Two defeats in April, at home to Manchester United (0-1), and away at Sheffield Wednesday (0-3), coincided with the two league games Bremner missed that season.
‘Oh, I don't think you can relate my absence to those two defeats. Manchester United was a strong side, always capable of beating anyone on their own turf. As for Wednesday, it was just one of those games, they unsettled us, and Hillsborough is a tough place to go when you are Leeds – Yorkshire rivalry and all that. Those two results effectively killed off our championship aspirations.’
Despite the undoubted quality of the football they consistently delivered, the media, fuelled by information contained within FA News , condemned the club for their ‘dirty’ style of play. The FA News had published a league table of clubs with the worst disciplinary record for the previous 1963-64 season, Leeds were top. The club ignored it and declined to comment on the abuse directed at them from certain quarters of the press and also from their opponents, many of whom would refer to them during games, particularly the Southern-based sides, as ‘dirty northern bastards’ or ‘cheating Yorkshire thugs’.
Bremner in particular found himself identified as an instigator of the so-called ‘dirty Leeds’ style:
‘I remember being asked by one journalist why I was such a dirty player and why I seemed to encourage my colleagues to kick lumps out of the opposition. It came as something of asurprise to be confronted by such inane and insulting questioning. I was really offended by the accusation thrown at me and it hurt. Without thinking, I asked him why he was such a shit writer and why he wasn't writing for one of the top national newspapers. He went bright red and didn't answer, he couldn't. I followed this up by advising him that it was because he lacked any professionalism and that as long as he had a hole in his arse he would never make a good football correspondent. For good measure I told him that he was a complete and utter wanker and not to be bother me again. He was obviously very upset by my comments as he abruptly turned on his heels and walked away.
‘I wasn't always a dirty player, sure I was tough and I always wanted to win, and yes, I admit it, I was enthusiastic, perhaps a little too overenthusiastic on occasions, but I firmly believe that every footballer should give his all for his club. He gets to wear the club shirt on a match day because he has earned the right through individual qualities. That reporter was intimating that I possessed little in the way of talent and had got to where I was through fouling, cheating and kicking. To my knowledge, I never saw him again.
‘Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against football journalists or writers, many of them are extremely good at what they do, but there are limits as to how far anyone should pre-judge any individual, especially when the majority have never played professional football.
‘I remember Chelsea players (again) trying to have a go at us during a game at Elland Road. Each time we went into a tackle they would hit the ground as though they had been struck by a scythe; they were shouting out “cheats” and “dirty northern bastards” so the referee could hear. It was ridiculous. Eventually I had a word with the referee and explained that Chelsea were play acting. He told me that from where he stood, I needed to calm my players down, as they were being overtly clumsy in the challenge. What a prat – “overtly clumsy” – what kind of stupid talk is that! Why did he not come out and say – “I think you are dirty northern bastards too''? I told the boss at half time and he went to speak with himabout some of his decisions. A minute later the boss
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