Leeds and Stoke - They Played For Them Both

Hello! Welcome one and all to the first instalment of Lubo’s new Leeds United series! Today (and hopefully for every other game between now and the end of the season), I will be compiling an all-star team of players who have plied their trade for both clubs. Original idea, I know! So, for the first instalment I will be tackling our friends from the potteries, Stoke City. Most of these players are more recent, but lets dive deep and see who makes the cut.

Goalkeeper – Jack Butland

An uninspiring start to the article with the current custodian for Stoke, not suggesting that there will be much historical depth here. Butland has more than 100 appearances for Stoke, and has also acquired 9 England caps whilst at the club. He spent a short time on loan at Leeds United, after an injury to then goalkeeper Paddy Kenny. Butland made 16 appearances, and conceded 28 goals. His most recent memory of Elland Road, however, is Stoke’s 3-1 defeat there at the start of this season.

Right Back – Frazer Richardson

Frazer Richardson was one of the later products of the prodigious Leeds United Premier League academy. A right back by trade, he was also known to play on the right hand side of midfield. He took over the number 2 shirt from Gary Kelly upon his retirement, and went on to amass 151 league appearances for Leeds, before leaving Leeds to join Charlton after the signing of Jason Crowe. Richardson went on to play for Southampton and Middlesbrough, and was most recently at Doncaster Rovers. During his time at Leeds, he spent two loan spells at Stoke City, playing 13 league games and scoring once. Fun fact; he was the first Leeds player whose name I got on the back of a shirt.

Centre Back – Jonathan Woodgate

Ahhhh Jonathan. What could have been, eh? A promising young centre back who racked up more than 100 league appearances for Leeds, Woodgate left the club after off field problems caused his performance levels to drop. He went on to have a rather unsuccessful spell at Real Madrid, and a career blighted by injuries. He spent a year at Stoke, making 17 appearances, before ending his career at hometown club Middlesbrough.

Centre Back – Dominic Matteo

A proper cult hero, was Dom. Made 115 league appearances for Leeds during his four year stay, and served as the club captain after the departure of Rio Ferdinand. He went on to play for Stoke city before his retirement in 2009. Actually partnered Jonathan Woodgate for a time, so that worked out quite nicely as it stands. Also scored a pretty well known goal, though I can’t exactly remember where...

Left Back – Tony Dorigo

One of the more prestigious names on this list, Tony Dorigo was a cultured left back who won the top division title with Leeds United in 1992. You all know who he is. No need to explain it really. He gathered 171 league appearances in his seven years at Leeds, and he also ended his career with Stoke City, then of the third tier, where he was club captain and managed 36 league appearances in his solitary season.

Defensive Midfield – Amdy Faye

Ah yes. Amdy Faye. If injuries could talk. And play football. Very slowly. Leeds fans maybe never got the best impression Faye, as, by the time he arrived at Elland Road, he had suffered numerous injuries. He enjoyed, for want of a better word, a six month stay at the club, making eight league appearances. He didn’t fare much better at Stoke City, making 21 league appearances in his two year stay in the Midlands. Still, he doesn’t quite get the honour of being the most forgettable player on this list.

Central Midfield – Peter Sweeney

Who is Peter Sweeney? Apparently he was a Dennis Wise signing who played nine games for Leeds United before leaving to go to Grimsby. Who knew? Sweeney spent a more successful time at Stoke City, making 35 league appearances for the Potters. Still, I can’t remember him.

Central Midfield – Danny Pugh

Danny Pugh edges out fellow midfield option Michael Tonge by virtue of having signed for the mighty whites twice during his career. The first came after Leeds’ relegation from the Premier League, with Pugh going on to play fifty league games for the club before leaving for Preston. After departing Preston, Pugh joined Tony Pulis’ Stoke side, where he made 67 league appearances, before rejoining Preston on loan. Pugh signed for Leeds again after that, and took himself to more than 100 league games for the club, despite spending time out on loan at Sheffield Wednesday. He is now playing and coaching at Port Vale.

Striker – Richard Cresswell

Cresswell signed for Leeds after relegation from the Premiership, and enjoyed a short spell at the club. Largely mired by injuries, Cresswell did manage to score 11 goals in his 44 appearances for the club. After relegation to League One, Cresswell moved from Leeds to Stoke, where he made 75 league appearances in the Championship and the Premiership, before leaving for Sheffield United. He has since advanced into coaching, and is a member of the youth staff at Thorp Arch.

Striker – Lee Chapman

Another of the title winning team that turned out for both clubs, Chapman was the quintessential English striker. A bit of a journeyman through most of his career, Chapman came through at Stoke City, where he almost played 100 league games, before playing 137 for Leeds, and scoring 62 goals to boot. It didn’t go as well when he returned to Leeds on loan, but most fans would still cherish the memories of 92, where Chapman’s goals were integral.

Striker – Jimmy Greenhoff

A proper footballing legend, and a product of the prolific Leeds academy in the 60s, Greenhoff made just shy of 100 league appearances for that Revie team, before leaving for Birmingham City. He ended up at Stoke, where he made 274 league appearances and cemented himself as a club legend, also picking up a League Cup along the way. Often labelled as the finest English player to never play for England, Greenhoff finishes out the team up front, and demonstrates that I did bother to look into players before the 90s!

Manager – David Hockaday

Harkening back to the good old days, this one. Hockaday may never have actually managed Stoke, but he did turn out for them 7 times whilst on loan from Hull City in 1993. Add this to his brief if memorable tenure at Leeds, and he was born to be in the dugout overseeing this star squad.

Honourable (and some dishonourable) mentions to a few players who didn’t quite make the cut, including Michael Duberry, Jermaine Pennant, Chris Kamara, Carl Dickinson, Michael Tonge, Vince Hilaire, and Nigel Worthington, as well as Jimmy Gemmell, who turned out for both Stoke and Leeds City. That’s going back a bit, eh?

So that’s a ‘They Played For Them Both’ team for Leeds and Stoke. Any thoughts on that team? How would they do in the Championship this season? Would they be top? Have a good week and lets all look forward to (hopefully) another three points!

ALAW MOT