DANNY MILLS: Leeds can set the record in Sunday’s FA Cup clash with Cardiff
DANNY MILLS: We were top of the table at Leeds when third division side Cardiff knocked us out of the FA Cup – perhaps Jesse Marsch’s men can set the record straight when the two sides meet on Sunday
- Cardiff suffered one of the big FA Cup shocks when they beat Leeds
- It happened in 2002 when David O’Leary’s team was at the top of the Premier League
- Danny Mills remembers the match as a case of ‘head down and run’
- Leeds have a chance to set the record in Sunday’s FA Cup clash
We came to Wales after three straight wins and at the top of the Premier League.
It was an exciting young team from Leeds under David O’Leary and we had reached the semi-finals of the Champions League last season.
Cardiff finished 10th on the third row en route to Ninian Park and we were perhaps a little complacent.
Danny Mills recalls a “hostile atmosphere” when Cardiff beat Leeds in the 2002 FA Cup
Mark Viduka gave us an early lead 1-0 but Rio Ferdinand had to go off injured, Graham Kavanagh equalized and Alan Smith was sent off before half-time.
The atmosphere became increasingly hostile as the game progressed, and various items were thrown onto the field, including empty miniature bottles of whiskey, gin, and vodka.
Referee Andy D’Urso had to stop the game at one point because he was hit by a coin that injured his head.
In the second half, Cardiff chairman Sam Hammam went around the goal and whipped the crowd into a frenzy. He was pacing, waving his arms.
The former Leeds midfielder (right) urged Jesse Marsch’s side to ‘set the record straight’.
Cardiff scored a late winner through Scott Young and I remember D’Urso warning us to leave the field as soon as the game was over. It was pretty obvious there was going to be a mass invasion.
We got out of there unscathed, but basically it was ‘when the whistle blows, head down and run to the tunnel’.
Leeds fans have never forgotten that day and that’s why it was always so intense when they played in Cardiff.
After starting at the top of the Premier League that year, we ended the season in fifth place and failed to qualify for the Champions League. But that FA Cup defeat was not responsible for how the rest of the season unfolded.
I’m looking at Leeds now and I think it’s going to be a touch and go in terms of Premier League survival because it’s so incredibly close. They get a little carried away with going forward when sometimes all they need to see is the result, be it a win or a draw.
Twenty-one years since we lost at Ninian Park, Leeds may be able to set the record straight on Sunday.
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