The Elland Road club had hoped to overturn a 15-point penalty imposed by the Football League for what they saw as United's failure to follow a clear insolvency policy.

But at a specially convened meeting in a London hotel yesterday, the other 71 chairmen voted by a majority of 54-16 (Bury were not represented) to uphold the original points deduction. Wise described the decision as "laughable" and hinted self-interest had played a part in many of the chairmen deciding to back the League's stance.

He said: "A lot of people want to see us fall flat on our faces, but we will fight that. We pick ourselves up, dust ourselves down and get on with it. It is time for us to march on and stick together.

"We need 106 points to win the league, 92 points to get in the play-offs and 70 to stay up. Lovely. Thanks very much. We know it is going to be difficult but we are up for this.

"We were hoping the number might have come down slightly and made certain things achievable. Some things are still achievable but we will need a lot of luck on the way.

"The first target is we want to stay up. After that, there are other targets we want to achieve. But that is our first aim, 70 points.

"We can turn a negative into a positive. We will have a massive point to prove (every time we go out). And we are looking forward to it."

The rejection of United's appeal was the latest in a series of bodyblows for Wise this summer with his re-building plans having had to be put on hold until a week ago when the club's League share, suspended when they went into administration on May 4, was belatedly transferred to a new company set up by Ken Bates.

The Leeds chief has been busy since then with the capture last night of Norwich midfielder Andrew Hughes on a two-year contract taking his tally of signings to nine after Alan Thompson and Tore Andre Flo had agreed one-year deals earlier in the day.

Wise had been hoping the original penalty, which is five points more than the League have imposed in the past, would be cut by the other 71 chairmen.

Two votes were taken at yesterday's two-hour meeting with the first, that Leeds deserved some form of penalty for not completing a Company Voluntary Arrangement, being passed by 64 to five with one spoilt vote.

Officials of Oldham Athletic, Gillingham, Hull City and Peterborough United all spoke publicly after the meeting of their support for the League's stance.

Wise said: "Some (clubs) were nice to us, but some were saying certain things on television with a wonderful, big smile on their face. They seemed pleased with the outcome.

"It is laughable. We would like to know, deep down, what the real reasons are.

"If you look at the teams in our division, I am sure they probably wouldn't have voted for us.

"I think a lot of them will have gone home and known deep down they have not been fair. Some will have done it for their own reasons, and those reasons are probably not the right ones.

"But everyone wants to get a head start and 23 teams now have a very good head start on us."

The League stressed after the meeting the matter was now closed, Lord Mawhinney adding: "We have an agreement with Leeds, signed by both the League and the club, that they will not take any legal action against us and we will not take any legal action against them.

"That is a standard part of the agreement that every club signs when they come out of administration."