Rituals and routines help boss Grayson lift Leeds United

IN common with so many in football, Simon Grayson has, over the years, become a slave to superstition.

Whether it be visiting the same car wash on his way to Elland Road ahead of a home game or filling in the team-sheet with his lucky pen, the 40-year-old is determined not to leave anything to chance.

Needless to say, the first time he arrived in a spotless motor was a day when Leeds won, as was the afternoon he sported a brand new waterproof training coat for the first time. Said garment is padded and, therefore, meant to be worn in the winter months but, come May, Grayson could be seen on the touchline, sweating, as temperatures soared into the mid 20s.

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Quirky behaviour by a Leeds manager is nothing new, of course, with Don Revie famously wearing the same lucky blue suit to every game until, as striker Mick Jones once told me, "the backside had become so threadbare you could comb your hair in it".

Grayson may not go quite that far but there is little doubt he genuinely believes the pre-match rituals and routines improve United's chances of success. And after he last weekend became only the fifth manager in Leeds's history to remain unbeaten in the league for a full year on home soil, who are we to argue?

A more rational analysis, however, of the progress that has been made since Christmas last year suggests there is a lot more to Grayson than a few superstitions.

Unbeaten runs, even in what used to be called the Third Division, have to be earned and to understand just what strides have been made, a quick glance back to the last time Leeds lost on home soil in the league is in order.

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Carlisle United were the visitors for what was only Grayson's third game in charge. A last-minute equaliser had rescued a point at home to runaway leaders Leicester City on Boxing Day before a 3-1 victory at Stockport County raised hopes that United, sitting ninth in the table, could mount a push for the play-offs.

Such optimism seemed misplaced by 5pm on January 10 as relegation-threatened Carlisle did to Leeds what a host of sides had done in the final few weeks of Gary McAllister's reign, namely expose a fragile underbelly at set-pieces that meant the opposition being awarded a free-kick or corner left supporters almost resigned to a goal being imminent.

If Grayson was not fully aware of what he was up against before, he certainly was as Carlisle manager Greg Abbott congratulated his players at the final whistle.

To his immense credit, he acted quickly with defender Richard Naylor on his way into Elland Road from Ipswich Town within days. Grayson knew United lacked a leader, someone to marshal what, to even those sitting in the stands, was obviously a very quiet back four.

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Further changes followed with Carl Dickinson being brought in to fill what, even in the Champions League days under David O'Leary, had been the problem position of left-back, while on the opposite flank Frazer Richardson's injury allowed Grayson to switch Jonathan Douglas from midfield.

Appointed captain by McAllister, Richardson's confidence had visibly wilted during United's slide down the table and it was telling that once he had recovered from injury in the spring there was to be no return to the team.

Another headache Grayson inherited was in goal where neither Casper Ankergren nor David Lucas had impressed sufficiently to be considered first choice.

Ankergren went on to feature in every game last season under the new manager, though this possibly had more to do with Darryl Flahavan, the goalkeeper signed on loan from Crystal Palace in March, never shaking off the injury he had brought to Elland Road.

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In contrast to the defence, United's attack needed little attention with McAllister, who signed Luciano Becchio and Robert Snodgrass the previous summer, having left behind plenty of quality.

Confidence levels did, admittedly, need restoring but once that was done and Neil Kilkenny, whose win ratio to appearances in a Leeds shirt compares favourably with anyone at Elland Road, had been restored to midfield, the team never looked back.

Millwall – and a missed penalty by Jermaine Beckford – ended any hopes of promotion via the play-offs but Grayson refused to be downhearted.

His work in the transfer market last summer may not have attracted too many headlines – as one would expect when signing a goalkeeper from Cheltenham, Northampton's right-back and a defender deemed surplus to requirements at Leicester on free transfers.

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But it was clearly a carefully devised strategy with Shane Higgs, until his injury at least, and Jason Crowe proving excellent additions, while Patrick Kisnorbo has gone on to be United's standout performer this season.

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the job done by Grayson, however, is that he has paid a transfer fee for just one player, Sheffield United's Leigh Bromby. Otherwise, it has been a case of scouring the loan and free transfer market to such good effect that United have topped the League One table since mid-September.

More so, the FA Cup triumph over Manchester United earlier this month shows this team could, providing a place in the Championship is clinched in the coming months, well be capable of challenging for promotion again this time next year.

And if that proves to be the case, there is one particular car wash that can look forward to 2010 with confidence at their chances of weathering the credit crunch.