Blackburn Rovers 1 Leeds United 0 - Peter White's big match verdict

THE spirit of Braveheart was in the air at Ewood as Blackburn Rovers carved out a huge victory over honours-chasing Leeds United.

BBC's Match of the Day could well have broadcast this game and entitled it "Braveheart Two" as the sequel to the film they showed two nights earlier.

And, to underline the point, Ewood's original Braveheart Colin Hendry was sat in the stands watching the drama unfold as another supposedly inferior force overcame the odds.

But this was no triumph for a woad-covered rabble whose hearts ruled heads.

It was success born from clear minds, with determed goals to achieve. The only similarity being the passion and commitment poured into the cause.

The simple facts were that Keith Gillespie - on today's prices a steal at £2.35 million - scored his first Blackburn Rovers goal.

Tim Sherwood was, harshly in my opinion, sent off shortly afterwards.

And Ashley Ward, making his Rovers bow as a striker, had to fill virtually every position but his natural role in one of the finest rearguard actions seen on this ground for a long time.

Fans and players came together in such a show of harmony Leeds should have known they were on a loser. It was Brian Kidd's "team" ethic taken to extremes. It wasn't about individuals, they were collective heroes as they defended that fragile lead with 10 men for over an hour.

Withstanding such a siege sent out one message - Rovers have the spirit, the character and the ability to ensure survival.

And, while Kidd modestly dismisses his own contribution, there is no doubt it has been crucial to that spirit.

It promised a great game, even though Rovers had to switch to 4-3-3 because of their problems. And they led while that system was still in force.

But the dismissal changed everything.

As always, the situation of 10 v 11 had a certain fascination and provided far more dramatic entertainment than the TV programmers managed to pack into their festive schedules.

It was stomach-churning stuff, but Rovers had that precious lead, given to them by Gillespie in the 22nd minute.

And they had the courage, commitment and defensive organisation to hang on to it against a Leeds side who clearly disappointed their manager with their lack of imagination.

The bright and breeezy, even-handed opening gave way to Rovers joy when Nigel Martyn, not for the first or last time, looked dodgy on his feet.

His miscued clearance put Gunnar Halle under pressure on the touchline. Jason Wilcox and Damien Duff were there to make it worse and Duff broke to play in Gillespie, in a central position.

The winger left David Wetherall in his wake before toe-poking a shot past a leaden-footed keeper just before two defenders converged on him and another could get it off the line.

Leeds boss David O'Leary called the whole scenario "embarrassing", Kidd understandably grinned "It was wonderful" and Gillespie himself admitted . . . he mis-hit his shot!

No matter, Rovers had the lead and just how important that was emerged three minutes later. Sherwood, booked for what looked something and nothing, clashed again with the abrasive Lee Bowyer.

The red card stunned everyone and it soon became a case of lasting until half-time.

In theory, Rovers switched to a 4-3-2 formation but, in practice, it became 4-5-0 as Ward continually had to track back down the left and Gillespie did likewise on the other flank.Their energy and dedication to the cause was admirable.

It meant that, for virtually the whole of the second half, they were left without a threat up front.

I have to say that, on numerous occasions in the longest 45 minutes of the season, I felt Rovers should have left someone forward. It looked as though they could have paid for inviting so much pressure.

But the result says I was wrong, because they clearly had things under control as the visitors scarcely created a decent chance for all their massive dominance of possession.

They were confined mainly to long-range efforts and, whenever they did threaten the penalty area, there was always a brave blue and white body in the way.

There were just three genuine moments when home fans held their breath. John Filan, master of the air, reacted excellently to hold a diving header from Gunnar Halle in the 52nd minute and then the Aussie had his finest moment six minutes from time.

Jimmy Hasselbaink's header was bound for the bottom corner but the inspirational Filan flung himself to his left and, one-handed, kept it out.

In the 90th minute, Leeds claims for a penalty were ignored and that was that. Because, while two minutes of stoppage time were signalled - that was a laugh considering how many times the referee indicated he was stopping his watch for time-wasting - the final whistle went with barely a minute gone.

And the gradual build-up of sound at an atmospheric Ewood was, ultimately, deafening.

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