ONE more nail, alas, driven into the coffin of hapless Leeds United. Eddie Gray, the caretaker manager who once shone so brightly on their left wing, said: “I still think there’s enough quality there to win matches,” with which Fulham’s manager Chris Coleman, out of hospital, broadly agreed.
Fulham dominated the second half, with goals always in the chilly wind well before they scored, although it was easier to agree with Coleman when he said that Leeds never gave up.

Indeed, 2-0 down and obviously well beaten, they so nearly scored when the irrepressible little right-winger Jermaine Pennant fashioned a chance for substitute Simon Johnson, whose shot came back off the bar just before the referee blew for full time.

The first half, as Coleman said, was greatly affected by the conditions, “and not just the pitch, which was not at its best, but with a swirling wind, so it was difficult”.

It was tempting to believe that Coleman’s positional changes at half-time galvanised Fulham, switching from an apparent 4-4-2 formation with Mark Pembridge uneasily operating on the left flank, with neither the pace nor the left foot to do it, and the usually dynamic Steed Malbranque somewhat anonymous on the right.

In the second half, however, Malbranque played largely on the left, with his familiar panache, while Pembridge moved far more happily and effectively into his familiar domain in the middle.

Coleman paid him credit. “Leeds like to have a battle,” he said, “so that was why Pembridge was in there. He does the horrible things.”

There was little to excite or admire in a dull first half. Pennant went close for Leeds while Luis Boa Morte and Malbranque had chances to open the scoring, without troubling Paul Robinson. There was still time for Boa Morte to make and miss the chance that should surely have put Fulham ahead. A long ball from Sylvain Legwinski was controlled by the Portugal international but, under pressure from Dominic Matteo, he couldn’t find the power to test Robinson.

After the break Fulham began to put the passes together and dictate most of the play. Robinson, praised by Gray for his saves, was increasingly in action. When Boa Morte crossed, he did well to save a header from Pembridge. On 54 minutes, Pembridge took a corner from the right and Robinson pushed Legwinski’s effort around the right-hand post.

Pembridge promptly took another corner and this time Hayles headed just wide of the other post when it seemed more likely that he would score.

So we had to wait until the 70th minute until Fulham finally went ahead. Sean Davis, who had largely operated on the right since half-time, now moved into the middle, exchanged passes with Malbranque, dashed through a gap in the Leeds defence and beat Robinson.

In what could well have been a second Fulham goal a couple of minutes later, Boa Morte broke through only to be thwarted by a fine tackle from Didier Domi. Undaunted, Boa Morte pursued the ball and turned it back across the goal, where Malbranque shot over the bar.

Ten minutes later, Fulham scored a second goal. The 6ft 7in centre-back, Zat Knight, had popped up adventurously on the right and knocked back a ball from Pembridge, and Boa Morte headed past Robinson. The game was done and dusted then, forcing Gray to admit: “I was a bit disappointed the way we conceded the goals.”

To their credit, Leeds kept pegging away in the closing minutes when each of the Johnsons might have had a goal. When Mark Viduka headed another cross by Pembridge to Seth Johnson he might well have beaten Edwin van der Sar but put the chance wide. Then, almost at the death, came Simon Johnson’s shot against the bar. It wouldn’t have changed the result, but it would have been some kind of consolation.

Fulham: Van der Sar, Volz, Knight, Pearce, Green, Malbranque, Davis, Legwinski, Pembridge, Hayles (McBride, 86min), Boa Morte

Leeds United: Robinson, Kelly, Caldwell, Matteo, Domi, Pennant, Seth Johnson, McPhail, Milner (Simon Johnson, 76min), Viduka, Smith

Scorers: Fulham: Davis 70, Boa Morte 82

Referee: S Dunn

Attendance: 17,104

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