LEEDS UNITED’S attempts to put their darkest days behind them hit a snag last night when a blown fuse provided a funereal backdrop to this Coca-Cola Championship play-off semi-final. However, when light was restored so was the hope and two second-half goals ensured that Kevin Blackwell’s side will end a remarkable turnaround with a day out in Cardiff.

This being Leeds, they did not do it the easy way and it was tempestuous, often torrid fare with two red cards, a disallowed goal and daggers drawn in the dugouts. Stephen Crainey departed with half an hour left, Richard Cresswell followed in stoppage time, both for second bookings that will rule them out of the final, and Tye Mears had a late header ruled out. It all left Billy Davies, the Preston North End manager, decidedly unimpressed.

It is now seven failures out of seven for Preston in the play-offs and his positive remarks about his side’s progress must be tempered by the belief that the club are jinxed. Leeds, meanwhile, have hot-wired the hearse just 16 months after almost going out of business. “We’ve built a side in 16 months,” Blackwell said. “Gary Kelly captained the side and that is the remains of Leeds United from then.”

After a dreary opening period, compounded by the power cut that delayed the second half by 20 minutes, the game burst into belated life. Rob Hulse, employed as a lone striker while Preston started with four, made a determined run across the box to head home Kelly’s corner after 56 minutes. Five minutes later he drove across the area and a cross-shot landed fortuitously at Frazer Richardson’s feet. He shot low and hard but Carlo Nash will be aggrieved at letting the ball squirm under him.

To add to Preston’s misery, Brett Ormerod was taken off on a stretcher early in the piece with a broken leg and Nash fractured a cheekbone after Cresswell allegedly stamped on him. “It’s a very physical sport,” Davies said magnanimously, refusing to condemn Leeds for their abrasive edges.

Leeds, though, have done well to salvage their season after finishing their league campaign like an overfed marathon runner hitting the wall. That is perhaps no surprise given the lightning pace of the club’s decline, last night’s game marking the fifth anniversary of their European Cup semi-final defeat by Valencia. Kelly must have pondered how the prizes and venues have changed.

By the end it was clear that it mattered every bit as much as Leeds rolled back the years and bludgeoned their way to a final, probably against Watford, on May 21. The only downside for Blackwell were the sendings-off, although yellow cards for kicking the ball away are selfinflicted wounds. “This is a £40 million game and I don’t understand why we should have a rabbit in car headlights,” he said of Mike Thorpe’s performance with the whistle.

Tense, aggressive and devoid of quality, it was a pub brawl of a match for 45 minutes, but the high stakes meant that it was never less than intriguing. Richardson tested Nash with a volley and Danny Dichio flashed a header wide, but it was only after the hiatus that the action started in earnest.

After Leeds took charge via the goals, it became an often ugly contest. Tackles flew in, cards were shown and there was a group scuffle after Cresswell’s clash with Nash.

Neil Sullivan was busy towards the end, as the numerical advantage counted, but his saves were comfortable, palming over from Paul McKenna and diving on a shot by David Nugent. The disallowed goal was a reprieve and Leeds hung on.

Blackwell, though, was in no mood to start celebrating. “It’s Premier League or bust for us,” he said. “Leeds is a club that demands to be in the top sphere. All we have done is given ourselves a right chance.”

PRESTON NORTH END (4-2-1-3): C Nash — G Alexander, C Davis, Y Mawene, T Mears — P McKenna, B O’Neil — M Stewart (sub: P Agyemang, 46min) — D Nugent, D Dichio, B Ormerod (sub: S Whaley, 11). Substitutes not used: G Ward, C Sedgwick, K Wilson. Booked: Nugent.

LEEDS UNITED (4-5-1): N Sullivan — G Kelly, M Kilgallon, S Gregan, S Crainey — F Richardson, J Douglas, S Derry, L Miller, E Lewis (sub: S Stone, 87) — R Hulse (sub: R Cresswell, 79). Substitutes not used: D Healy, E Bakke, R Blake. Booked: Derry, Kilgallon, Gregan, Crainey, Miller, Cresswell, Kelly, Douglas. Sent off: Crainey, Cresswell.

Referee: M Thorpe.