Becchio strike beats Blues

A powerful second half display from once proud Leeds United condemned Wanderers to their third straight defeat of the season – but only after Wycombe had run them ragged in the first half and were then denied a last-gasp equaliser by the woodwork.

For 45 first half minutes Wycombe gave the Yorkshiremen the runaround and looked every inch the part as they went toe to toe with the once proud fallen giants.

With Matty Phillips sparkling on the wing and Ian Westlake and Matt Harrold displaying some glorious deft touches Wanderers had Leeds all in a spin as the Blues demonstrated that they can live with the big boys in League One.

Just eight years ago the visitors were playing in the Champions League semi-final but Wycombe showed no respect for such reputations.

They tore into the Yorkshiremen from the start and the only thing that was missing from their display was a goal.

But Leeds used the half time interval to good effect and were a different proposition in the second half and Luciano Becchio's brilliantly hit goal on the hour proved to be the difference in a classic game of two halves.

But Wycombe substitute Stuart Green almost pulled it out of the fire with a rasping 89th minute shot which Leeds glovesman Shane Higgs tipped onto his post.

In team news Westlake shrugged off his hamstring strain to line up against the club he once served until a clash with former Elland Road chief Gary McAllister.

He was one of two former Elland Roaders in the side along with skipper Michael Duberry who was surprsingly partnered by Luke Oliver at the back as the Blues looked to keep Leeds goal machine Jermaine Beckford quiet.

But it was Wycombe who began on top.

After just three minutes Harrold snaked around the back to head a long Craig Woodman free kick just over the top.

Then, moments later, a fine move ended with the hugely impressive Phillips' outswinging cross just evading Chris Zebroski's boot at the back post.

Phillips was causing United full back Jason Crowe all sorts of problems and on 13 minutes he combined again with Zebroski with the latter flashing a shot into the arms of Leeds keeper Shane Higgs.

But Wycombe hearts were in their mouths on 16 minutes when, from Leeds' first serious attack, Beckford got in front of Oliver to poke a shot onto the post and into the side netting with Blues glovesman Scott Shearer grappling at thin air.

Phillips was upstaging Leeds' stars Beckford, Luciano Becchio and Robert Snodgrass but the fleet-footed Wycombe teenager wanted one touch too many after lovely one-touch play from Westlake and Harrold set him up on the left hand side.

Wanderers were purring through the gears but Becchio's sharp turn and lob just over Shearer's goal was a reminder of the quality the visitors could possess if given half a chance.

Becchio and Robert Snodgrass were beginning to wake up and with their tails up Leeds began to look like the side that had won both of their opening contests.

And you would have put your mortgage on Beckford adding to his two goals against Exeter on the opening day when Snodgrass played him in with a cute ball which disected Wanderers' skipper Duberry and his right back Adam Smith.

But with the goal opening up, the £2m rated striker only picked out the Wanderers fans on the terrace.

If that was a miss John Mousinho was guilty of a sizeable one at the other end, when after a lung-busting run he failed to rise enough to meet Phillips' left wing cross after another deft touch from targetman Harrold.

Leeds began the second half in a more business-like fashion pinning Wanderers back inside their own half.

Now it was Leeds who were spraying the ball about to the applause of their 2,264 fans in the 8,400 crowd.

And their increased pressure paid off on the hour mark when, from a Jason Crowe thrown in, the ball was fed in to Becchio who from outside the box speared a low shot into the corner of Shearer's net.

Blues boss Peter Taylor reacted to the setback with the introduction of substitute Jon-Paul Pittman for the tiring Westlake.

But it could have got worse for Blues when Beckford's pass clipped off Smith's toe into the pass of Bradley Johnson but the on-loan Wycombe right back made a stunning recovery to charge back and whip the ball away again just as the Leeds man was about to pull the trigger.

Leeds were now in almost total ascendancy and Blues tried to swing the balance back their way with Stuart Beavon replacing Harrold on 73 minutes as Wycombe who had not enjoyed a second half attack went 4-4-2.

But there was still more defending to do and Duberry, who was booed throughout by the Leeds fans for speaking out against his former team-mates in the infamous Leeds trial involving Jonathan Woodgate and Lee Bowyer, needed to block Beckford's shot after Snodgrass and Crowe had cut Blues open.

Taylor spun the dice again with Stuart Green replacing Smith but Johnson almost doubled Leeds' lead with a rasping drive just past the upright after another clever tee up from Becchio.

Leeds were rampant and Wycombe were chasing shadows as Snodgrass drilled another effort just wide before Shearer had to produce acrobatics to tip Beckford's overhead kick over the bar.

Wycombe refused to give it up though and found the energy for a frantic final ten minutes in which they almost found an equaliser.

Green thought he had rescued a point when his 89th minute shot seemed destined for the bottom corner. But Leeds' keeper Higgs flung out a despairing arm to flick the ball onto the post and out for a corner.

Blues' netminder Scott Shearer joined the attack for the flag kick but there was to be no fairytale ending as Leeds held on to make it three wins out of three for them and three defeats on the spin for Blues.