Leeds United: Counting down to discover the No 1 cult hero at Elland Road

It is not talent that defines the players that fans take into their hearts. It is not even longevity, but

can be as simple as the effort with which a player plays, the way he talks or the way he

embraces a club.

Cult heroes can be good, they can be bad, and they can also operate in a bizarre middle ground

that leaves half of a stadium up in arms and the other half applauding.

Leeds United Cult Heroes: 9-12

Leeds United Cult Heroes: 13-16

Leeds have had their fair share over the years. It’s time to celebrate those who will never have

statues built of them, but deserve a place in Leeds United’s history nonetheless.

Throughout this week, I will be counting down my own top 20 chart and you will be free to provide your comments at the end of it.

So here goes with my opening selections:

20. Kevin Hird

Mention the name Kevin Hird to any Leeds fan over a certain age and you’ll get one word thrown back at you: “enigma”.

Hird could play anywhere on the right-hand side of the pitch, if he wanted to, but it was never clear which Kevin Hird would turn up on any given day.

He was the most expensive full-back in English football when he was signed.

In terms of what made Leeds fans love him, few will forget the goal Brighton which nearly kept Leeds in the top flight 1981/82.

At the same time, there were large swathes of fans who will tell you that he was nothing more than a clumsy work-horse.

No-one will ever really understand Hird, but that does not stop the affectionate way Leeds fans talk about the man they nicknamed ‘Jasper’.

19. Robert Molenaar

When Emile Heskey was one of English football’s top prospects, rather than the walking meme he became in his later career, he came to Elland Road