“We can’t get too low,” said Leeds United Women full-back Rachel Hindle, a picture of deflation after their 2-0 defeat to Norton and Stockton Ancients last Thursday night.

The Sunday after their Plate-winning performance at Solihull, head coach Rick Passmoor had dubbed Leeds’ league return against Chorley “not good enough”. On Tuesday night, the champions were reminded of their greatness on a turn around Elland Road, showing off their shiny new trophy. But back in the humble, soggy setting of Tadcaster the following evening, the shine was already gone.

The games are coming thick and fast and United are attacking them with everything they’ve got left in their weary legs. It wasn’t right that Norton created the best chance of the first half — a huge let off as Sophie Hodgson’s four-yard tap-in became an excruciatingly unlikely miss — but the Whites’ dominance only translated into Kathryn Smith skying one over the bar and a long range Paige Williams effort that had none of the force of her intention. Best efforts were going nowhere.

Approaching the goal on the other side of the break, Jess Rousseau set her heights so high that she leaned back and wasted the Whites’ most valuable opening. Dropping deep, Amy Woodruff’s desire to stop a Norton attack brought Heather Johnson to the ground. The free kick had Carrie Simpson’s name on it as dropped into the six-yard box but Holly Jade Manders wanted it more, nodding the ball over the keeper’s hesitant, outstretched arms and into the net.

Nine minutes later, Bridie Hannon so keenly craved to prevent charging Hodgson from shooting on her left that she paved the way for her to shoot on her right. Her shot was exactly how Simpson wanted it, waist-height, but her defenders were second to the rebound while Norton substitute Estelle Clark netted the follow-up.

Struck down with illness, centre half Catherine Hamill was missing from the starting eleven for the first time all season. Her hot water bottle may have taken a pounding as she watched Leeds’ defensive disarray on the YouTube live stream while tucked up at home.

But in the face of key absences and a fixture schedule that never seems to stop, there was no giving up from Leeds. In the closing stages, Rousseau skimmed the inside of the post but the ball refused to settle the right side of the goal line. But it was not enough to lift the heads of Williams and Hannon as the ref called time on a 2-0 loss.

While Passmoor assured LUTV there was “never a blame game” in the dressing room, the goals had been “soft” — Hindle knew it well.

Hannon made sure not to shy away from responsibility, echoing her manager when she tweeted that it had been “not good enough” again. She promised the loyal fans who’d turned out to support them in a downpour that she and her team-mates would put it right. The opportunity was coming quickly, away at Middlesbrough four days later.

That resolve was thoroughly tested by a battling Boro side. The end of Leeds United’s season was always going to look a bit like this, each opponent having something more to fight for than the mid-table Whites. Add that every team cranks it up a notch when they see the Leeds United badge, and with just four days to recover and reset between games it’s no wonder Passmoor’s players started by conceding two in similar fashion.

Again, their opponents were faster to a rebound as Jess Dawson poked home from Simpson’s parry half an hour in. Again, the Whites’ hesitation to claim a ball invited a goal-hungry attacker to swipe it goalward. The way the second goal cut Leeds off in their stride, just as Passmoor was putting together a half-time speech in his head, felt unkind. For the third time in seven days, Leeds were trailing by two goals — if Hindle feared how low United could get, surely this was rock bottom, as far as the Plate champions could fall?

What was different this time, though, was Leeds had a bit longer to turn themselves around. Perhaps the goal on the stroke of half-time inspired no change to Passmoor’s interval remarks at all. In fact, wasn’t a two-goal deficit the perfect moment for a growth mindset to kick in? The disappointment still raw, the opportunity to act on it right at their feet — not days away.

The personalities of Passmoor’s players were tested and found to be up to scratch, helped along by a successful formation change and a moment which acting captain Olivia Smart later described as ‘lucky’. Leeds cut the score in half with just under twenty minutes left to play as Paige Williams’ deep cross hit the net before its intended target — Smith at the back post — could get a touch on it.

You could call it good fortune, you could call it kicking the ball at the goal and no one stopping it. Other teams had found this. If you keep kicking it at the keeper, chances dictate that eventually one of those shots will be stopped into the path of an attacker.

Sometimes the way to salvation is paved by well-worked goals of the sort which earned United their treasured Plate — often, at this level especially, it’s just about continuing to try.

Danielle Whitham understood that, firing a wicked shot in from thirty yards out. It was too strong for Boro keeper Dunn to catch but as the rebound trickled across the box, United were already retreating for Dunn to distribute a ball she hadn’t yet secured.

So no, Leeds weren’t going to do things the Boro way, or the Norton way. Sarah Danby kickstarted a slick leveller by controlling the ball with her shoulder in the centre circle before setting up Kanisha-Mae Underdown to launch a beautiful cross toward Smith, racing into the box.

In another universe, Smith finishes off this classy move by ripping the net off the posts with a first-time top-corner volley. What she actually did was way cooler. Adjusting her run so that she and the ball fell into step, she used the outside of her boot to nudge it into the far corner. No pace, just smarts. Dunn was too busy setting herself for a blast that would never come to notice that Smith and the ball had parted company. Minimal effort, maximum impact.

It was relaxed, it was suave, it wasn’t enough to prevent Smart’s devastation at full time. This was different to Hindle’s, though. Against Norton, the final whistle had put a full stop on an evening of disappointment; at Boro, the referee ended Leeds’ quest for what might otherwise have been an inevitable winner.

As the curtain fell on her 270th minute of eleven-a-side in one week, Smart preferred an encore to applause — even though the league means little to Leeds now, the desire to win is strong.

Elsewhere, having nowt to play for didn’t stop Hull City coming from behind twice to steal a point from title challengers Newcastle United, whose promotion battle with Durham Cestria, as it stands, could go down to goal difference. Hull can’t go up or down, but they can make a nuisance of themselves in the meantime.

Having struggled against two sides with something to play for, United will visit Hull on Thursday for a battle of wills, with nothing to be decided by the meeting beyond who has a greater desire to win for the sake of winning.

After the final whistle, Passmoor set out what he hopes to see from the players as they approach the end of a long, long season. “Wanting to be here. Wanting to be part of this project. And this journey, as well, is massively important. Because I guess the mentality is, at this end of the season, they might be thinking that’s done and dusted, we’re mid table — we’ve done the cups and everything.

“But no, we’re still wanting development processes. I want to see what players want to play for Leeds.” ⬢