Key events
85 min âJust got back from some nice dinner, only spoiled by wondering if we would be missing out on a day trip to Wemberleeeeee,â says Jeremy Boyce. âApparently not. But should they stop scoring now and keep some in reserve for the BIG ONE v ?, or should they keep their scoring boots shined by punishing Norwich all the way? Answers on a postcard please…â
Theyâve got nine days off after this, so they might as well empty the tank. (Although they have played in seocnd gear for most of the second half.)
83 min: Leeds substitution Ilia Gruev, whose early goal calmed any Leeds nerves, gives way to Liam Cooper. Ethan Ampadu runs over to give Cooper the armband.
81 min: Double substitution for Norwich Sydney van Hooijdonk and Jacob Sorensen replace Ashley Barnes, who is serenaded again as he leaves the field, and a crestfallen Jon Rowe. Itâs been an awful night for Norwich, one that will haunt them until they can start again in August.
80 min âWatching Leeds at the business end of a promotion push without sweaty armpits and the lingering smell of fear in the room: this is a whole new experience!â says Justin Kavanagh.
Itâs daft that theyâve never gone up via the playoffs in five attempts. You could write a book on their 1986-87 playoff campaign alone.
79 min The Leeds fans are serenading Ashley Barnes with a simple, repetitive five-word ditty. The first two words are his name, the third is âisâ, and you can probably discern the rest.
77 min Sainz and Roberts have a peedie set-to on the halfway line. The referee, who has been very good, has a quick word and nothing more.
75 min: Triple substitution for Leeds Jaidon Anthony, Mateo Joseph and Connor Roberts replace Georginio Rutter, Joel Piroe and Crysencio Summerville. All three scored; all three played marvellously.
74 min James has a shot blocked by McLean after yet another turnover in the Norwich half.
70 min: Leeds substitution Dan James replaces a beaming Willy Gnonto, who had a fine night himself and played a big part in the second and fourth goals.
Crysencio Summerville, who has been quite marvellous all night, makes it 4-0 to Leeds. Yet again they won the ball high up the field and made Norwich pay. Gnontoâs sharp shot from the edge of the area was saved a little awkwardly by Gunn, diving to his right, but the ball ran loose to Junior Firpo near the byline. He looked up and screwed the ball back to give Summerville a tap-in. Lovely.
GOAL! Leeds 4-0 Norwich (agg: 4-0; Summerville 68)
If ever a man deserved a goalâ¦
67 min âI know heâs represented England at under 21 level, but maybe Steve Clarke should name Archie Gray in his squad for the Euros?â says Simon McMahon. âBeing 18, and called Gray, doesnât seem to have held him back at Leeds this season. Farke clearly trusts him, and both Hickey and Paterson are out injured. Iâm sure Frank and Eddie could try to âpersuadeâ young Archieâ¦â
Those quotation marks around âpersuadeâ get more ominous every time I look at them.
65 min Leeds win a free-kick in a very similar position to their first goal. This time Gruev spins it beyond the far post, Ampadu heads back across and Norwich clear.
63 min: Double substitution for Norwich Christian Fassnacht and Sam McCallum replace Dimitris Giannoulis and Ben Gibson. That means Kenny McLean will drop into defence.
61 min Rowe, who was booked in the first half, catches Kamara with a slightly weird challenge. He jumped across Kamara and brushed his face with maybe his arm or even his back. Jarred Gillett decides it isnât worth a second yellow. I think Roweâs a bit lucky there.
60 min Stacey gallops down the right and fires a good low cross that is kicked away breezily at the near post by Ampadu.
Norwich are having more of the ball than at any stage tonight, though it feels like an exercise in encouraged futility.
59 min A quiet spell, enlivened only by the referee needing a new can of free-kick foam.
56 min Rutter is booked for an overenthusiastic challenge on Sainz.
56 min Rutter slides Summerville through on goal, but he dithers for a split-second and Giannoulis makes an important challenge.
55 min Gruev is booked for a tactical foul in midfield.
54 min: Fine save by Gunn! Leeds are still pressing with ferocious intensity. They win the ball in the Norwich half yet again, and seconds later Summerville gives Piroe a chance with a cute reverse pass. He opens his body to sidefoot a shot that is well blocked by the outrushing Gunn.
51 min Grayâs cross on the run is headed over from 12 yards by Summerville. He deserves a goal for an exhilarating performance, and he almost gets it moments later with a shot from a tight angle that is kicked away by Gunn.
49 min At the other end, McLeanâs shot from 25 yards goes out for a throw-in. The Leeds fans enjoyed that.
46 min: Chance for Leeds! Joel Piroe should haev made it 4-0 after 35 seconds. Norwich couldnât play through the Leeds press and were opened up yet again in transition. Rutter slid an angled pass into the area to Summerville, who touched it off to the unmarked Piroe 10 yards out. He could have passed the ball into either corner but instead leathered it straight at Gunn with his left foot.
46 min Norwich begin the second half having made a substitution: Borja Sainz is on for Josh Sargent.
âWhen I watch Championship football, I am always struck by the quality (such as it is) of the defending,â says Joe Pearson. âIt strikes me that Championship defenders will often make a challenge, when just holding a disciplined position is the better option. Am I imagining this?â
Erm, Iâm not sure. But as Iâve spent much of the season watching Manchester United, I canât really criticise anybodyâs defending.
Half time: Leeds 3-0 Norwich (agg: 3-0)
Leeds have run Norwich ragged at Elland Road and are almost certainly heading to Wembley. Ilia Gruevâs audacious early goal set the tone for a performance of thrilling intensity. Joel Piroe headed the second, Illan Meslier made a vital save moments later and then Georginio Rutter scored a euphoric third just before half-time.
Itâs hard to say whether Norwich have played badly or not. They have been completely overwhelmed.
45+4 min âI get that itâs difficult to turn down a move to a âBig Clubâ (even if itâs United!), but I do wish Dan James had stayed at Swansea a little longer,â writes Matt Dony. âWhen he first came through. He was so exciting, and seemed to improve with every game he played. Then, after a bright-ish start at United, just stagnated. Of course, itâs impossible to tell if that was down to him, or the coaching, or (most likely) a combination of the two. But I just canât help wondering how he would have developed with another season at Swansea. Heâs clearly never going to be the player he looked like heâd be, but he can still improve. Itâs been a better season for him, but heâs still wildly erratic with his end product. I hope he gets another decent crack at the Premier League. And I hope he gets that chance at Leeds, alongside Ampadu, who is definitely a Premier League player.â
Youâve been watching that Sliding Doors again, havenât you? (I totally agree btw â Iâm fascinated by the parallel careers of young footballers. For example, if Uefaâs foreigner rule had gone a year earlier, Keith Gillespie would have stayed at Man Utd, which could have had a major impact on his career and those of David Beckham and Paul Scholes.)
45+2 min: Giannoulis clears off the line! Leeds are battering Norwich. Firpoâs low cross is pushed away by the diving Gunn, but only as far as Rutter. He shows eerie composure to walk round Gunn and is about to score when Rowe challenges him from behind. Rutter still gets his shot away but itâs not the cleanest and Giannoulis clears off the line.
45 min Four minutes of added time.
43 min Almost a fourth goal on the break. Summerville does marvellously to beat two players in the centre circle and push the ball through to Gnonto. He charges to the edge of the area, knows heâs about to be challenge and whacks a hopeful shot towards goal. Itâs too close to Gunn and he beats it awya.
Itâs been a devastating first-half performance from Leeds, one that will go down in Elland Road folklore. The third goal came from another slow-slow-quick move, this time down the left. Piroe danced over the halfway line into space, kept going and eventually screwed a cross towards Summerville at the near post. The ball took a couple of ricochets, then Summerville fell over â but he still had the presence of mind to poke the ball square to Rutter. He ran onto the ball, eight yards out, and rammed it gleefully into the net off the underside of the bar.
GOAL! Leeds 3-0 Norwich (agg: 3-0; Rutter 41)
Well you can forget that previous entry: Leeds are off to Wembley!
40 min Norwich need to get to half-time with their 2-0 deficit intact. We all know how quickly and dramatically the mood can change in playoff games, so they shouldnât give this up. Stay in the game, make it 2-1 between the 60th and 70th minutes and then see what type of human nature kicks in.
37 min Jon Rowe is booked for diving on the edge of the Leeds area. A brave decision from the referee, backed up by the replay.
36 min Norwich canât keep the ball at all. Even their one great chance, for Sargent, came out of nothing.