After a collection of half decent players last week, we go back to some real dross as we sweep up the remainder of the D's to have played for the Whites in my time watching the club, which has just seen me purchase a 25th consecutive season ticket. Our first two players have the same surname and played for the club in the same period, but were both very different characters.
CARL DICKINSON
Within weeks of Simon Grayson's appointment as Leeds United manager in December 2008, he had identified that if Leeds were to make a push for promotion from League One, he had to sort out his defence. Despite all the silky football that Gary McAllister's team were capable of, it was an inability to defend which had cost him his job. Grayson moved to shore up the back four and joining Richard Naylor, who was signed on loan from Ipswich, came Carl Dickinson from Premier League Stoke City.
Making his debut at Brighton, Dickinson was quite simply a psychopath, the type of up and at em defenders we love. Unfortunately the modern day full back has to have some attacking skill in his armoury, and it was here where Dickinson fell down. He was totally averse to crossing the half way line, and whilst he added defensive solidity, the side conceding just 3 goals in his seven games, in attacking terms Leeds stuttered. His final appearance was in a 1-0 defeat at Huddersfield, and he returned to Stoke when his loan expired, paving the way for Ben Parker to stake his claim.
Dickinson never made it back into the side and Stoke and has drifted around the Championship over the last four years, currently playing at Watford where he looks like having another crack at the top flight.
LIAM DICKINSON
When Carl went back to Stoke, Simon Grayson kept the Dickinson name at the club by moving for Derby striker Liam. A glitch in the admin department meant the signing didn't go through at the end of the January transfer window, and Dickinson could not join the Whites until March.
His early career had seen him rise to prominence at Stockport, his goals earning him a big move to Derby County. He struggled at Pride Park, as did many others during Paul Jewell's disastrous spell in charge and was loaned out, including one spell at Blackpool where he worked under Simon Grayson.
His time at Leeds was a disastrous one. He looked slow, weak and totally lacking on confidence, however his appearance at the club seemed to motivate Becchio and Beckford, who both immediately found a bit of form as Leeds went on a run of wins to get into the play-offs.
Dickinson returned to Derby, only to find he had no future there, and has been a footballing nomad since, with a further 7 clubs on his CV. Currently out of the game following an ankle injury, Dickinson may well find himself in our squad of duds, but will have to fight for his place particularly when we look at our next contender.
PAUL DICKOV
One of the most bizarre of Simon Grayson's many poor moves in the transfer market, the "diminutive" (or short-arse) striker signed on a short term deal in March 2010.
After a decent career at Arsenal, Man City and Leicester Dickov was set to move to the MLS before Grayson brought him in to assist in a stuttering promotion chase. Having scored six goals in a loan spell with Grayson at Blackpool, the Leeds boss must have been hoping for a similar impact. Instead we got a striker suffering from small man syndrome.
Dickov was booked before touching the ball on his debut against Brentford, before making a start against Millwall, a 2-0 defeat which was the start of the wheels falling off the promotion bandwagon. His last appearance was in the 3-0 defeat at home to Swindon by which time it seemed clear he was a Jonah.
Without him in the squad, Leeds recovered to scrape up in 2nd place in League One and Dickov was quietly released, moving to Oldham Athletic as manager.
EL-HADJI DIOUF
From being deemed a sewer rat to becoming a key member of Neil Warnock's top quality squad (his words, certainly not mine), Dioufy has certainly changed most people's perceptions of him in his short stay at Elland Road.
A reputation built on a World Cup campaign in 2002, helping Senegal shock defending champions France on their way to the quarter finals, was tarnished by his behaviour at almost every club he has been at.
A disastrous spell at Liverpool was followed by a restoration of his reputation at Bolton. However poor spells at Sunderland and Blackburn, where a tackle on QPR's Jamie Mackie saw Warnock dub him as "lower than a sewer rat" after he accused Diouf of abusing his stricken player.
A loan spell at Rangers was eventful, including a sending off in an Old Firm game, and his career looked to be over as he was released by Blackburn after failing to report for pre-season training.
After a trial at West Ham, Diouf bizarrely ended up at Doncaster Rovers, where he impressed despite the South Yorkshire sides relegation battle. He was involved in an incident with Ross McCormack in the tunnel at the end United's 3-2 win on the day Warnock was appointed manager.
When he was reported to be in talks to join Leeds United in the summer, there was very little love shown towards the move by the fans, but after saying all the right things in pre-season when on trial, Diouf was reluctantly accepted into the fold.
His early season performances were impressive, his skill at winning free kicks and ability to wind the clock down as well as winding up opponents saw the Leeds fans warm to him. Unfortunately a lack of goals is a problem for a striker, and he lacks the pace to perform effectively in a wide position (yours truly describing him as slower than a geriatric sloth in a recent match report!). However he has performed admirably, almost always getting a ball of some description away when he is in the position to deliver.
Given the paucity of true quality in the squad, and the lack of any real fans favourites, Diouf has been a success this season, although that is relative to the dismal showing of most of the season. Whether he will feature as much next season is questionable. It is likely that in years to come he will be remembered fondly as a bright light in a poor team.
DIDIER DOMI
Another of the magnificent seven loan signings brought in by Peter Reid at the start of the 2003/04 season, Domi had least had the advantage that we had actually heard of him. A couple of seasons at Newcastle had seen him pick up a losers medal in the FA Cup, but he started on the bench against the Toon on the opening day.
Domi struggled to get into the side, Ian Harte keeping him out of the left back position, but he eventually won a place in the starting line up for a 4-1 home win over Wolves, and appeared in a run of games which saw the Whites look like they might beat the drop. However the return of Harte to the team saw him lose his place, and as Leeds lost their Premier League status, he was on his way back to PSG.
Domi was last seen in the MLS, failing to earn a berth in the back four of the New England Revolution. A failure there, just as he was a failure in Peter Reid's French revolution.
TONY DORIGO
Domi, like every left back to play for the club in my 25 years watching the club suffer in comparison with Tony Dorigo. Without a doubt the best man to wear the number 3 shirt during my Leeds United supporting career, Dorigo can count himself unlucky to have been around at the same time as Stuart Pearce.
Signed from Chelsea for £1.3m, Dorigo was the final piece in Howard Wilkinson's title winning jigsaw, filling a problematic left back spot. An instant hit with the fans, Dorigo added attacking flair as well as his defensive skills. A superb free kick against Manchester City in September gave us a glimpse of his shooting skills.
He produced a dazzling display in the famous 6-1 win over Sheffield Wednesday, creating goals and scoring an absolutely stunning goal with another free kick.
Despite his Aussie roots, Dorigo won 17 caps for England, and would have won many more but for the presence in the squad of the aforementioned Pearce. Injuries dogged his later years at Elland Road and he was released in 1997, moving to Italy and joining Serie B side Torino, before spells at Derby and Stoke as his career wound down.
Only Ian Harte has come anywhere near matching Dorigo, but despite having the better ability from free kicks, defensively he was nowhere near Dorigo. You could count the mistakes he made on one hand in his 6 years at the club. One of the greats to have represented the club post Revie.
JONATHAN DOUGLAS
Not many people had heard of Jonathan Douglas when he signed for the Whites, initially on loan, in August 2005. He had been a regular for Blackburn Rovers in the Premier League at the back end of the 2003/04 season but had fallen down the pecking order, and had been on loan at Gillingham the season before signing for Leeds.
Douglas lined up alongside Shaun Derry in the centre of the midfield, and was a key part of the side which made it's way into the play-offs. losing to Watford.
He returned to Blackburn at the end of the season, but was back on a permanent deal in the early weeks of the following season. Appointed captain by Dennis Wise as successor to Kevin Nicholls, Douglas was powerless to stop the side sliding into League One.
At that level he looked a much better player, and came to the fore of the side which started on fire. He found his goalscoring boots as well, popping up with goals against Millwall and Huddersfield. However a serious injury at Walsall saw him miss much of the remainder of the campaign before returning for the run-in and the Wembley defeat to Doncaster Rovers.
A player who would play anywhere for the good of the team, he ended his Leeds career at right back under Simon Grayson as the side battled there way back into the play-off race before losing out to Millwall.
That summer Douglas was allowed to move on, moving to Swindon where he earned player of the year awards as the Wiltshire club reached the play-off final, where he lost his third final in five seasons as Millwall scuppered his promotion hopes again.
Douglas has since moved on to Brentford where once again he has proved popular with the fans, winning the player of the year award last season. His popularity never reached those heights at Elland Road, but he was a solid performer during some dark times.
MICHAEL DOYLE
Doyle was a one season wonder, brought in on the eve of the League One promotion season by Simon Grayson to fill the role of the aggressive ball winning midfielder. It was a job he did well, but he lacked the other characteristics required of a really good central midfielder, like passing, shooting and running with the ball.
After starting his career at Celtic, where he never made the grade, Doyle made his name at Coventry City, where he was a regular for five or six seasons at Championship level.
Duting his season at Leeds, Doyle was a first team regular, his ability to sit and break up play allowing better players like Jonny Howson, Bradley Johnson and Neil Kilkenny to play alongside him and pass the ball around. He played a full part in the win at Old Trafford and played a key role in ensuring Max Gradel didn't chin the ref when he was sent off against Bristol Rovers, manhandling Mad Max off the pitch along with Jermaine BEckford.
Once promotion was won, Grayson decided that Doyle wouldn't be part of his Championship squad and allowed Doyle to return to Coventry. He stayed with the Sky Blues for another season, upsetting thier fans by saying his year at Leeds was the best year of his life.
Currently at Sheffield United where he has been made captain, Doyle will always be part of one of my favourite teams at Elland Road, one of those small working parts which don't seem to do a lot, but without which everything would fall apart.
ADAM DRURY
The signing of a competent left back with experience of the Championship made us think that Neil Warnock knew what he was doing last summer. The fact that he very rarely played Adam Drury, despite him being far and away the most competent left back at the club was an early indication that in reality Warnock was a clueless dinosaur.
After a 10 year career at Norwich which saw him go from the Premier League to League One and back again with the Carrow Road club, it made a pleasant change to sign someone from Norwich for a change, even though he was a fringe player and not one of the crown jewels they have made a habit of stealing.
Given the number 3 shirt and starting the opening League Cup win against Shrewsbury all seemed set for Drury to have a long run in the first team. However come the opening day of the season, Drury was on the bench, Lee Peltier preferred at left back.
Drury made his league debut at Peterborough but a combination of injuries and Warnock's stupidity have seen him spend most of his time on the sidelines. The signing of Stephen Warnock has pushed him further down the pecking order, and despite being fit and available it his highly doubtful we will see him again. With another 12 months left on his contract, it is quite likely that he will be the first of Colin's signings to have thier contract "terminated by mutual consent" costing the club valuable funds. Adam Drury's Leeds United career seems to have been a sad waste of time for him, and waste of money for us.
MICHAEL DUBERRY
Talking of a waste of money, it is hard to believe that £4.5M was spent by Leeds United on Michael Duberry, although it should have been seen as a sign of the profligacy with money which was to drag the club into the sorry mess it remains to be now.
To be fair to Dubes, he was seen as a bright talent when he signed fro the club from Chelsea in June 1999. The previous seasons had seen him pick up medals in the League Cup, Cup Winners Cup and European Super Cup and he was widely touted as a possible international class talent.
However Leeds United already had class centre halves on theit books with Lucas Radebe and Jonathan Woodgate and Duberry found it difficult to break into the team. With the arrival of Dominic Matteo and Rio Ferdinand, Dubes fell furtehr down the pecking order.
His involvement in the Bowyer/Woodgate case, where he turned into a witness for the prosecution, saw his stock fall even more, and when he did play, his patchy performances on the field saw him become a target for the supporters.
Known as 50 pence piece head for his uncanny ability to head the ball in the opposite direction you would expect it to go, Duberry had faded so far down the pecking order, that Kevin Blackwell obviously forgot he was at the club when he claimed that there was only him and Gary Kelly there on the first day of pre-season after our fall into the Championship.
Duberry failed to impress in the Championship, and with Sean Gregan being preferred to him in the centre of defence (a damning indictment of any player!) he moved on to Stoke CIty.
Remarkably he still earns a living from the game, currently turning out for Oxford United in League 2, although he was not selected when the U's came to Elland Road this year. For him that will have been a disappointment as surely even Dubes would have had a good game at Elland Road against this shambles of a team.
CHRIS DAWSON
From a player who represents some of our dark times, we have a late addition for some one who could illuminate the club in the future. Chris Dawson's cameo on Monday against Derby offered us a little glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel, offering some creative spark in our damp squib of a midfield. Hopefully he will be a big part of the coming months and years at Elland Road.
So there we have it, a bumper crop of the good, the bad and the indifferent. Once again it's time for you to decide which of this bunch is the worst, so tear yourselves away from polls on who should be our next manager and focus on the important things in life, deciding which of these D's is the worst you have ever seen.
Please feel free to comment below or via our Twitter pages @TIAT_LUFC or @clarkyboy72, and we will be back next week full of E's as we look at the likes of Tom Elliot and Hogan Ephraim!