Football: All's Well.. if it ends Well; Leeds boss must answer six appeal or Bates will Wise up.

Byline: By DAVID ANDERSON 

AFTER spending the last couple of years battling for their very existence, Leeds and boss Kevin Blackwell are under a different kind of pressure this season.

Ken Bates' takeover means they are moving up again and these changed times have brought new challenges for Blackwell.

Bates bankrolled him heavily this summer and he splashed out over pounds 2.5million on Rob Hulse, Dan Harding and Robbie Blake.

But in return chairman Ken expects to see Leeds challenging for promotion.

Anything less and those rumours of Dennis Wise replacing Blackwell will start to resurface again.

Blackwell knows this but is confident he can turn Leeds into contenders this season.

He has assembled a squad capable of challenging for a top-six place and for the first time in three years, there is a new mood of optimism about Elland Road.

Blackwell's side made a solid, if at times unconvincing, start to the new campaign.

David Healy's display was a major plus and he scored both goals to show he is back to his predatory best after missing the end of last season through injury.

Blackwell handed debuts to Harding, Blake and Eddie Lewis and the American international, signed on a free transfer, was the pick of the new boys.

England Under-21 international Harding will have better games for Leeds and was at fault for Millwall's goal, while Blake was quiet up front.

But Lewis impressed on the left and after dragging a shot wide of Andy Marshall's left-hand post, he crossed for his old Preston team-mate Healy to glance a header just over.

On 28 minutes the pair combined to give Leeds the lead when Don Hutchison could only head Lewis' inswinging corner goalwards under pressure from the impressive Shaun Derry and the unmarked Healy hooked the ball home right-footed from four yards out.

Leeds had chances to add a second and Blake had a free-kick saved by Marshall before Eirik Bakke, who was making his first start under Blackwell because of a nightmare run of injuries, was denied by the keeper.

Millwall made Leeds pay for their lethargy when they equalised on 61 minutes. Alan Dunne robbed Harding in the right-hand corner and found debutant Hutchison who crashed the ball first-time into the roof of the net. The visitors were the more dangerous side and former Leeds midfielder Jody Morris, who was barracked mercilessly by the home supporters, had a shot saved.

But then the game turned again in the 73rd minute when Marvin Elliott rashly upended Lewis in the box and Healy converted the penalty.

There was even time for Michael Ricketts to come off the bench in his first appearance in a Leeds shirt since February to suggest he may yet have a career at Elland Road. Millwall boss Colin Lee, who is still settling into his new job following a traumatic summer for the Lions, hopes to engineer his own revival at the New Den.

Lee's threadbare side entertain Coventry tomorrow and he said: "It's a big challenge. I have no money for transfers and only a very small budget for wages. All I can do is try and get the maximum from my players and I felt we did that." But Blackwell believes his rebuilt Leeds can make a push for promotion this season and he said: "With the quality we've added, I expect us to be top-10 plus - it would be stupid of me, though, to come out and say we are going to get promoted.

"Last season we would have drawn this game, which shows the progress we've made already."