FA Cup: Liverpool punish shot-shy Leeds

Liverpool's super substitutes stole unlikely FA Cup progress for the Reds with a smash-and-grab raid at Leeds United.

Nicky Barmby, a 73rd-minute replacement for Vladimir Smicer, blasted his side towards round five after Robbie Fowler's toe-poked effort rebounded off the bottom of Nigel Martyn's post.

Then his fellow substitute Emile Heskey sealed the win over Leeds with a 12-yard rocket in injury time after Barmby's neat lay-off.

It was an astonishing escape for Gerard Houllier's men, whose leaky defence had been speared by Leeds' front two all afternoon and whose goalkeeper somehow survived a personal horror show.

Sander Westerveld, blamed for his side's defeat in their seven-goal epic at Elland Road in November, had blundered to almost hand Leeds the lead after just 38 seconds.

The Dutchman let Robbie Keane's 10-yard shot squirm under his body but was saved his blushes by Stephane Henchoz, who booted the ball off the line.

On the hour Westerveld dropped an even bigger clanger when he failed to keep hold of Lee Bowyer's right-wing cross, and Sami Hyypia had to sweep Eirik Bakke's stabbed shot off the line again.

Mark Viduka shot across an open goal, and Dominic Matteo was close with a header from point-blank range - while Liverpool failed to force a single save out of the recalled Martyn until their spectacular late show.

How Leeds failed to win is a mystery, with Keane and Viduka posing endless problems and tearing through the flat-footed Reds - desperately missing their injured talisman Steven Gerrard - time after time.

After Leeds' whirlwind opening spell the odds on a repeat of their 4-3 thriller the last time the two sides met in November were being slashed. But Houllier's men somehow held out - hoping for the replay yet eventually finishing with the progress to round five.

Westerveld clumsily blocked Viduka's shot after four minutes. Henchoz cleared and the same player knocked the ball out for a corner moments later after the Australian had been teed up by Bowyer.

Leeds' central defence, though, with Jonathan Woodgate continuing alongside Rio Ferdinand in the continued absence through international duty of Lucas Radebe, were also susceptible to jitters.

Smicer and Dietmar Hamann both wasted shooting chances in the first period, and moments after Hyypia saved Westerveld's bacon on the hour when Fowler had what looked like being the Reds' best chance.

The striker, kept as captain after scoring in the midweek Worthington Cup semi-final against Crystal Palace, turned Woodgate inside out but hammered his 10-yard shot into the side-netting.

Leeds boss David O'Leary, twice a winner in his playing days with Arsenal, had spoken of the importance of this competition - a sense of occasion heightened by Leeds' struggle to win a Champions League place via their league form this season.

But the late double blow proved the kick in the teeth for Leeds on an afternoon when their failings came to the fore again - and while Liverpool celebrated the home strikeforce were left to mull over what might have been.