The report

The Blues travelled north attempting to bounce back after a narrow defeat to a strong PSV Eindhoven side in the Premier League International Cup at Stamford Bridge the previous Thursday.

And Robinson's team showed no sign of a hangover with a fast start at Thorpe Arch. Zak Sturge forced the first opening down the left wing in the early minutes, only for Leeds' Charlie Cresswell to make a last-ditch clearance.

We didn't have to wait long, however, for the breakthrough, which arrived via Leo Castledine.

Michael Golding was the architect as he broke forward from midfield before his cross was deflected into the path of Castledine, who coolly found the corner of the net with a curled finish.

Chelsea continued to dominate possession but were vulnerable to counterattacks from the hosts. Leeds' Luca Thomas came close to an equaliser, but his effort curled past Ted Curd's post.

Curd, who was excellent for the young Blues, was also involved in the other big moment of the first half. The young goalkeeper got down superbly to his right to keep out Max McFadden's low drive to ensure Chelsea went into the break a goal up.

The visitors began to seize control of the contest in the second half, going close to a second when Zain Silcott-Duberry rounded Leeds keeper Harry Christie after a precise pass from Deivid Washington.

However, Silcott-Duberry's effort was blocked by some more outstanding last-ditch Leeds defending.

The Blues were starting to hit full flow and Washington forced an excellent stop from Leeds skipper Christy after an incisive Chelsea breakaway. Castledine also went close to his second of the afternoon but fired into the side netting with the angle too tight.

At that stage, it looked as if Chelsea would be forced into an anxious wait to secure the points in the final few minutes.But we were instead rewarded for our second-half display when substitute Genesis Antwi broke down the right and then picked out Ronnie Stutter.

The forward, who also struck against PSV, took a neat first touch and fired into the Leeds net for his eighth goal in ten league games. It sealed an excellent win on the road for the young Blues.

The reaction

While Robinson acknowledged his team struggled defensively in stages of the first half, he was delighted with their improvement the longer the game went on.

'We played some really good football going forward in the first half,' he said. 'Even if they didn't lead to clear-cut chances.

'But we thought we were a little bit open on transition. That led to them having a few too many opportunities. Our structure behind the ball wasn't what we wanted in that first half. But we were happy with our attacking play.

'I was proud with the second half, I thought we were really excellent. I think they only had one chance at the end.

'We were really professional, and we just had to wait a long time for the second goal to come. We created plenty of chances early in the second half and had we been more clinical, the scoreline would have been a lot more emphatic. But we're pleased.'

The teams

Chelsea (3-4-3): Curd; Hughes, Gee (c), Williams; Sturge (Samuel-Smiths 90+2), Rak-Sakyi, Silcott-Duberry (Antwi 82), Golding; Stutter, Castledine, Washington (Tauriainen 72)

Unused subs: Sharman-Lowe, Olise.

Scorers: Castledine 14, Stutter 90+1

Leeds United: Christy (GK) (C), Richards (Cline 62), Sutcliffe, Coleman (Moore 67, Debayo 84), Cresswell, Monteiro, Snowdon (Toulson 62), Crew, Perkins, McFadden, Thomas. 

Subs not used: Grainger.

Referee: Oliver Mackey