Leeds United 1 Bournemouth 0

LUKE Murphy's superb first-half strike sent Sky Bet Championship leaders Bournemouth crashing to a 1-0 defeat as Leeds provided exiled club president Massimo Cellino with an uplifting send-off.

Midfielder Murphy slammed an unstoppable shot into the top corner little more than 24 hours after Cellino had lost his appeal against the Football League's ruling to disqualify him from being the club's owner or a director.

Cellino is scheduled to clear his office desk by noon on Wednesday after being banned until April 10 and although the club remains in turmoil off the pitch, Neil Redfearn's side secured a morale-boosting first win in eight league matches - but only after Bournemouth substitute Yann Kermorgant had missed a late penalty.

Bournemouth, who were twice denied by the woodwork, remain top of the table but slipped to their first league defeat on the road since September 30 and lost for only the second time in 17 Championship matches.

Kermorgant fired his 87th-minute penalty against the crossbar and although Marc Pugh's 81st-minute shot hit a post, Leeds held on for their first win since November 29.

A minute's applause ahead of kick-off marked the passing of former Leeds chairman Leslie Silver, who died last month aged 89, and he would have approved of a display that belied the home side's lowly Championship status.

Bournemouth began with the buoyancy expected of a table-topping side as Callum Wilson ran half the length of the field before dragging a shot wide and Brett Pitman fired off target from inside the penalty area following good work from Pugh.

But Leeds responded well. Rudy Austin headed just over from recalled teenage midfielder Alex Mowatt's cross, while striker Steve Morison's swerving ball into the area forced Bournemouth goalkeeper Artur Boruc into a scrambling save.

Austin drove a low angled shot wide after marauding into the area and in the 27th minute Murphy's rising 25-yard drive was superbly turned away by Boruc, back in the visitors' line-up due to Lee Camp's calf injury.

But Boruc was left flailing haplessly at Murphy's next effort, which gave Leeds a spectacular 36th-minute lead. Austin played the ball square and Murphy carried it several yards to within range before arrowing a left-footed shot into the top corner.

Bournemouth thought they had equalised soon after, but Pitman's close-range finish was ruled out for offside and Wilson's downward header bounced into home goalkeeper Marco Silvestri's clutches to ensure Leeds a deserved half-time lead.

Leeds picked up where they left off before the interval as Austin crashed a shot over the crossbar from a tight angle, but Bournemouth continued to carry a threat when they broke forward, with Giuseppe Bellusci's last-ditch lunge blocking Simon Francis' cut-back.

Bournemouth sent on Kermogant and Dan Gosling for Pitman and Arter with an hour played before Wilson's pace threatened to undo Leeds again, the Bournemouth striker firing across goal with defender Scott Wootton and Silvestri both beaten.

Wilson spurned another gilt-edged chance as Leeds began to live dangerously, this time clipping his shot over Silvestri but wide of the goalkeeper's left-hand post after being sent clear in the area.

Pugh curled a right-footed shot against Silvestri's left-hand post with nine minutes left and it was not to be Bournemouth's night.

After Bellusci fouled Wilson in the area, Kermorgant blaste