Some hapless defending in the first half saw Leeds run riot with four goals to leave the home side with a mountain they had little hope of climbing - though they tried desperately after the break.

The home fans' boos were audible within the opening 30 minutes and had reached deafening levels by half time, at which point hundreds began to make their way home.

Leeds opened the floodgates with their first attack on 11 minutes.

Ian Pearce misjudged Paul Robinson's long punt forward, allowing Harry Kewell to chip a neat cross for Nick Barmby to steer home with a diving header.

But West Ham responded in a manner which showed no sign of the nightmares to come.

The revival lasted only seven minutes as Leeds clinically punished the home side's inability to deal with crosses.

The Czech defender was again conspicuous by his absence four minutes before half-time when Leeds were able to muscle the ball to Kewell, who gratefully volleyed home his second.

And the home side hammered their fist against the self-destruct button again in first-half injury time.

Christian Dailly failed to spot Mark Viduka as he rolled a pass back towards goalkeeper David James and the Australian striker charged down the goalkeeper's attempted clearance before tapping into an empty net.

But West Ham's ineptitude merely papered over the cracks in Leeds' own armoury as Venables' side allowed West Ham a way back in the second half.

Leeds looked rocky at the back themselves, though they were hardly helped by the absence through injury of England pair Jonathan Woodgate and Danny Mills.

Mills' replacement, Gary Kelly, conceded the penalty from which Di Canio pulled a goal back on 50 minutes as the Italian attempted to drag West Ham back into contention almost single-handedly.

His tumble to win the penalty was theatrical, but his delivery from the spot was beyond question as the home side at least showed some response to Roeder's half-time pleas.

Sixteen minutes from time the response gathered further pace when Trevor Sinclair headed home Sebastien Schemmel's corner.

Then, in injury-time, defender Pearce nearly completed the fightback when he flashed a header inches wide.

West Ham's beleaguered fans and their manager could at least take some comfort from their side's brave second-half fightback, though the damage had long since been done.

And it was little coincidence that the improved discipline coincided with the half-time substitution of the woeful Repka, whose future at Upton Park must be even less secure than Roeder's.

West Ham: James, Sinclair, Dailly, Repka (Schemmel 45), Pearce, Winterburn, Lomas (Cisse 51), Cole, Carrick, Defoe, Di Canio.

Subs Not Used: Van Der Gouw, Minto, Camara.

Booked: Cole, Repka, Di Canio, Schemmel, Cisse.

Goals: Di Canio 21, 50 pen, Sinclair 74.

Leeds: Robinson, Kelly, Radebe, Lucic, Harte, Barmby, Bowyer, Bakke, Wilcox (Milner 84), Viduka (Bridges 77), Kewell (McPhail 90).

Subs Not Used: Martyn, Duberry.

Booked: Bakke, Viduka, Bowyer.

Goals: Barmby 11, Kewell 28, 41, Viduka 45.

Attendance: 33,297.

Referee: S Dunn (Avon).