Sunderland - end-of-season report
Monday, 02 Jun 2008 19:21
Sunderland - fan's 2007/08 end-of-season report
Good, bad or just the same old, same old? What the fans made of the 2007/08 season.
Irrespective of Sunderland's performance, this season was a good one for Wearsiders as the club's unwanted record of being the worst team in Premier League history was taken from them by Derby in quite convincing fashion.
The Midlands club managed to accrue just 15 points in the entire 38-game campaign, making them only 73 per cent as good as the Sunderland vintage of 2005/06. In other words, they were rubbish. Awful. Shocking. You get the idea.
But what makes this even better is that Derby only managed to win one game all season - against Newcastle. Which, if you apply simple logic, means Newcastle are officially the worst team in Premier League history. Brilliant.
So on to Sunderland. Fans merely wanted survival, although given the club's aforementioned record in the Premier League in recent years it was certainly a hope more than an expectation - even allowing for the amount of money spent in the close season.
All things considered, this season was an undoubted success - Roy and Niall delivered and Sunderland are in the top flight for a second year in a row.
Not only that, but safety was secured before the last game of the season. Oh, and did I mention that Newcastle are officially the worst team in Premier League history?
Grade: A
High Point
Sure, it later transpired that Tottenham were no more than a lower midtable team and yes, they had Younes Kaboul in defence, but at the beginning of the season Spurs were touted as potential challengers for that all-important fourth spot and Champions League status.
So they arrived at the Stadium of Light with high expectations, and Sunderland fans arrived with low expectations - a draw would have been a bonus. Premier League survival seemed a long, hard season away, so picture the scene - three minutes into injury time; the sun is shining; Sunderland fans are singing because it's still 0-0; and then up pops Michael Chopra... suddenly, survival didn't seem quite so far away.
Low Point
Being dumped out of the FA Cup by Reading, 3-0, at the Stadium of Light.
That ginger fellow may not be too keen on the competition, but whether you're a believer in the magic of the cup or not it was a disheartening performance against a relegation rival.
At the end of the 90 minutes it seemed that Sunderland had not just missed out on being in the hat for the fourth round but had also started down the slippery slope towards the Championship.
Roy had other ideas though, and soon turned things round - but at this, the lowest point of the season, things were looking a little bleak.
The manager
The extent to which Sunderland fans backed Roy Keane and Niall Quinn this year is highlighted by the fact that the average attendance at the Stadium of Light was 43,344 - fifth in the league overall and ahead of the likes of Chelsea, Aston Villa and Man City.
And given the party atmosphere in the club's last home game of the season against Arsenal, it's fair to say that the overwhelming majority are delighted with the way Keane has steered his side to safety.
The only fear is that he might talk himself out of a job - Keane has never lacked ambition, and has said repeatedly that he wants to take the club to the "next level". You get the feeling that if he isn't allowed to do so - or if he falls short himself - he might pack his bags and return to his days of dog-walking.
Fan's Player of the Year
- Kenwyne Jones -
A no-brainer really. Chelsea might have had almost a team-full under Jose Mourinho, but at Sunderland Roy Keane has two "untouchables" - Kenwyne Jones and Craig Gordon.
The fact that Jones has been linked with a big-money move to Liverpool and has been compared to Didier Drogba (and not because he feigns grievous injury at the first available opportunity) speaks for itself, as does John Terry's glowing endorsement of the player after he had to deal with him during Chelsea's 1-0 victory over Sunderland in March.
"Jones was fantastic and I have played against him twice now. He is a very good player, very hard working and probably the best in the air in the entire Premier League. He really is that good," he said.
In other words, better than Anthony Stokes.
Needs for Next Season
Hopefully, a few more players will be willing to move north than they were in the January transfer window.
We all know what Keano had to say about that. And with the money at the manager's disposal (rumoured to be around £30 to £50 million) it's possible that Sunderland might be able to land a few good ones too. Top of the list is a new striker to play alongside Jones - and one that can actually score goals.
Other than that, anyone who has a good watch.
Tim Lesnik