OTD: HOWARD GAYLE & SEAN THORNTON BORN

On this day in 1958 Howard Gayle was born, probably most noted for his winner against Nottingham Forest in the League Cup in 1984/85. Also born on this day, in 1983, is Sean Thornton - somewhat of a fans favourite in the early 2000s.

Howard Gayle was born in his hometown of Liverpool and joined them in 1977 after being spotted in the local Sunday league format. He was the first black player to ever sign a professional contract at Liverpool. From here, he only managed to get 4 starts for his boyhood club although he scored one in the process.

After a series of loans and a full season at Birmingham, Gayle joined the Black Cats for £60,000. He played for the lads for just two seasons, and he racked up just 4 goals in 48 games, sadly saying a lot about his inconsistency and fitness... and explaining his nickname of "Hamstring Howie". He was one of Sunderland's first black trailblazers. Roly Gregoire, our first ever black player, was probably the only black player in the city never mind the football club. So when Len Ashurst signed Gary Bennett, he brought in Gayle at the same time so the pair could stick together - and soon after, along came Reuben Agboola.

From here, he moved to America where he went to play for Dallas, before returning to England in 1987 to play for Stoke. He didn’t last long here, and in the end, he spent the majority of the rest of his career at Blackburn, only to be replaced by a certain Geordie with a special hat.

His career may have been full of inconsistencies, but he was always revered by the fans of the teams he played for. His career highlights include scoring in and going on to win the 1984 U21 Euros, being a European Cup winner with Liverpool and most memorably for Sunderland fans, a runner up medal in the Milk Cup in 1985.

Born 25 years after Howard, Sean Thornton played for Sunderland from 2002-2005 and he racked up 49 appearances in this time, 12 of which were in the Premier League, scoring nine times.

His greatest career achievement was winning the Championship with Sunderland under fellow Irishman Mick McCarthy. He scored four goals that season.

He got rave reviews from opposing players after starring in a game against Chelsea at the SoL, but never quite achieved his full potential. After retiring from English football in 2009, he went back to his hometown of Drogheda, and only retired a few years ago after playing in the Irish 3rd division. He retained affection for the Lads, turning up in the away end at West Ham once with John Terry's brother!