OTD: SAFC 2-1 LEICESTER
- BY SOBS
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
On this day in 2005, Sunderland clinched promotion to the Premier League after beating Leicester City 2-1 at the Stadium of Light. We came back from 1-0 down via goals from Marcus Stewart and Steve Caldwell.
After being handed a pretty duff hand when appointed in 2003, Mick McCarthy had handled the inevitable relegation by bringing in suitable players over the next year and, after one of them, Steve Caldwell, had scored the winner at Leicester in November 2004, we stayed in the top three thereafter, barring a solitary week in fourth. We hit the top with a win at Coventry City at the end of March and when the return match with Leicester came around, the double would mean that promotion could be confirmed; dependent on the Leeds United vs Ipswich Town result that day.
34,815 turned up for this potential clincher, with 18-year-old Ben Alnwick making his debut in goal because Thomas Mhyre had done his back and Michael Ingham’s game in the 2-2 at Ipswich the previous week had been shaky to say the least. Oh and he swore a lot. The rest of the side was Stephen Wright, Gary Breen, Caldwell and Julio Arca at the back, Dean Whitehead, Liam Lawrence, Carl Robinson and Andy Welsh across the middle and Chris Brown and Stewart up top. It started at breakneck speed, with Stewart firing just wide within a minute of the kick-off, then came Leicester’s first foray into our half. Overlapping full back Alan Maybury got the better of Stephen Wright to knock it inside Alnwick’s far post. Five minutes gone and it looked like we’d have to work to get promotion confirmed that day, especially when Leicester got themselves sorted and forced a couple of impressive saves, one with an outstretched boot, from Alnwick. Future Sunderland lad David Connolly being one of the visitors’ main threats.
Stewart nearly created the leveller but nobody was there for his low cross, then Lawrence fired wide before Wright got up the field and tried his luck, only to see his effort saved. Just when we were thinking that it might be one of those days, Wright hit it long to Brown, who played it past the defender to Stewart and Marcus made no mistake. 1-1 after 23 minutes. Game on but that was the end of the scoring in the first half as the visitors pushed forward and there were yellows, right on half time, for Robinson and Wright as we fought to keep them out. We made no changes for the second half, which started in a more cautious fashion than the first but sparked to life when a Brown header nearly caught their goalkeeper out, after Whitehead’s cross had found him.
We were getting understandably a bit frustrated, wanting to get the job done and start planning for the Premier League and, when Dion Dublin (by that time in his career playing at centre half) clattered Brown right in front of the dugouts young Chris became a bit angry. The pair squared up and McCarthy had to drag Chris out of the fray. Yellow card each. Fortunately, the rest of the Lads remained patient and, as the hour approached, we won a corner which Lawrence slung in. There was the head of Caldwell and his header flew in for what turned out to be his second winner of the season against the Foxes.
We played out the rest of the game determined not to let the lead slip, swapping winger Andy Welsh for defender Danny Collins (just back from his Brazil debut), Stewart for Stephen Elliott (like for like) and Brown for Brian Deane, who we’d signed simply to prevent him scoring against us. Another like for like. With the internet being in its infancy and mobile phones being too large to take to the match, it was transistor radios to the ears to discover how Ipswich were getting on at Elland Road. When the result came in, a draw, the promotion party kicked off as we danced around the SoL in a mad celebration. The job was done, the time had come, we could relax and there were still two games to go. Two games to go in the Championship but the main thing was promotion and we’d done it. Spoiler alert, we won at West Ham United to clinch the title, then beat Stoke City at home to put the icing on the cake.
