THE JOURNEY BACK

‘Til The End. We’ve been saying with increasing frequency over the last few weeks, and it was summed up by Big Dan’s late-as-possible header that made it a really meaningful statement.

The end of what, though? The end of a journey that began in May 2017 when we said “au revoir” to the Premier League. After a draw and a win, a 3-1 victory at Norwich had us believing we’d bounce straight back, but then...despite an influx of new players and the arrival of Simon Grayson, it went all wrong. You’ll probably wince at the names, but by November Grayson had gone and in came Chris Coleman, although he was gone by the end of the season as part of the deal that put Madrox in charge. Straight through the Championship, but surely the League One experience was to be a short one, riding on the crest of a Methven-inspired PR masterpiece.

Oh no it wasn’t. The fun of the new grounds and clubs, of Accrington and Fleetwood, ended after a 61-game campaign that included a penalty shootout defeat in the EFL Trophy final and a last-minute Play-Off defeat to Charlton.

Jack Ross, Phil Parkinson, and Lee Johnson all had a go and along came Covid to end the 2019-20 campaign 36 games, with final positions decided by a ludicrous points-per-game system. Johnson guided us to fourth place and an EFL victory at Wembley in 2021, but none of us were there until the Play-Off second leg against Lincoln. Which we lost on aggregate.

Halfway through the following season, things had started to slip, and following a 6-0 defeat at Bolton (that ironically saw the debuts of Jack Clarke and Paddy Roberts), Johnson left and we wondered who’d be mad enough to take the job. It turned out to be Alex Neil, who steadied the on-field ship while turmoil persisted off it. Into the Play-Offs, a dramatic ‘Till The End last-minute Roberts goal at Hillsborough taking us to Wembley and that win, with the nation seeing what our fans are all about. They’d seen our passion and commitment in the darkest of times in the Sunderland ‘Til I Die Netflix series, now they could see it in good times. Wycombe were blown away, simple as that.

One step away from the Premier League. Take a collective deep breath, consolidate, and build for the push to the top. Out went Madrox, in came Kyril Louis-Dreyfus, and we were off. Or not. After our fifth league game, a win at Stoke, Alex Neil announced that he was off – to Stoke. It wasn’t the fact of his departure but the nature of it that upset the fans, but I guess we’ll never hear the full story. In came Tony Mowbray, who proved to be one of the most likeable managers we’ve had, to guide us to a last-match win at Preston, when a Play-Off place was confirmed in the dying minutes thanks to other results. ‘Til The End. We’d had the magic of Amad, we’d had a never-say-die attitude, but we’d run out of centre halves and lost out to Luton.

Then came another reset as Mowbray left and Michael Beale came and went. Regis Le Bris - unknown, untested here - but now unforgettable. With recruitment driven by Kristjaan Speakman, we’ve unearthed gems in Jobe, Le Fée, Ballard, and heroes in local lads like Rigg and Neil.

Le Bris blew the Coventry bogey out of the water and made astute substitutions at Wembley. Wembley, where the Wearsiders and the Blades generated an atmosphere that should be bottled and sold.

That Patto save in the first minute as O’Nien popped his shoulder, our first taste of VAR, the never-say-die spirit, the crucial changes, and three top-quality goals – two for us. A blast from Mayenda and a parting gift from Tommy Watson in the form of our most important single goal since 1973 – in the 95th minute. ‘Til The End.

More than half the crowd struggled to believe what had happened, many in tears of joy and wonderment. The glorious, joyous celebrations with O’Nien, complete with a busted shoulder, dancing with Lynden Gooch.

Hugging strangers who were no longer strangers because they wore Sunderland shirts, waving flags, belting out Wise Men Say as the big screen showed Quinny in tears, and Reidy and Phillips sat together.

The end of an eight-year journey that’s veered from chaotic to triumphant and all points in between.

This sort of thing doesn’t happen to us.

It does now.

‘Til The End.