WEMBLEY, AGAIN

As part of Sunderland's "Fanzine Takeover" ahead of Saturday's play-off final, Sobs from ALS has written a piece for the club website (which we thought we'd publish here as well) looking at our history in past finals and why this time "it just feels right".

Wembley. Old and new, we’ve been there eleven times for finals (we’ll forget the penalty shootout defeat to Wigan in ’88 as it was 20 minutes each way in the Football League Centenary thingy). Even I wasn’t around on our first, victorious, appearance, but after the second win, in ’73, it was 48 years before we managed it again – and there was nobody there to witness the Papa John’s Trophy victory!

In between, there’d been the FA Cup loss to Liverpool, two League Cup Final defeats (Norwich and Man City), a Playoff loss to Swindon that didn’t matter anyway, two Playoff defeats by Charlton (one on penalties and the other in the last minute), and a Checkatrade defeat (on penalties) by Pompey. Heartache all round.

Then came 2022, when the stars aligned both on and off the pitch. Stars in the form of former players travelling from near and far to sit with the fans. Stars in the form of a team working together. Stars in the form of twice as many of our fans as Wycombe’s, and belief that it was simply our day. Which it was, as for once we lived up to every expectation and Wycombe were basically beaten before a ball was kicked.

When things are right, when they simply seem right, Wembley is for us. In 1973 and 2022, even the fan-less 2021, there was just a feeling that it was our day. Other visits – the relegation season of ’85, the epic season of 2019, with our 61st outing, at Wembley proving a game too far, as fans and players were mentally exhausted, the 2014 loss when league safety was top priority – occurred when there was a tiny hint of uncertainty. Not that the fans didn’t believe, just that it wasn’t 100% “right.”

This time? A 46 game warm-up, then the Playoffs, in which we got the Coventry monkey off our back – 18 years at home and 40 away without a win – and we did it in the most dramatic fashion possible, with the club having built things up perfectly off the field and Le Bris playing tactical masterstrokes.

We’re two thirds of the way there, and it just feels right.