On this day in 1962 former Sunderland player, kitman and all round club legend John ‘Cookie’ Cooke was born. He spent 31 years at the club (six as a player and 25 as kitman) before the club made the shallow decision of letting him go during the pandemic.
In his playing days he started his career on Wearside, managing over 60 appearances from the right wing. He was part of the 79-80 season that saw promotion to the top flight but couldn’t make much of an impact at the top level.