When Aiden McGeady arrived at the SoL just short of five years ago, in a reunion with his former Preston boss Simon “flip chart” Grayson (sorry, but he’s a fact), we acquired a player with not only vast experience on the field at both domestic and international level, but one with at least two ready-made songs. We knew him from his time at Everton, which had sort of petered out, and the preceding trophy-laden days at Celtic, and knew that we’d be watching some twinkle-toed magic, but not exactly how much. He was, after all, entering the twilight of his career at 31 and perhaps his finest hours were behind him. We needn’t have worried.
With our club starting to feel the financial pinch around the time of his arrival, we fans wondered how we’d be managing to pay his wages, consoling ourselves with the fact that he’d probably made his money when he moved to Spartak Moscow in 2010. Only a couple of games into his Wearside career, he ran the game at Norwich, scoring from distance and setting up Grabban’s second, in the process had us dreaming of a swift return to the Premiership. We should have worried.
As we tumbled to the bottom of the league, McGeady’s footwork in his 35 games was a rare ray of sunshine in an otherwise gloomy season. Truly two-footed, goals and passes came from left and right, meaning he was divisional player of the month in February, our fans’ Player of the Year, and made the divisional Team of the Year. Although he was under contract, I was a bit surprised when he stayed with us to ply his trade at level three when his ability deserved a higher grade of football. He starred as we reached the Checkatrade final in 2019, opening the scoring on the biggest stage in English football with a trademark free kick, then forcing the extra time equaliser that brought those fateful penalties. His efforts over his 40 games brought 14 goals and a contract extension, but before Christmas something happened with Phil Parkinson (sorry, he’s another fact), who announced that there was no future for Geads at Sunderland, despite his being virtually ever-present and having scored six goals.
Consequently, as we faltered to eighth place, Geads saw out the season at Charlton, of all places, as rumours circulated about the exact nature of his relationship with Parkinson, but he was back for August 2020 and although he didn’t appear until December, he featured 21 times, scoring six, as we tripped over Lincoln in the Play-Off semi-final. Most notable about that season was that he’d set up so many of Charlie Wyke’s goals, with inch-perfect crosses finding the big man with unerring regularity. All four of Wyke’s goals at Doncaster were down to Geads, and helped him to a place in the Team of the Season again as top assist-maker in the division – in half a season. Since he’d signed for us, his game hadn’t slowed, his footwork hadn’t got sloppy, nor his passing less accurate. His ball to Gooch for the winner in the Papa John’s Trophy might have been in front of an empty Wembley, but it split the defence and was worthy of the biggest stage in English football.
This season, sadly, ended with him limping through the last few minutes of his time on the pitch as a Sunderland player, after he’d replaced Pritchard as our last sub at Shrewsbury. Twelve weeks was the initial prognosis, but age got in the way and he got no further than the bench for our last few games. Over his five years, he’d survived six permanent managers and, factoring in the temporary assignments, nine managerial changes in total. In the week leading up to the Play-Off final, he’d said that he wanted to carry on playing, but didn’t know if it would be with us – aged 36, he’d probably seen the writing on the dressing room wall, and he knew that he’d not be adding to the 36 goals or the 150 games.
Had he been ten years younger, I suspect Geads would have been the subject of a massive money move to replace Grealish at Man City, as he’s a true entertainer, the sort of player that can light up a match with the drop of a shoulder after standing crouched with the ball on either toe, then a killer pass. Add to that the fact that you could point to a top corner when Geads was taking a free-kick, and he’d put it there – textbook stuff.
Perhaps it was fitting that the last time he wore our shirt, the last time he took to the field with Sunderland, albeit after the final whistle, was on the biggest stage in English football.
Best of luck, Geads.
