Over the last 115 years, Sunderland have played Luton Town on 60 different occasions, securing 32 wins, 14 draws and 14 defeats. Here are some of our most notable results over the years…
LUTON TOWN 8-2 SUNDERLAND - DIVISION ONE - 1955
We’re starting off with our worst result against Luton and that’s the 8-2 thrashing down at Kenilworth Road. On the 19th November 1955, Bill Murray’s men travelled down to Kenilworth Road to take on Dally Duncan’s Luton Town. Things remained level until the 32nd minute when a Gordan Turner penalty opened up the scoring for Luton. After that Sunderland completely fell apart, conceding another three goals before half time giving the lads a massive uphill battle. Luton’s goal scoring spell continued into the second half, with the Hatters bagging another two goals before Sunderland forward Ted Purdon pulled one back. However the joys of Purdon’s goal were short lived with Luton scoring another two goals. Purdon did score again in the 88th minute but it was nothing other than a consolation goal. Luton forward Bob Morton took home the match ball after securing his hat trick in the 82nd minute. A terrible day for the Lads.
SUNDERLAND 7-1 LUTON TOWN - DIVISION TWO - 1960
Now let’s talk about our best result against Luton and that was our 7-1 victory at Roker Park. It was New Year's Eve 1960 and Alan Brown’s Black Cats were facing Sam Bartram's Hatters. The lads went 1-0 up courtesy of a Ian Lawther goal in the 40th minute. Gordon Turner equalized early in the second half, however that was the beginning of the end for Luton. Jimmy Davison scored two minutes later and the onslaught began. Goals from Charlie Hurley and Willy McPheat were followed by another two goals from Ian Lawther which completed his hattrick. Jimmy McNab wrapped things up with a goal in the 89th minute. The game finished 7-1 to the Lads, a fantastic result for us.
SUNDERLAND 2-0 LUTON TOWN – FA CUP - 1973
This game is important because it was the last home game in Sunderland’s iconic 1973 FA Cup run. It was the quarter-final and Bob Stokoe’s men had to overcome Harry Haslam’s Luton. After a goalless first half, Sunderland won the game 2-0 courtesy of goals by Dave Watson and Ron Guthrie. The win was huge because it put Sunderland through to the FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal.
LUTON TOWN 3-4 SUNDERLAND - DIVISION TWO - 1974
This is one of the most entertaining and competitive games we’ve had with The Hatters. On the 1st of May 1974 Stokoe’s men travelled down to Kenilworth Road for another clash with Luton. Billy Hughes opened up the score sheet in the third minute for Sunderland. The lead lasted for 15 minutes until Jimmy Husband equalized for the Hatters. From this point on the game developed an obvious pattern; Sunderland would take the lead then Luton would equalize. The game was 3-3 at half time, with fans witnessing an extremely high-scoring (and high-tension) game of football. The second half was clearly a lot tighter than the first half, with both teams looking to get that winning goal. Eventually Sunderland finally got the winner with Vic Halom scoring in the 78th minute. The game finished 4-3 to Sunderland.
LUTON TOWN 1-2 SUNDERLAND - DIVISION ONE - 1991
This is one of the most controversial games we’ve had with Luton, because there were actually no away fans allowed in the ground. Due to high levels of football hooliganism, Luton were experimenting with the idea of not having any away fans. However that didn’t stop the Sunderland faithful, with many fans sneaking into the home end or even receiving spare tickets from Luton fans. Some fans even applied to be stewards and photographers at Luton to gain access to the match! On the 20th April 1991, Denis Smith’s men travelled down to Kenilworth road to face Jim Ryan’s Hatters. Gordon Armstrong took the lead for Sunderland and Graham Rodger equalized 13 minutes later, the first half ended 1-1. The game was level until the 63rd minute when Colin Pascoe scored the winner. Luton also played on an astro-turf pitch which was very uncommon back in 1991, some people even said the pitch gave them an unfair advantage. How are you meant to prepare for an artificial pitch when everyone else played on real grass? As a whole it was a massive result for the Lads.
LUTON TOWN 0-5 SUNDERLAND - CHAMPIONSHIP - 2007
On the 6th May 2007, Roy Keane’s Sunderland defeated Kevin Blackwell’s Luton to win the Championship. Anthony Stokes got the lads off the mark in the fourth minute, followed by a Daryl Murphy goal two minutes later. The Lads went in 2-0 up at half time, and their goalscoring form continued into the second half. Daryl Murphy scored his second in the 46th minute followed by goals from substitutes Ross Wallace and David Connolly to make it 5-0. The lads finished the game as Champions, a fantastic end to a revolutionary season under Keano.
LUTON TOWN 1-1 SUNDERLAND - CHAMPIONSHIP - 2022
Tony Mowbray's men were coming off a 4-2 home defeat to Burnley, so they travelled to Kenilworth Road with the hope of securing the three points. However, Nathan Jones' Hatters had just been smashed 4-0 by their bitter rivals Watford, so they were also looking to put things right. Carlton Morris struck first on the brink of half time, and the Lads went into half time 1-0 down. The Black Cats fought hard in the second half, and eventually made a breakthrough. Substitute Elliot Embleton levelled things up in the 78th minute, and the game ended 1-1. A solid point on the road for Tony Mowbray's side.
