On this day in 2022, Sunderland smashed Wigan Athletic 4-1 at the DW Stadium, with goals from the attacking quartet of Ellis Simms, Ross Stewart, Patrick Roberts and Amad Diallo ensuring we brought back all three points to Wearside. Here's Sobs' match report from that day.
The Lads went to Wigan Pier and, with the cries of "Mowbray wants sacking for picking that side" ringing in their ears, walloped the piemen. Properly walloped, mind, and completing our first double of the season over a poor set of Latics.
We did have a spell around halftime when we made Wigan look slightly moderate, but the quality of our squad shone through and we produced some sweet football and Mowbray using the subs effectively.
Things looked decidedly iffy when we got stuck behind a 15mph gritter before reaching Barnard Castle, then the bog door fell off and, despite our best efforts, wouldn't stay on. Nevertheless, we were sat in the Swan & Railway by six to discuss injuries and the media "news" that Stewart's off to Stoke, Boro, Celtic, and Rangers, Evans is out for two years at least, Pritch is refusing to sign a contract, and that Methven is making a return as our PR man.
Patterson
Hume Wright Ballard O'Nien
Neil Michut
Amad Ba Clarke
Simms
..and a bench of Bass, Roberts, Stewart, Pritchard, Matete, Dajaku, and Bennette.
With both sides in their away kits, we kicked off South - away from our 4,500 travellers. In pathetically predictable fashion, a couple of home fans in the corner nearest us, where their bloody drum lived, produced mag shirts and equally predictably were hoyed out.
Things on the pitch were fairly fast-paced, with us looking more composed with the ball. Pantomime villain James McClean was the subject of big booing from our lot as he played at left wingback, and was the first yellow of the game early on. Former player Ashley Fletcher (sorry) was as ineffective for Wigan as he'd been for us, being well covered by Ballard and Wright. We'd had a couple of chances - looking unwilling to pull the trigger (as usual) from the edge of the box, but Clarke and Amad were pulling the home defence wide to create space for Simms up top and for Ba to run into. News filtered through of the passing of Pele, which makes it a sad day for football, and that news spread across the stands.
We won a couple of corners and it was following our 108th without converting that the opener eventually arrived. The result of a double save from Ba and Amad, in it came from the left, and it eventually found its way to Hume at the back post. His volleyed effort hit the turf and bounced perfectly for Simms at the other post to score the easiest header he'll ever get. Nineteen minutes in, and just reward for our general play, in which we settled into a sort of three at the back, with Hume and Clarke as sort of wingbacks. Whatever it was, it was canny, as O9 tackled anything and everything that didn't have a Sunderland badge on it and Ballard made the right decisions when it came to a pass or a hoof.
That should have been the catalyst for us putting Wigan to the sword, but it didn't pan out that way. We controlled the game, but had a couple of efforts hoofed off the line as we just couldn't grab the second. For whatever reason, Wigan were allowed to push forward more, and McClean's shot from twenty yards glanced off the outside of Patto's right-hand post, although our keeper didn't seem overly concerned. Then we built a nice move that looked certain to have brought our second, but Amad's effort was, if anything, hit too hard and it came down off the underside of the bar and bounced away.
Soon after, Wigan broke down their left and Patto could only parry a fierce shot, with their Keane reacting quickest to smack the loose ball through our keeper's attempted block. Typical, we thought. Three minutes to the break and it was level when we could, and probably should, have been at least two ahead. Two added minutes were awarded, then we were treated to a view of what we had on the bench - Roberts, Stewart, and Pritch. Surely they had the wherewithal to win us the game.
No changes for the second half, and there was a little spell of Wigan thinking they could do something but being unable to turn that thought into reality. Neil won the ball, shrugged off a challenge, and fed Simms on the edge of the box, but the big lad's first touch was more Sunday morning than Championship and the chance didn't materialize. After soaking up whatever they could feebly throw at us for 17 minutes, Stewart, Pritch, and Roberts replaced Clarke, Simms, and Michut. Five minutes later, Roberts danced into the box from the left and was tripped, with the ball running to Stewart, who was also fouled as his shooting foot was clipped...
Up stepped Rosco, firing in low off the keeper's right hand post - the sort of penalty keepers just can't get to.
Unfortunately the celebrations got a bit wild and Pritch obviously bust something in the mayhem - off he went after only six minutes on the grass, replaced by Matete. Our fourth sub added a bit more physicality to the middle of the park for us, and we settled down very much in control of things.
Ba took a knock on 70, and with our options limited, Dajaku replaced him with Roberts switching to the right - and that brought some beautiful, snappy football from him and Amad. Our loanee had gone a bit stroppy after some of his tricks hadn't come off, but Roberts brought him back to life. They tapped it behind, beyond, and through McClean to the delight of our fans, and several times it nearly created a chance. However, our favourite Ulsterman had some sort of revenge when his hefty clearance hit Amad in that part of his person we're not supposed to sing about and our Lad needed a lie down and some really deep breathing. He got back to his feet, and in the 85th minute it all clicked, with a series of little passes moving the ball in from the right into the box, and Roberts took Neil's short pass to fire his shot off a defender's backside and in for the third. That sent our fans into an explosion of joy and relief, and the theirs scuttling for the exits.
From then on it was a case of "should we get a fourth or take the p**"?". We did both, teasing and tormenting the home defence, with Max Power a forlorn figure in their midfield as he accepted the inevitable. Amad and Roberts swapped passes yet again, with the former skipping past a defender before lashing a rocket across the goal and in. You beauty!
4-1. Joy abounded and we sang our way through the three (only three?) added minutes until the ref put Wigan out of their misery.
Man of the Match? Quite a few to choose from, and another Mr Sunderland display by O9, Hume not letting McClean up to anything dangerous, and Neil shrugging off the absence of his marra Evans to have a strong game alongside the nippy Michut, but I think I'll give them to Roberts for bringing Amad back to life, winning the penalty, scoring our third, and setting up our fourth. Well done that man.
That win's for Elliot Ayre.
