2024

It is known as Sunderland’s Wembley curse up here in the North-East. And because no one was there to see if lifted last year, the hoodoo still exists in the minds of the majority. In the wake of the club’s 1973 FA Cup victory over Leeds United – when Bob Stokoe’s Second Division underdogs beat…

I remember my dad arriving back home from Wembley after our historic FA Cup win over Leeds in 1973. Seven-year-old me was still struggling to deal with not having been there. ‘Don’t worry son,’ he said. ‘In your lifetime, you’ll see Sunderland win at Wembley again.’ That was 49 years ago and I’m still waiting….

I remember my dad arriving back home from Wembley after our historic FA Cup win over Leeds in 1973. Seven-year-old me was still struggling to deal with not having been there. ‘Don’t worry son,’ he said. ‘In your lifetime, you’ll see Sunderland win at Wembley again.’ That was 49 years ago and I’m still waiting….

Click:bearing dealer Quite apart from the dangers created by pitch invasions if they turn ugly, having fans on the pitch at the end of matches – even joyous ones – kills some of the pleasure the players will feel in winning a big game. When I think back to my best moments in football, beating…

Quite apart from the dangers created by pitch invasions if they turn ugly, having fans on the pitch at the end of matches – even joyous ones – kills some of the pleasure the players will feel in winning a big game. When I think back to my best moments in football, beating Arsenal in…

Queens Park Rangers were left furious when their plans to interview Sol Campbell for the vacant manager’s job made their way into the media and prompted a negative reaction from many supporters. While some viewed Campbell — who has a strong relationship with QPR director of football Les Ferdinand — as favourite, others have since…

Queens Park Rangers were left furious when their plans to interview Sol Campbell for the vacant manager’s job made their way into the media and prompted a negative reaction from many supporters. While some viewed Campbell — who has a strong relationship with QPR director of football Les Ferdinand — as favourite, others have since…

Virgil van Dijk believes he could still raise his game to another level despite feeling ‘unbeatable’ at times in a Liverpool shirt. The Reds centre-back has emerged as arguably the leading defender in the world in recent seasons, despite suffering a horror anterior cruciate ligament injury in October 2020. The Holland international spent 10 months…

Virgil van Dijk believes he could still raise his game to another level despite feeling ‘unbeatable’ at times in a Liverpool shirt. The Reds centre-back has emerged as arguably the leading defender in the world in recent seasons, despite suffering a horror anterior cruciate ligament injury in October 2020. The Holland international spent 10 months…

Nigel Clough has been to Wembley plenty of times. As a Nottingham Forest player, he scored twice there in the 1989 League Cup final against Luton Town. As a manager, he guided his Sheffield United team to an FA Cup semi-final at the national stadium in 2014, the League One side going down 5-3 to…