Match Day Thread Sunderland AFC v Sheffield United – Championship Play-off Final - Saturday 24th May 2025 - KO 15:00

ISOE II · May 26, 2025

C Montgomery Burns said: ↑

My thoughts on the game and the day, it's taken me that long to come down from cloud 9. I e not read all of the thread, so maybe I'm saying what others have already said. Sorry if it's long winded!

Sheffield United came out at us fast at the start before we could get settled and had the Moore chance inside 2 minutes. I think we might have started slowly due to nerves, at times we forget just how young this team is and I think the occasion got to us a bit at the start. Of the starting 11 only Cirkin, O'Nien and Patterson played in the League 1 play off final and only O'Nien was ages over 25. Credit to them for the start, the Patterson save is one of the best I've seen, I genuinely thought it was in until he clawed it from behind him. Sadly this is also when O'Nien got injured, which I also think contributed to us not settling down properly. Until we could get Mepham on, we had a period where Neil had to fill in at centre half and with the extra man they were able to boss us around for a while. When Mepham came on, we still looked unsettled and a bit disjointed, though in my opinion we gradually started to get hold of the ball more and began to play our way into the game. We weren't creating much and were too slow with possession, but at least we looked to take some of the sting out of them. Then they scored. Credit to Hamer for using his pace to get away the way he did, but we should have closed him down better and been more aware of Campbell's run to support him. The ball in from Hamer is top class and it's a good finish, but in the stands it felt like a self inflicted kick in the guts just as we were starting to get a bit of a foothold in the game. Not a great cross in that's cleared comfortably and not enough pressure on Hamer as he picked up the ball and ran with it, symptomatic of how unsettled we were in the first half hour or so. We still looked unsettled and slow on the ball after this, resulting in the slack play for the corner leading to the disallowed goal. It was a decent clearing header that Burrows caught well, but regardless of what Wilder and any Sheffield United fans say, it was offside. Two Blades players were offside in the middle of the 6 yard box, one of which is clearly in Patterson's line of sight, impeding his vision. From my seat just about in line with the dead ball line and corner flag I could see them, but not whether we'd been slow pushing out and played them onside. I feared the worst right then but was the first to spot the VAR check announcement in my block, once the ref went to check I think we all knew it was going to be chalked off and the sense of relief was palpable when it was. Whether that gave us a boost, rattled them a bit or it was a bit of both, I don't know, but I think we finished the first half the better team, though again without creating much.

Personally I thought Mundle had a poor game, rarely using his pace against them and a bit unsure with his distribution. It was probably due to him still not being fully match fit after his injury. ELF had been largely anonymous in the first half and Rigg struggled to get involved in a positive way in the first half, though he had our first shot on target in stoppage time with a volley he didn't connect with as well as he'd want to. The midfield was definitely unsettled, Neil was poor and Jobe struggling to get involved. The link up play was either slack or far too slow, stopping us getting any overlaps or stretching them. It allowed them to get back into shape quickly, crowd us out and starve Mayenda of any meaningful supply as well pick up the second ball too often and too easily. When it got to half time at 1-0 I was happy, we still were in the game.

We certainly came out stronger in the second half and took the game to them much more, though again we weren't creating much. We were just a bit better. Whether it was RLBs half time talk, Wilder wanting them to sit back and try to catch us on the break or a a mixture of both (possible), I don't know, but we were just more positive and looked better. When Roberts came on it was just another little improvement for us, even if we still weren't creating much. About this time I said to the lad next to me that I thought if we got an equaliser, we'd go on to win it. We just needed a chance, I just felt that if we got one decent chance we'd score. That feeling just increased when Wilder began making subs, Campbell had looked a threat all game with his pace and Hamer going off in particular took a lot of their creativity and threat away. They were still dangerous, though and Patterson's save on 70 minutes kept us in the game. It was slack play from Cirkin to let them have the chance, but I do think if it had been Brewster (not that he was particularly good, in my opinion) or Campbell they may have scored. Luckily both were off by then.

RLB has had a lot of stick about his substitutions this season, but for me he made the right changes at the right times on Saturday. I think the team he picked was the right one and his tactics were basically sound initially, even if we started poorly. To quote Mike Tyson, everyone has a plan until they're punched in the face. RLB adapted and changed tactics as needed and gradually made us the better team. When he took off Neil and Mundle, we effectively went to 442. Isadore might not have touched the ball, but it gave their back 4 something different to think about and deal with. The same applied to Roberts. By then I think ELF and Jobe were controlling the midfield, our movement was better and they were starting to struggle to cope. Finally, just after the changes we got the chance and equalised. lovely play in midfield and a superb through ball from Roberts to Mayenda and wallop! I went nuts hugging everyone around me.

When play resumed I said to those around me that they looked rattled, we dominated the last 15 minutes of normal time, it was funny seeing the time wasting they'd employed until we equalised stop. I thought Roberts was really unlucky when Brereton Diaz pulled him back when he was clear, though it was about the only contribution Brereton Diaz had in the game. Roberts would have been clear on the right wing with space to run into with support up and their back four stretched. It probably showed how rattled they were then. We were definitely on top and Wilder didn't look like he knew how to adapt to it.

When it got to 90 minutes and 7 minutes stoppage time was announced I was happy as I knew we'd get at least one chance before possible extra time. That was only increased when Ahmedhodzic went down with a head injury thanks to Tom Cannon. With him being down I knew we'd end up with at least 101 minutes to play, within a minute of play restarting Watson scored. The sloppy pass from Moore was probably symptomatic of how rattled they were then, but Watson deserves huge credit for a brilliant goal, after all the stick he's had recently (myself included, I'd not have had him anywhere near the squad in the last few weeks). And this is also where things went a bit weird for me. I saw him pick up the ball, run towards goal, shoot, the ball travel towards the goal and the keeper dive towards it. Then time stopped. Literally. Everything froze for a few seconds, like you see in some movies for dramatic effect. The nearest thing I can describe it as being like was about 4 years ago I was at a Derren Brown show at the Empire and myself (and a good chunk of the rest of the audience) were hypnotised and "lost" 5 seconds, only this felt as though everything stopped dead for 3-4 seconds and I could see it all. Then everything started again and I could see the ball in nestling in the back of the net. If I went nuts when we equalised, I went absolutely f@cking mental then! I don't know how many people I hugged and kissed, screaming "f@cking hell" over and over again. We were all nuts, tears in eyes, voices shredded. When play restarted the lass next to me asked how long we had left, because I'd clocked how long Ahmedhodzic had been down I was able to say we had 5 or 6 minutes to hold out. But watching the play, the Sheffield United players looked to have physically shrunk by at least two inches each, while we looked like everyone could outrun Usain Bolt and jump over a ten foot wall. They just chucked balls up front for Moore, but without Hamer and Campbell they barely troubled us right to the final whistle.

I remember posting on here that after the league one play off win against Wycombe that it felt as though a huge weight was lifted off our shoulders, but the emotions this time outstrip that by a million miles. Relief, joy, pride, sadness for those no longer with us to witness it. I guess we all felt something similar to differing degrees, something personal that only you personally can understand, but a thing that unites us all.

Afterwards I met up with the rest of my group and ended up spending a lot of money on beer in Marylebone before heading back to the hotel late, then travelling back the next day exhausted, happy and proud to have been there.

we have to give huge credit to RLB. RLB may not have been first choice last summer, but he's been exactly what needed this season. RLB has made mistakes, but has got most things right tactically, he has a clear way of playing and utilising the players at his disposal, even if at times we've been underwhelming. We might disagree with some of his selections and substitutions, but he knows the players better than we do. He's not afraid to change things by tweaking around the margins rather than wholesale changes. And that is what got us over the line against Sheffield United. He trusted the players to sort themselves out, especially after the poor opening, adapted the tactics that gradually got us back into the game, meanwhile Wilder never adapted to take advantage of how we were in the opening 30 minutes. His tactics were largely to keep hitting Moore or to try and catch us on the break, but he never tried to stretch us or press us back. He allowed us, shaky as we were in the first half, to actually have more possession. We might not have created much with it and have been too slow and sloppy at times, but it allowed us to regroup a bit, clear our heads and slowly get back into the game. Had they not scored, you might have seen them run out of ideas earlier and it looks a more eventful match. Once we made the substitutions, we gradually took the initiative away from them, with Wilder's changes only reinforcing his pretty negative tactics. He can moan about how many points they got last season and how far ahead of us the finished, but in truth they were never great to watch. Attritional, ground out results but largely down to being defensively solid with a couple of high quality players to create something. Against us, Leeds and Burnley, they only won one game out of seven, against us at Bramall Lane when even they admitted we were probably the better side and they were lucky to win. They lost the other six, with the talent they have in the squad, with the majority of the games being close, it boils down to management tactics not adapting to changes to win tight games. In the end, we deserved to win and but for some inexperience and errors on our part, plus RLB resting players in the last 5 games, we'd have been much closer to them.

And this was never more apt.
Click to expand...

That’s some read. Proper knackered today and you’ve just made me scroll like the staring credits of Star Wars. But it’s a brilliant post. One thing you missed was Le Bris swapping Mepham and Ballard around after about 10 minutes of the O’Nien sub. Another little master stroke.

RedNWhite4Life · May 26, 2025

Nads said: ↑

Technically we got a world record fee of £240million for Tommy.

I was one saying ‘don’t give him a shirt’ but I’ll swallow them words for all eternity.
Click to expand...

You weren't the only one saying don't give him a shirt as his performances and body language seemed like he had given up. Maybe he had maybe he needed a big occasion and a slight change of mindset/setting to get him going again and Wembley was that occasion.

I guess we will never know but by God am I thankful for his goal on Saturday

TopCat. · May 26, 2025

Who was captain after Neil went off?

RedNWhite4Life · May 26, 2025

C Montgomery Burns said: ↑

My thoughts on the game and the day, it's taken me that long to come down from cloud 9. I e not read all of the thread, so maybe I'm saying what others have already said. Sorry if it's long winded!

Sheffield United came out at us fast at the start before we could get settled and had the Moore chance inside 2 minutes. I think we might have started slowly due to nerves, at times we forget just how young this team is and I think the occasion got to us a bit at the start. Of the starting 11 only Cirkin, O'Nien and Patterson played in the League 1 play off final and only O'Nien was ages over 25. Credit to them for the start, the Patterson save is one of the best I've seen, I genuinely thought it was in until he clawed it from behind him. Sadly this is also when O'Nien got injured, which I also think contributed to us not settling down properly. Until we could get Mepham on, we had a period where Neil had to fill in at centre half and with the extra man they were able to boss us around for a while. When Mepham came on, we still looked unsettled and a bit disjointed, though in my opinion we gradually started to get hold of the ball more and began to play our way into the game. We weren't creating much and were too slow with possession, but at least we looked to take some of the sting out of them. Then they scored. Credit to Hamer for using his pace to get away the way he did, but we should have closed him down better and been more aware of Campbell's run to support him. The ball in from Hamer is top class and it's a good finish, but in the stands it felt like a self inflicted kick in the guts just as we were starting to get a bit of a foothold in the game. Not a great cross in that's cleared comfortably and not enough pressure on Hamer as he picked up the ball and ran with it, symptomatic of how unsettled we were in the first half hour or so. We still looked unsettled and slow on the ball after this, resulting in the slack play for the corner leading to the disallowed goal. It was a decent clearing header that Burrows caught well, but regardless of what Wilder and any Sheffield United fans say, it was offside. Two Blades players were offside in the middle of the 6 yard box, one of which is clearly in Patterson's line of sight, impeding his vision. From my seat just about in line with the dead ball line and corner flag I could see them, but not whether we'd been slow pushing out and played them onside. I feared the worst right then but was the first to spot the VAR check announcement in my block, once the ref went to check I think we all knew it was going to be chalked off and the sense of relief was palpable when it was. Whether that gave us a boost, rattled them a bit or it was a bit of both, I don't know, but I think we finished the first half the better team, though again without creating much.

Personally I thought Mundle had a poor game, rarely using his pace against them and a bit unsure with his distribution. It was probably due to him still not being fully match fit after his injury. ELF had been largely anonymous in the first half and Rigg struggled to get involved in a positive way in the first half, though he had our first shot on target in stoppage time with a volley he didn't connect with as well as he'd want to. The midfield was definitely unsettled, Neil was poor and Jobe struggling to get involved. The link up play was either slack or far too slow, stopping us getting any overlaps or stretching them. It allowed them to get back into shape quickly, crowd us out and starve Mayenda of any meaningful supply as well pick up the second ball too often and too easily. When it got to half time at 1-0 I was happy, we still were in the game.

We certainly came out stronger in the second half and took the game to them much more, though again we weren't creating much. We were just a bit better. Whether it was RLBs half time talk, Wilder wanting them to sit back and try to catch us on the break or a a mixture of both (possible), I don't know, but we were just more positive and looked better. When Roberts came on it was just another little improvement for us, even if we still weren't creating much. About this time I said to the lad next to me that I thought if we got an equaliser, we'd go on to win it. We just needed a chance, I just felt that if we got one decent chance we'd score. That feeling just increased when Wilder began making subs, Campbell had looked a threat all game with his pace and Hamer going off in particular took a lot of their creativity and threat away. They were still dangerous, though and Patterson's save on 70 minutes kept us in the game. It was slack play from Cirkin to let them have the chance, but I do think if it had been Brewster (not that he was particularly good, in my opinion) or Campbell they may have scored. Luckily both were off by then.

RLB has had a lot of stick about his substitutions this season, but for me he made the right changes at the right times on Saturday. I think the team he picked was the right one and his tactics were basically sound initially, even if we started poorly. To quote Mike Tyson, everyone has a plan until they're punched in the face. RLB adapted and changed tactics as needed and gradually made us the better team. When he took off Neil and Mundle, we effectively went to 442. Isadore might not have touched the ball, but it gave their back 4 something different to think about and deal with. The same applied to Roberts. By then I think ELF and Jobe were controlling the midfield, our movement was better and they were starting to struggle to cope. Finally, just after the changes we got the chance and equalised. lovely play in midfield and a superb through ball from Roberts to Mayenda and wallop! I went nuts hugging everyone around me.

When play resumed I said to those around me that they looked rattled, we dominated the last 15 minutes of normal time, it was funny seeing the time wasting they'd employed until we equalised stop. I thought Roberts was really unlucky when Brereton Diaz pulled him back when he was clear, though it was about the only contribution Brereton Diaz had in the game. Roberts would have been clear on the right wing with space to run into with support up and their back four stretched. It probably showed how rattled they were then. We were definitely on top and Wilder didn't look like he knew how to adapt to it.

When it got to 90 minutes and 7 minutes stoppage time was announced I was happy as I knew we'd get at least one chance before possible extra time. That was only increased when Ahmedhodzic went down with a head injury thanks to Tom Cannon. With him being down I knew we'd end up with at least 101 minutes to play, within a minute of play restarting Watson scored. The sloppy pass from Moore was probably symptomatic of how rattled they were then, but Watson deserves huge credit for a brilliant goal, after all the stick he's had recently (myself included, I'd not have had him anywhere near the squad in the last few weeks). And this is also where things went a bit weird for me. I saw him pick up the ball, run towards goal, shoot, the ball travel towards the goal and the keeper dive towards it. Then time stopped. Literally. Everything froze for a few seconds, like you see in some movies for dramatic effect. The nearest thing I can describe it as being like was about 4 years ago I was at a Derren Brown show at the Empire and myself (and a good chunk of the rest of the audience) were hypnotised and "lost" 5 seconds, only this felt as though everything stopped dead for 3-4 seconds and I could see it all. Then everything started again and I could see the ball in nestling in the back of the net. If I went nuts when we equalised, I went absolutely f@cking mental then! I don't know how many people I hugged and kissed, screaming "f@cking hell" over and over again. We were all nuts, tears in eyes, voices shredded. When play restarted the lass next to me asked how long we had left, because I'd clocked how long Ahmedhodzic had been down I was able to say we had 5 or 6 minutes to hold out. But watching the play, the Sheffield United players looked to have physically shrunk by at least two inches each, while we looked like everyone could outrun Usain Bolt and jump over a ten foot wall. They just chucked balls up front for Moore, but without Hamer and Campbell they barely troubled us right to the final whistle.

I remember posting on here that after the league one play off win against Wycombe that it felt as though a huge weight was lifted off our shoulders, but the emotions this time outstrip that by a million miles. Relief, joy, pride, sadness for those no longer with us to witness it. I guess we all felt something similar to differing degrees, something personal that only you personally can understand, but a thing that unites us all.

Afterwards I met up with the rest of my group and ended up spending a lot of money on beer in Marylebone before heading back to the hotel late, then travelling back the next day exhausted, happy and proud to have been there.

we have to give huge credit to RLB. RLB may not have been first choice last summer, but he's been exactly what needed this season. RLB has made mistakes, but has got most things right tactically, he has a clear way of playing and utilising the players at his disposal, even if at times we've been underwhelming. We might disagree with some of his selections and substitutions, but he knows the players better than we do. He's not afraid to change things by tweaking around the margins rather than wholesale changes. And that is what got us over the line against Sheffield United. He trusted the players to sort themselves out, especially after the poor opening, adapted the tactics that gradually got us back into the game, meanwhile Wilder never adapted to take advantage of how we were in the opening 30 minutes. His tactics were largely to keep hitting Moore or to try and catch us on the break, but he never tried to stretch us or press us back. He allowed us, shaky as we were in the first half, to actually have more possession. We might not have created much with it and have been too slow and sloppy at times, but it allowed us to regroup a bit, clear our heads and slowly get back into the game. Had they not scored, you might have seen them run out of ideas earlier and it looks a more eventful match. Once we made the substitutions, we gradually took the initiative away from them, with Wilder's changes only reinforcing his pretty negative tactics. He can moan about how many points they got last season and how far ahead of us the finished, but in truth they were never great to watch. Attritional, ground out results but largely down to being defensively solid with a couple of high quality players to create something. Against us, Leeds and Burnley, they only won one game out of seven, against us at Bramall Lane when even they admitted we were probably the better side and they were lucky to win. They lost the other six, with the talent they have in the squad, with the majority of the games being close, it boils down to management tactics not adapting to changes to win tight games. In the end, we deserved to win and but for some inexperience and errors on our part, plus RLB resting players in the last 5 games, we'd have been much closer to them.

And this was never more apt.
Click to expand...

Fantastic post mate and pretty much echoes my thought's on the game. I too had that time frozen as Watson shot was heading towards the goal almost felt like an out of body experience as corny as that may sound.

You may have been sat near me as I was bang in line with the deadball line front row of the top tier.

I should add it took me 10 minutes to read your post but I thoroughly enjoyed every second of it. Absolutely top class mate and I wish I could give it a million likes.

Bucky1989 · May 26, 2025

TopCat. said: ↑

Who was captain after Neil went off?
Click to expand...

Big Dan Ballard

Gil T Azell · May 26, 2025

TopCat. said: ↑

Who was captain after Neil went off?
Click to expand...

I would have thought Ballard but Mepham probably due to experience.

Brian Hardy · May 26, 2025

C Montgomery Burns said: ↑

My thoughts on the game and the day, it's taken me that long to come down from cloud 9. I e not read all of the thread, so maybe I'm saying what others have already said. Sorry if it's long winded!

Sheffield United came out at us fast at the start before we could get settled and had the Moore chance inside 2 minutes. I think we might have started slowly due to nerves, at times we forget just how young this team is and I think the occasion got to us a bit at the start. Of the starting 11 only Cirkin, O'Nien and Patterson played in the League 1 play off final and only O'Nien was ages over 25. Credit to them for the start, the Patterson save is one of the best I've seen, I genuinely thought it was in until he clawed it from behind him. Sadly this is also when O'Nien got injured, which I also think contributed to us not settling down properly. Until we could get Mepham on, we had a period where Neil had to fill in at centre half and with the extra man they were able to boss us around for a while. When Mepham came on, we still looked unsettled and a bit disjointed, though in my opinion we gradually started to get hold of the ball more and began to play our way into the game. We weren't creating much and were too slow with possession, but at least we looked to take some of the sting out of them. Then they scored. Credit to Hamer for using his pace to get away the way he did, but we should have closed him down better and been more aware of Campbell's run to support him. The ball in from Hamer is top class and it's a good finish, but in the stands it felt like a self inflicted kick in the guts just as we were starting to get a bit of a foothold in the game. Not a great cross in that's cleared comfortably and not enough pressure on Hamer as he picked up the ball and ran with it, symptomatic of how unsettled we were in the first half hour or so. We still looked unsettled and slow on the ball after this, resulting in the slack play for the corner leading to the disallowed goal. It was a decent clearing header that Burrows caught well, but regardless of what Wilder and any Sheffield United fans say, it was offside. Two Blades players were offside in the middle of the 6 yard box, one of which is clearly in Patterson's line of sight, impeding his vision. From my seat just about in line with the dead ball line and corner flag I could see them, but not whether we'd been slow pushing out and played them onside. I feared the worst right then but was the first to spot the VAR check announcement in my block, once the ref went to check I think we all knew it was going to be chalked off and the sense of relief was palpable when it was. Whether that gave us a boost, rattled them a bit or it was a bit of both, I don't know, but I think we finished the first half the better team, though again without creating much.

Personally I thought Mundle had a poor game, rarely using his pace against them and a bit unsure with his distribution. It was probably due to him still not being fully match fit after his injury. ELF had been largely anonymous in the first half and Rigg struggled to get involved in a positive way in the first half, though he had our first shot on target in stoppage time with a volley he didn't connect with as well as he'd want to. The midfield was definitely unsettled, Neil was poor and Jobe struggling to get involved. The link up play was either slack or far too slow, stopping us getting any overlaps or stretching them. It allowed them to get back into shape quickly, crowd us out and starve Mayenda of any meaningful supply as well pick up the second ball too often and too easily. When it got to half time at 1-0 I was happy, we still were in the game.

We certainly came out stronger in the second half and took the game to them much more, though again we weren't creating much. We were just a bit better. Whether it was RLBs half time talk, Wilder wanting them to sit back and try to catch us on the break or a a mixture of both (possible), I don't know, but we were just more positive and looked better. When Roberts came on it was just another little improvement for us, even if we still weren't creating much. About this time I said to the lad next to me that I thought if we got an equaliser, we'd go on to win it. We just needed a chance, I just felt that if we got one decent chance we'd score. That feeling just increased when Wilder began making subs, Campbell had looked a threat all game with his pace and Hamer going off in particular took a lot of their creativity and threat away. They were still dangerous, though and Patterson's save on 70 minutes kept us in the game. It was slack play from Cirkin to let them have the chance, but I do think if it had been Brewster (not that he was particularly good, in my opinion) or Campbell they may have scored. Luckily both were off by then.

RLB has had a lot of stick about his substitutions this season, but for me he made the right changes at the right times on Saturday. I think the team he picked was the right one and his tactics were basically sound initially, even if we started poorly. To quote Mike Tyson, everyone has a plan until they're punched in the face. RLB adapted and changed tactics as needed and gradually made us the better team. When he took off Neil and Mundle, we effectively went to 442. Isadore might not have touched the ball, but it gave their back 4 something different to think about and deal with. The same applied to Roberts. By then I think ELF and Jobe were controlling the midfield, our movement was better and they were starting to struggle to cope. Finally, just after the changes we got the chance and equalised. lovely play in midfield and a superb through ball from Roberts to Mayenda and wallop! I went nuts hugging everyone around me.

When play resumed I said to those around me that they looked rattled, we dominated the last 15 minutes of normal time, it was funny seeing the time wasting they'd employed until we equalised stop. I thought Roberts was really unlucky when Brereton Diaz pulled him back when he was clear, though it was about the only contribution Brereton Diaz had in the game. Roberts would have been clear on the right wing with space to run into with support up and their back four stretched. It probably showed how rattled they were then. We were definitely on top and Wilder didn't look like he knew how to adapt to it.

When it got to 90 minutes and 7 minutes stoppage time was announced I was happy as I knew we'd get at least one chance before possible extra time. That was only increased when Ahmedhodzic went down with a head injury thanks to Tom Cannon. With him being down I knew we'd end up with at least 101 minutes to play, within a minute of play restarting Watson scored. The sloppy pass from Moore was probably symptomatic of how rattled they were then, but Watson deserves huge credit for a brilliant goal, after all the stick he's had recently (myself included, I'd not have had him anywhere near the squad in the last few weeks). And this is also where things went a bit weird for me. I saw him pick up the ball, run towards goal, shoot, the ball travel towards the goal and the keeper dive towards it. Then time stopped. Literally. Everything froze for a few seconds, like you see in some movies for dramatic effect. The nearest thing I can describe it as being like was about 4 years ago I was at a Derren Brown show at the Empire and myself (and a good chunk of the rest of the audience) were hypnotised and "lost" 5 seconds, only this felt as though everything stopped dead for 3-4 seconds and I could see it all. Then everything started again and I could see the ball in nestling in the back of the net. If I went nuts when we equalised, I went absolutely f@cking mental then! I don't know how many people I hugged and kissed, screaming "f@cking hell" over and over again. We were all nuts, tears in eyes, voices shredded. When play restarted the lass next to me asked how long we had left, because I'd clocked how long Ahmedhodzic had been down I was able to say we had 5 or 6 minutes to hold out. But watching the play, the Sheffield United players looked to have physically shrunk by at least two inches each, while we looked like everyone could outrun Usain Bolt and jump over a ten foot wall. They just chucked balls up front for Moore, but without Hamer and Campbell they barely troubled us right to the final whistle.

I remember posting on here that after the league one play off win against Wycombe that it felt as though a huge weight was lifted off our shoulders, but the emotions this time outstrip that by a million miles. Relief, joy, pride, sadness for those no longer with us to witness it. I guess we all felt something similar to differing degrees, something personal that only you personally can understand, but a thing that unites us all.

Afterwards I met up with the rest of my group and ended up spending a lot of money on beer in Marylebone before heading back to the hotel late, then travelling back the next day exhausted, happy and proud to have been there.

we have to give huge credit to RLB. RLB may not have been first choice last summer, but he's been exactly what needed this season. RLB has made mistakes, but has got most things right tactically, he has a clear way of playing and utilising the players at his disposal, even if at times we've been underwhelming. We might disagree with some of his selections and substitutions, but he knows the players better than we do. He's not afraid to change things by tweaking around the margins rather than wholesale changes. And that is what got us over the line against Sheffield United. He trusted the players to sort themselves out, especially after the poor opening, adapted the tactics that gradually got us back into the game, meanwhile Wilder never adapted to take advantage of how we were in the opening 30 minutes. His tactics were largely to keep hitting Moore or to try and catch us on the break, but he never tried to stretch us or press us back. He allowed us, shaky as we were in the first half, to actually have more possession. We might not have created much with it and have been too slow and sloppy at times, but it allowed us to regroup a bit, clear our heads and slowly get back into the game. Had they not scored, you might have seen them run out of ideas earlier and it looks a more eventful match. Once we made the substitutions, we gradually took the initiative away from them, with Wilder's changes only reinforcing his pretty negative tactics. He can moan about how many points they got last season and how far ahead of us the finished, but in truth they were never great to watch. Attritional, ground out results but largely down to being defensively solid with a couple of high quality players to create something. Against us, Leeds and Burnley, they only won one game out of seven, against us at Bramall Lane when even they admitted we were probably the better side and they were lucky to win. They lost the other six, with the talent they have in the squad, with the majority of the games being close, it boils down to management tactics not adapting to changes to win tight games. In the end, we deserved to win and but for some inexperience and errors on our part, plus RLB resting players in the last 5 games, we'd have been much closer to them.

And this was never more apt.
Click to expand...

Well written, good read!

Gil T Azell · May 26, 2025

Just a daft un. Hopefully someone can explain. I thought we brought subs on 4 times. Is that allowed. Not that I give a flying one just curious.

Alt: I could be wrong. I usually am.

RedNWhite4Life · May 26, 2025

Gil T Azell said: ↑

Just a daft un. Hopefully someone can explain. I thought we brought subs on 4 times. Is that allowed. Not that I give a flying one just curious.

Alt: I could be wrong. I usually am.
Click to expand...

One of their subs was concussion related so gives both sides an extra substitute window

Gil T Azell · May 26, 2025

RedNWhite4Life said: ↑

One of their subs was concussion related so gives both sides an extra substitute window
Click to expand...

Cheers for that mate. I never knew it was for both clubs.

TopCat. · May 26, 2025

Gil T Azell said: ↑

I would have thought Ballard but Mepham probably due to experience.
Click to expand...

Just watching the YouTube vid with Watson's goal from every angle - Ballard had the armband.

C Montgomery Burns · May 26, 2025

RedNWhite4Life said: ↑

Fantastic post mate and pretty much echoes my thought's on the game. I too had that time frozen as Watson shot was heading towards the goal almost felt like an out of body experience as corny as that may sound.

You may have been sat near me as I was bang in line with the deadball line front row of the top tier.

I should add it took me 10 minutes to read your post but I thoroughly enjoyed every second of it. Absolutely top class mate and I wish I could give it a million likes.
Click to expand...

Cheers mate, you might be one of the ones I hugged like a lunatic when Watson scored!
And honestly, that time freeze is one of the strangest things to ever have happened to me, you're right saying it was like an out of body experience, I wonder how many others had the same thing?

RedNWhite4Life · May 26, 2025

C Montgomery Burns said: ↑

Cheers mate, you might be one of the ones I hugged like a lunatic when Watson scored!
And honestly, that time freeze is one of the strangest things to ever have happened to me, you're right saying it was like an out of body experience, I wonder how many others had the same thing?
Click to expand...

I hope you did I was hugging folk 10 seats away and in the row behind

Gil T Azell · May 26, 2025

malagamackem · May 26, 2025

King Kareoke said: ↑

The joy this photo gives me.

What a day View attachment 362125
Click to expand...

And it was great meeting you both at the Argyll - stay well

Nads · May 26, 2025

Thing I meant to mention, Enzo.

First few games he was all bursting past players and taking the piss. And I think that’s slewed some views of him. Like he’d dropped of after the injury, but actually we had changed approach (we were still after auto when he got knocked)

My second favourite player ever was Zidane (Ronaldinho, clearly if you’re wondering) and for all il not comparing them, well Zidane was just on another planet. Sometimes you’d think he was having a quiet game and then you’d see half time highlights and he was absolutely controlling the game with tiny touches and passes. He could stretch his legs and absolutely dominate a game at will, but often it was small involvements and barely noticeable but huge impact.

This is Enzo in these playoffs. Has never leapt out and shown the insane talent he has in a flashy way, but almost every highlight has got his mittens or at least a little cameo in it from him.

He’s been that player. All we know now is he can do both.

He isn’t Zidane if course, he’s Enzo. Our Enzo.

RTB · May 26, 2025

Scout73 said: ↑

Just ignore those people then

I post during the game as I want to share my opinion with other Sunderland supporters, sometimes it'll be negative if I think the performance is poor and other times it's positive - I will do so on a game by game basis

Naturally some people will be more positive/negative than others

There was nothing wrong with this match day thread during the game, noone overstepped the mark
Click to expand...

I enjoy your posts mate but I'm going to pull you up on that last comment.
There were lots of us at the game, most of us didn't even have a signal around Wembley Stadium never mind being able to post on here during the game.
I find it very odd that a few off here spent good money for tickets, transport and even accommodation, then spend the most important 70 minutes of their lives posting repetitive negative stuff on a message board instead of cheering on the lads

marcusblackcat · May 26, 2025

Bucky1989 said: ↑

Big Dan Ballard
Click to expand...

I don’t like the “big”. Sounds too much like people are trying to turn him into Burn like they did on tv. And I wouldn’t swap him fir Burn as I think he’s a far better player!!

Bucky1989 · May 26, 2025

marcusblackcat said: ↑

I don’t like the “big”. Sounds too much like people are trying to turn him into Burn like they did on tv. And I wouldn’t swap him for Burn as I think he’s a far better player!!
Click to expand...

Ok what about
Beautiful Dan Ballard?
Magnificent Dan Ballard?

marcusblackcat · May 26, 2025

Bucky1989 said: ↑

Ok what about
Beautiful Dan Ballard?
Magnificent Dan Ballard?
Click to expand...

Ha yeah! It just feels too much like a comparison with that thick lanky geordie ****er!!

Match Day Thread Sunderland AFC v Sheffield United – Championship Play-off Final - Saturday 24th May 2025 - KO 15:00

Your Prediction:

Sunderland

Sheffield United

Draw - Sunderland win in ET

Draw - Sheffield United win in ET

Draw - Sunderland win on penalties

Draw - Sheffield United win on penalties

ISOE II Well-Known Member

RedNWhite4Life Well-Known Member

TopCat. Well-Known Member

RedNWhite4Life Well-Known Member

Bucky1989 Well-Known Member

Gil T Azell Well-Known Member

Brian Hardy New Member

Gil T Azell Well-Known Member

RedNWhite4Life Well-Known Member

Gil T Azell Well-Known Member

TopCat. Well-Known Member

C Montgomery Burns Well-Known Member

RedNWhite4Life Well-Known Member

Gil T Azell Well-Known Member

malagamackem Well-Known Member

Nads Well-Known Member

RTB Well-Known Member

marcusblackcat SAFC Sheriff
Forum Moderator

Bucky1989 Well-Known Member

marcusblackcat SAFC Sheriff
Forum Moderator

Share This Page

About Us

Quick Navigation

Like us on Facebook

Buy us a beer!

Useful Searches

Match Day Thread Sunderland AFC v Sheffield United – Championship Play-off Final - Saturday 24th May 2025 - KO 15:00

Your Prediction:

Sunderland

Sheffield United

Draw - Sunderland win in ET

Draw - Sheffield United win in ET

Draw - Sunderland win on penalties

Draw - Sheffield United win on penalties

ISOE II Well-Known Member

RedNWhite4Life Well-Known Member

TopCat. Well-Known Member

RedNWhite4Life Well-Known Member

Bucky1989 Well-Known Member

Gil T Azell Well-Known Member

Brian Hardy New Member

Gil T Azell Well-Known Member

RedNWhite4Life Well-Known Member

Gil T Azell Well-Known Member

TopCat. Well-Known Member

C Montgomery Burns Well-Known Member

RedNWhite4Life Well-Known Member

Gil T Azell Well-Known Member

malagamackem Well-Known Member

Nads Well-Known Member

RTB Well-Known Member

marcusblackcat SAFC Sheriff Forum Moderator

Bucky1989 Well-Known Member

marcusblackcat SAFC Sheriff Forum Moderator

Share This Page

marcusblackcat SAFC Sheriff
Forum Moderator

marcusblackcat SAFC Sheriff
Forum Moderator