Mick signs another Irish starlet?

The BBC are reporting that Mick McCarthy has signed another young Irish starlet.

Hot on the heels of last week's signing of Billy Dennehy from Shelbourne, it looks like the gaffer has also been successful in securing the services of 17 year old Robbie Weir from Larne.

Stoke, Rangers and Fulham had also expressed an interest in signing the youngster but it seems that Sunderland has been his final choice.

Weir had a trial with Sunderland back in December and his manager at Larne, Jimmy McGeough, expressed his unhappiness at Weir's absence from his side, and said he would prefer it if club scouts travelled to Larne to assess his player's potential.

''I have expressed my opposition to these run of trials - I'm not sure it proves anything. He's a great prospect and one who'll learn his trade in senior football here.''

But McGeough seems to have changed his tune since then, saying recently, "It would be great to see him making it."

Julio: 10 more wins will do it

Julio Arca says he thinks ten more wins will definitely see Sunderland return to the Premiership.

Sunderland are equal second in the Championship on 57 points with Wigan, and says that surprise results such as Wigan's recent faltering form could play into Sunderland's hands.

"Everyone expected Wigan to win on Saturday but they lost at home," Arca told Sunderland's official site. "There will be lots more twists and turns before we know who will go up. Ipswich are five points clear but they are not guaranteed to go up.

"A point from the Wolves match was a decent result. I think 10 more wins should be enough for promotion but you never know."

But he acknowledged that the remaining games might not be all plain sailing: "When you look at the games left at home they are games we should win. But the Championship has some unpredictable results. We will have to fight all the way."