Whilst the first game of the season is never going to be a true barometer for how the rest of the campaign is going to pan out, it’s importance is clear as fans take their first proper opportunity to judge how they think the team is going to get on. So after today’s loss, although it wasn’t at all comprehensive, knee-jerk reactions will take place as everyone begins to think about all the possible worst-case scenarios. However, when you take a closer look at the game and Sunderland’s performance and think what might have happened if a few more things had gone our way, it is clear that these sort of reactions, especially after just 90 minutes of football, are entirely unnecessary.
Whilst the team named by McCarthy still contained a number of players that could perhaps be type-cast, fairly or unfairly, as Championship players and nothing better, with the right mix of old and new players still yet to be achieved with new signings, Le Tallec and Stubbs not featuring, the team is still likely to vastly improve. But with these so-called premiership players missing, a lot of the new breed did find it tough in the opening exchanges and the defence were found wanting several times within the first 10 minutes. Whilst the Lads did possess some threat when they had a hold of the ball, Charlton looked even more dangerous and were given far too much time and space. They made this count on the ten-minute mark when Bent latched a hold of a misplaced Robinson pass and fired the ball past the ball past new-boy Davis, even after it looked like the keeper had herded Bent away from goal. This was a telling blow and wouldn’t have done Sunderland’s confidence any good but, to the players’ credit, they fought back extremely well. Apart from a couple of slight blips when Danny Murphy headed over from in front of goal and Kelvin Davis had to pull off a spectacular save, the Lads took control of the game and, for the first time, crafted out a good spell of pressure on the Charlton defence. Stead just failed to connect to a cross almost immediately after the Latticks took the lead, Whithead then scuffed a good chance, before, right on the half-hour mark, debutant Andy Gray scrambled the ball into the Charlton net, capitalising on the rebound from Whitehead’s shot after some more great work from Welsh down the left-hand side. From then on till the end of the first half, Sunderland were on top but failed to convert the few chances that they created.
However, the players, maybe even the fans, failed to carry any sort of momentum through into the second half as everything just went a bit flat. Even after that daft Maggie reject was shown a lesson in tackling by Stephen Wright but didn’t seem to appreciate the help so attempted to snap his legs, Sunderland struggled to up the pace and, instead, seemed to drop off it. Although Welsh and Tommy Miller looked bright, they stood out amongst an average crowd of Sunderland players and it was this inability to make that step up at a crucial time, that cost the Lads. When a silly free-kick was given away on the edge of our own box, it was clear exactly what was going to happen. But it didn’t stop Danny Murphy curling the ball, seemingly, through the wall and past Davis, who was rooted to the line. This was a sucker punch to the deflated Sunderland team and they never really recovered. Wright, who had struggled throughout the game, even more so after that horrific tackle, was replaced by Nyron Nosworthy, who, on the basis of this game and this game alone, doesn’t look like a footballer and Stephen Elliott came on for Welsh, but these substitutions failed to bring about this elusive equaliser. Yet it nearly did when Elliott missed a gaping chance, failing to deflect home a low Arca cross with the goal at his mercy. This proved to be the last chance Sunderland would get and Charlton added the last nail in an already buried coffin when Darren Bent grabbed his second goal of the game to add to a scoreline which wasn’t really a true representation of what was, in fact, quite a competitive game.
So, whilst this is an obvious disappointment let’s not get carried away. This game won’t settle whether we stay up or go down. It won’t even tell us what we will play like in the next few games, never mind towards the end of the season. It is just one loss in a season that is likely to contain many more. The least we can hope is that the manager and team learn some valuable lessons and improve on the problems that exist.
Matthew Woolston
