There was a time when a defeat like this would leave me gutted for days. However, given the situation we are in and the state of our season, I went home, went out and forgot all about it. It seems that is how our season has now become. There is surely still a competitive edge for many supporters during the game. I, for one, wouldn’t go if there wasn’t, but when you look at the wider context, they just don’t really matter anymore.
So I guess that supporters, instead of looking at the result, should be happy with the performance and the effort displayed by the players yesterday, as they were clearly the better of two very poor sides. However, the manner of the defeat and the fact that we failed to score against a side that have been conceding goals left, right and centre in the past few games really does leave quite a bitter taste in the mouth.
A game like this, between two sides struggling at the foot of the league, was always going to be a scrappy affair and it proved to be just that, a tight battle, fought out mostly in the midfield with few chances being created by either side. Stead, looking very bright and showing flashes of great skill, carved out the only real chance of an even first half but fired straight at Martyn in the Everton goal.
The second half was a lot more open but, still, Sunderland failed to find the back of the Everton net. The introduction of Le Tallec just before half time, replacing the lethargic Gray, added a lot more pace and energy up front and it did pay off. Le Tallec himself had a Quinn-esque header superbly saved, Lawrence fired a shot inches past the left post whilst Stead battled well. He almost managed to bag his first goal of the season on a couple of occasions, shooting just wide both times. However, the introduction of Duncan Ferguson mid-way through the Second half did alter the way the game was going. Although Sunderland remained on top, Everton began to pose more of a threat as defenders seemed scared of whatever they thought Ferguson might have possessed. Davis was forced to make a pull off a good save to prevent Bent from putting Everton ahead. However, 2 minutes into injury time, Davis was powerless to stop Cahill from converting a Kilbane corner. It seemed inevitable but after we had played so well, controlled most of the game and created plenty of chances it was a horrible blow, greeted by another horrific silence, nothing else from the Sunderland support.
Yet another game where the Lads have failed to get what they deserve. There have been far too many of these this season and, while it is quite clear that most of the Lads aren’t up to the task, they will surely rue all of these missed opportunities.
Man of the Match: John Stead
Matthew Woolston