Sunderland

Name: Sunderland Association Football Club Nick names: The Black Cats, The Mackems League: Premier League Stadium: Stadium of Light Founded: 1879 Manager: Roy Keane                       Statistics:   League   6 First Division Top Flight Champions (1891-92, 1892-93, 1894-95, 1901-02, 1912-13, 1935-36) 5 First Division Top Flight Runners-up (1893-94, 1897-98, 1900-01, 1922-23, 1934-35) 2 Championship Second Flight Champions (2004-05, 2006-07) 2 'New' First Division Second Flight Champions (1995-96, 1998-99) 1 'Old' Second Division Second Flight Champions (1975-76) 1 'Old' Second Division Second Flight Runners-up (1963-64) 1 'Old' Third Division Third Flight Champions (1987-88)   Cups 2 FA Cup Winners (1936-37, 1972-73) 3 FA Cup Runners-up (1912-13, 1941-42, 1991-92) 2 FA Youth Cups (1967, 1969) 1 League Cup Runners-up (1984-85) 1 War Cup Runners-up (1942) 1 Charity Shield Winners (1936-37) 1 Sheriff of London Charity Shield Winners (1902-03) 1 Charity Shield Runners-up (1937-38)   Growth Chart of the League   1992-93 Avoid relegation to division two by one point 1993-94 Mick Buxton replaces Terry Butcher as manager. 1994-95 Peter Reid becomes manager with seven matches remaining 1995–96 Win first division. 1996-97 Relegated from FA Carling Premiership 1997-98 First Season at Stadium of Light. Lose play – of final on penalties. 1998–99 Win division one with a record of 105 points. 2002–03 Break record signing with Tony Andre Flo for £ 6.3 million. Reid replaced by Howard Wilkinson. Mick McCarthy takes over with nine matches left. Relegation with lowest points ever. 2004-05 Win division one.   2005-06 McCarthy leaves in March after just two wins. Kevin Ball appointed as caretaker. Relegated with new record low number of points 2006-07 Consortium headed by former hero Niall Quinn takes over. Quinn appointed as manager but sacks himself after four straight defeats. Roy Keane becomes manager. Win the Championship.     Statistics from August 2005 to November 2007   The total number of games played was 51 Won 11.76% of the games Lost 70.59% of the games Had 17.65 % games as draw Average goal rate was 0.80%   History:   The Sunderland association football Club is a football club currently playing in the Premier League. After playing at Roker Park for 99 years, they shifted their base to the Stadium of Light in 1997. The club came into existence on 17 th October 1879 due to the efforts by James Allan, a Sunderland based school teacher. By 16 October 1880, the club got its new name as Sunderland Teachers Association Club. During the 1890-91 seasons, the Sunderland replaced Stoke and got an entry into the Football League.   During the late 19 th century, due to their excellent performance against Aston Villa, William McGregor declared the team as the Team of all Talents. From 1892 to 1902, Sutherland won the League three times and was runners-up again for three times. Later in 1913, the team repeated their success by winning the League title but unfortunately was defeated in the FA Cup Final against Aston Villa by 1-0. In the 1935-36 seasons the club won the League championship for the sixth time and later went on to win the FA Cup by 3-1 against Preston North End .   After the World War II, the club fortunes was greatly affected and were implicated in a financial scandal which led to a fine of £5,000 and suspension of club chairman and directors. In the year 1958, Sunderland were demoted from the top slot in the league history. In the year 1973, Sunderland won the FA Cup Final by 1-0 in a match against Leeds United which happened to be their last major trophy. The match was won due to the elegant double save of Jimmy Montgomery that denied Peter Lorimer from making a goal. The save has been described by many as the greatest save of all time. Also Ian Porterfield scored a magnificent goal in the 30 th minute which took Sunderland to victory. Southampton and West Ham United are the two clubs that have equaled Sunderland 's record of winning the FA Cup while playing away from the top tier. The team appeared in their first and only League Cup final, in 1985 against Norwich City and lost by 1-0.   The year 1987 proved to be a bad year for Sunderland as they scored the lowest points and was demoted to the third division of the English league. However, under the management of Denis Smith and Bob Murray, they were promoted to the top slot as champions. In the year 1990, they suffered a defeat against Swindon Town in the play-off final. Though they managed to stay on the top charts for a year but were eventually relegated on the last day of the season. In 1992, Sutherland’s final outing as a second division club came in a major final in the FA Cup but the team lost by 2-0 against Liverpool . The early 1990s was a tough period for the club as they faced many ups and downs but with the inclusion of Peter Reid in the team things fell into place accordingly. Reid brought about an overall stabilizing effect and he remained as a manager for seven years. By the year 1997, Sunderland shifted from Roker Park to the Stadium of Light, an arena that was called as the biggest new stadium in England . In 1999, Sunderland made a mark for themselves by being champions with a record point of 105. They won two successive seventh place finishes at the Premier League but then in 2003 a lean period followed where they were relegated to the second-tier with low record point of 19.   In 2005, Mick McCarthy, the former Ireland manager resumed his duties at the club and helped Sunderland to regain their old team status. McCarthy left the club after Sunderland ’s disastrous performance which got them just 15 points. McCarthy left the club in mid-season and was replaced temporarily by Kevin Ball, a former player. Following their relegation, the club got new hope in the form of Niall Quinn, an ex-player. Under the management of Keane, Sunderland gradually started improving its game and played some 17 games from the start of 2007. Sunderland clinched promotion along with Birmingham City FC to the FA Premier League for the upcoming 2007-2008 season. On May 6th 2007 Sunderland were declared as winners of Championship in the match against Luton Town by 5-0. The team’s form has been better through the ongoing season and has been able to work with a challenging attitude. Despite this attitude, the teams’ problems in the League were added-up with a defeat by 7-1 to Everton which has left them hovering around the relegation zone with the second worst goal difference in the league.   League Table this season   Total games Played: 15 Games Won: 3 Games Lost: 8 Games draw: 4 Total Points: 13