February 17, 2011
By Staff Reporter
One might even say it was a football miracle after West Brom somehow remained in the Premier when all other three results involving their rivals in the danger zone went their way — Palace drew while Norwich and Southampton lost. You need a bit of luck and it certainly went that way for Bryan Robson’s Albion. Liverpool could also be deemed lucky. but one should be more cautious giving the Reds that label.
As for Mick McCarthy — few expect his Cats to win promotion, never mind win it in style, which is what ultimately they did. Has McCarthy finally silenced his critics? One can’t even say he’s been lucky. Rather, he was unlucky in his first year at Sunderland, losing in a play-off semifinal game for promotion and losing in the semifinal of the FA Cup. But now in the space of two years, McCarthy has managed to lead his Black Cats back to big-time football. Indeed his remarkable efforts in turning Sunderland around is right up there with his peers in the Premiership and already we cannot wait to see how the team do next season.
Survival will be top of the list for the Cats in the Premier. And that being the case then Sunderland has a chance, as being a survivor is exactly what McCarthy is becoming. He has been through the mill with his career, both as a player and as coach. He has never been given any credit really as a player as he has been lucky enough to play alongside the best central defenders around — such as Paul McGrath, Kevin Moran and more — during his 57-cap career for the Republic of Ireland. Supposedly all McCarthy had to do was keep in line with these outstanding players. Although one wonders with all the criticism he has received why then was he called Captain Fantastic? Was it just because he got the team going and that he could lead players who were already great leaders in their own right? No. McCarthy was a big robust defender — that was his role. It would be interesting to see how many forwards that he marked actually scored on him.
He even went on to manage the Irish team, but a last-16 achievement could not save his bacon. A few results did not go his way after the 2002 World Cup and he was dropped like a hot potato. It was on the cards. Roy Keane supporters were all over the manager and the lynch mob got their man. Fair enough. It’s a competitive game out there and the Irish will no longer tolerate losing games, at least early on in qualification. And even though McCarthy and his troops came back from the 2002 WC as heroes nobody truly believed it was down to McCarthy himself — that he was a great manager. Keane and his supporters thought the Irish approach lacked ambition. But the determined manager saw it through; he stood his ground and defended himself. Keane, as far as he was concerned, was totally out of line. Critics were not buying it. And once again the backdrop of McCarthy’s playing career with Manchester City, Celtic, Lyon and Millwall was seen as mediocre. Don’t people love when they see such fantastic honors being knocked? Guess you either love or hate the man. And of course we have been constantly reminded of his lesser achievements when he started out as a manager for Millwall, finishing in seventh place. That was his first full season in charge back in 1992. Twelve years later, McCarthy got everyone scratching their heads when Sunderland reached the play-off games.
After taking the managerial job at the Stadium of Light in March 2003, in the wake of his Irish dismissal, one wondered was this finally the noose around his neck? Sunderland was in dire straits as there was no escaping relegation from the Premiership. Down they went, but it was a wise move by Sunderland to give a new manager that game experience before the inevitable drop. McCarthy inherited a team that had a few Irish internationals. He got the most out of the high-paying players, and then got rid of them to rebuild. Then, after only six points were notched up from the first five games, it seemed at last that proof had arrived McCarthy’s luck had run out. He was on his way out of football and taking Sunderland with him. And then it happened.
Sunderland won eight in a row. Unknowns like Dean Whitehead, Liam Lawrence, Stephen Elliott and the Collins brothers, Neil and Danny, became household names on Wearside. “A lot has happened in the two years since I took over and credit goes to my staff and players,” said a modest McCarthy. “We would not be where we are if we had not got a good squad of players, a good team, good team spirit and good work ethic.”
The new determined voice of Sunderland’s manager is now letting his actions do the talking in preparation for the Premier. Cats striker Michael Bridges has been handed a free transfer. The clearing out of players is happening yet again, even after winning the Coca-Cola Championship. Joining Bridges are Marcus Stewart (17 goals), Jeff Whitley, Michael Ingham, Sean Thornton and Mark Lynch. That’s right. There are no friends in football and more players are on their way out according to club chairman Bod Murray.
Question is: will this work amongst in the top flight? Can McCarthy attract the big names or, just as importantly, seasoned Premier players. That remains an open question but for now he has graduated from a survivor to a winner.