The Match That Made Me Fall in Love with Sunderland

As we’re about to embark on a European campaign and my sixth consecutive season as a season-ticket holder, it seems appropriate to reminisce about where it all began.

It all started back in 2008, when I was just a five-year-old lad looking for something to do at the weekend.

My dad and his brothers are massive Lads fans and had just seen Sunderland bounce between the newly formed Championship and the Premier League on the back of the highly successful Peter Reid era.

Then, following a season back in the Premier League under Roy Keane, a lifelong obsession began. At the time, I was the only male in the family yet to catch the Sunderland bug and, before I knew it, I was off to my first game at the Stadium of Light.

At 1pm on 29 March 2008, I jumped into Dad’s car and began the journey from Durham to Sunderland.

Dressed from head to toe in red and white, I held my dad’s hand as we started what has since become the customary walk from Southwick Community Centre to the ground.

The excitement was like nothing I’d ever experienced in my few short years and, when I first saw the Stadium of Light at the bottom of Wessington Way, I was in absolute awe. To see such a sea of people in red and white descending on one place, all with one common goal, was a sight to behold.

Sunderland lined up with Gordon, Nosworthy, Collins, Evans, Bardsley, Reid, Richardson, Whitehead, Jones, Murphy and Chopra. West Ham had former Sunderland left-back George McCartney and ex-Arsenal winger Freddie Ljungberg in their ranks and, although it’s hard for me to recall much from the game itself, I vividly remember the emotions I felt.

We were sitting right up in the gods of the Premier Concourse and, as a five-year-old, it was impossible to fully appreciate or understand what was happening on the pitch. What did resonate with me, however, was the explosion of noise and passion when the players walked out.

It also turned out to be a hugely important game, with the result moving Sunderland a step closer to Premier League survival. A last-minute Andy Reid winner sealed the victory, and the noise that greeted it had a profound impact on me.

My dad immediately lifted me into his arms so I could see above the mass of bodies in front of me and take it all in. The feeling at full-time is something that will stay with me forever as we remained in our seats to let the crowds clear.

I was hooked.

On the walk back to the car, I couldn’t believe what I had just experienced and couldn’t wait for my next game.

It was a few years before I began to truly appreciate what I was watching on the pitch and developed a better understanding of the game itself. However, the feelings and raw emotion I experienced that day were every bit as strong at full-time against Chelsea when we secured Europa League football as they were when Andy Reid snatched three priceless points against West Ham.

Although the years since have largely consisted of painful lows and plenty of games best forgotten, it’s an experience I wouldn’t change for the world. Those same feelings have also spread to the women in my family.

It wasn’t long into the League One years before they started attending games religiously too. Now the Sara household is completely hooked and we’ve all had season tickets together for four years as we prepare to embark on a European adventure.

I hope that, when I go on to have a family of my own, I can pass on the same raw emotion and passion that can only come from following Sunderland AFC.