Sunderland back in the Premier League after last-gasp winner against Sheffield United sees Black Cats enter top-flight after 8 years.
A few seconds in the fifth of seven stoppage-time minutes will live on in the annals of history forever: Luke O’Nien, with his right arm in a sling after he dislocated his shoulder just one minute into the match, sprinting down the touchline and punching the air with his left to celebrate Tommy Watson’s victory in stoppage time.
For Watson, who substituted in the 73rd minute, and the fans who naturally turned out in large numbers, it was the moment that launched Sunderland back into the Premier League after eight years. After 102 minutes, the seesawing competition was ended, and half of the arena celebrated. With the Tyne-Wear derby back on the schedule, Sunderland is back to playing big time. As Sheffield United’s tenth campaign comes to a conclusion, the pain continues.
It was a memorable game for Watson, who scored his third goal and likely his last for the team he joined at the under-nine level. It was also his last before he signed a £10 million contract with Brighton in the summer. The 19-year-old forward, who is from Horden, which is located along the A19 in County Durham, cannot thus be considered an unknown; yet, his name was not included on the back of the official program.
On Wearside, it won’t be forgotten anytime soon. Nor will the exact instant he caught Kieffer Moore’s awkward touch. Watson gained possession of the lost ball halfway into the Sheffield United half, pushed it out of his feet with a few touches, and then took aim, using Vinícius Souza’s enormous bulk as a dummy to guide a right-footed shot low into the bottom corner of the goal.
The circle of fans in the stands, who once again took over Trafalgar Square on the eve of this game, forgot all inhibitions when Watson tore off his shirt and O’Nien made tracks while the rest of the substitutes’ bench drained towards the suddenly ecstatic Sunderland end. Chris Wilder’s pre-match Wembley verdict, “It’s not a place for losers, is it?” was hard to avoid when the final whistle blew and United’s players collapsed to the ground.
A little while later, Sunderland’s players, under the leadership of captain Dan Neil, were racing up the Wembley steps in the direction of the royal box. Neil instructed O’Nien, the club captain, to switch positions there so that O’Nien could use his left hand to hoist the trophy in the air. Kyril Louis-Dreyfus, the 28-year-old Sunderland owner with the red tie, shook hands with Régis Le Bris, who was dressed in a black suit.