FOOTBALL Live

Saturday April 26, 2008 Finished Stadium of Light

Logo 3 - Logo 2

Sunderland

  • Higginbotham 5’
  • Chopra 43’
  • Murphy 90’

Middlesbrough

  • Tuncay 4’
  • Alves 72’
  1. Late goal keeps Sunderland up

    Late goal keeps Sunderland up

    Sunderland scored an injury-time winner to secure their Premier League status with a 3-2 derby victory over Middlesbrough at the Stadium of Light. More

  • Live Commentary

    Time:90'
    • Sunderland
    • Middlesbrough
    • 90' It's all over! A great win for Sunderland which pushes them to the brink of safety!
    • 90' Boro win a free kick 50 yards from goal. It's lofted into the area, but Gordon comes out to collect the ball.
    • 90' Not a bad substitution by Roy Keane.
    • 90' Sunderland score! It's Murphy who rises at the near post to head home Leadbitter's corner from the left!
    • 90' Sunderland win another corner after good work by Ken Jones.
    • 90' Five minutes of extra time to come! That's probably about right after the delay for Ken Jones's treatment.
    • 88' But Andy Reid's cross is easily collected by Brad Jones. Kenwyne Jones has fallen in a heap inside the area, but unlike at Stamford Bridge, there's no dodgy penalty decision here.
    • 87' Sunderland win a free kick in one of those 'better than a corner' positions wide on the left flank.
    • 86' Kenwyne Jones heads a Leadbitter cross goalwards in the Boro area, but it's a soft connection and easy for Brad Jones to collect.
    • 84' The corner drops nicely for Collins inside the Boro area, but he miscontrols and the ball goes into touch. Not really the man Sunderland would have wanted that chance to fall to.
    • 83' Another change for Sunderland: Murphy is on for Chopra up front.
    • 82' Boateng concedes a corner with a clearance off Andy Reid's toes in the penalty area.
    • 81' Sunderland look the more ambitious team as we head for the final whistle. But Boro look capable of nicking a goal on the break.
    • 78' Gordon collects a deep Downing cross into the Sunderland box.
    • 76' Brad Jones punches Reid's delivery clear.
    • 76' Sunderland win another corner.
    • 75' Reid takes the corner but Boro clear.
    • 74' Sunderland win a corner as they look to hit back immediately for a second time.
    • 73' Downing had missed a glorious chance seconds before the ball came to Alves in the box, and the Brazilian showed his team-mate how it's done with a low shot on the stretch which trickled over the line after Gordon had got something on it.
    • 72' Goal Middlesbrough! Afonso Alves scores with a right-footed effort after being set up in the box by a through ball from Arca from the edge of the area.
    • 71' Chopra again looks to get on to a right-wing cross put he can only toe-poke the ball into touch.
    • 69' Downing volleys a shot wide from the left-side of the Sunderland box.
    • 68' Chopra almost scores his second as he prods the ball at goal from a curling cross from the right, but Brad Jones makes a great save with his left hand.
    • 66' And Pogatetz immediately elbows Jones in the head as they compete for another high ball! Steve Bennett books the Austrian defender.
    • 65' The striker comes back on with a Terry Butcher-style bandage on his forehead to cover up a nasty cut.
    • 64' After a long break for Jones and Pogatetz to get some treatment, we're going again and Boro win a corner that Sunderland clear. Jones is still off receiving treatment.
    • 60' Brad Jones sets up another attack for Sunderland with a lame kick clear. Kenwyne Jones and Pogatetz clash heads badly as they compete for a high ball in the Boro box. The Sunderland striker looks hurt.
    • 59' Roy Keane makes his first change of the match: Leadbitter on for Edwards, who has also done virtually nothing in this match.
    • 57' Boro win a free kick on the edge of the Sunderland box after a foul by Nosworthy on Boateng. Alves shoots for goal, but fires it well over the bar.
    • 55' Substitution for Boro: Fabio Rochemback is on. I've heard it cruelly be said that he should be called Fatio Rochemback, and it has to be said he's looking a little podgy. Cattermole, who's been anonymous, comes off.
    • 52' Not the best return to the first team for Brad Jones. After some dodgy rushing off his line in the first half, he now sets up a Sunderland attack with a poor kick out of hand. The Black Cats fail to capitalise.
    • 51' Chopra is caught offside as he raced on to a long ball forward into the right channel. But replays show it was another poor decision - he was cleary onside.
    • 49' Replays show it was probably a foul by Whitehead on Downing - but it was just outside the area.
    • 48' Downing goes down under a challenge inside the Sunderland box, but Steve Bennett waves play on.
    • 47' Great play by Kenwyne Jones as he collects a long ball on his knee, races past two defenders and heads for goal. He runs out of space though, as him namesake Brad comes out to smother the ball at his feet in the Boro box.
    • 46' Boro again launch an early attack, but Higginbotham heads a dangerous Downing cross clear.
    • 46' The teams are out for the second half, and Boro get us going again.
    • 45' And that's half-time. Great comeback from Sunderland after a woeful start as Chopra - who only seems to score important goals - gives them a 2-1 lead on the stroke of half-time.
    • 44' Dean Whitehead's been booked for kicking the ball away after the whistle had gone.
    • 43' Goal Sunderland! It's Chopra with a tidy finish into the top left corner after he'd chased down a long ball and cut past Wheater with ease.
    • 41' Calamity Jones! The Boro keeper again completely mis-reads a cross, this time from the free-kick. But he's lucky again as his defenders clear away from the unguarded net.
    • 40' Sunderland win a free-kick just inside the Boro half. Pogatetz has come off worse in the challenge with big Ken Jones though, and has to get some treatment.
    • 39' Bit of a mistake there on the Alves offside by the way. Replays show that he was in fact onside. I never knew the Brazilian could run that fast. A bad decision by the linesman then, but, like me, he was probably taken unawares by Fonsy's turn of pace.
    • 37' Chopra and Wheater are getting involved in some limp-wristed pushing. It came after the striker had come in late on the big defender. Steve Bennett stomps over, gives them both a serious ticking off and books the pair of them.
    • 36' Alves is caught a mere 10 yards offside as Boro look to hit Sunderland on the break.
    • 33' Brad Jones makes a complete hash of a cross into his box which he tried to catch. He rushed off his line, missed the ball by a mile but luckily for him, Kenwyne Jones failed to capitalise.
    • 31' Richardson gets shown the first yellow of the match for a late challenge on Arca in midfield.
    • 29' Middlesbrough have the ball in the net again, but Downing's strike is rightly ruled out for offside. Alves had slipped the ball through, but the winger had just strolled offside.
    • 25' Today's early goals are a repeat of the meeting between these sides earlier in the season, when Sunderland scored in the first minute before an 11th-minute Arca equaliser for Boro. It finished 2-2 that day, a result neither side would mind this afternoon.
    • 24' Tuncay comes so close to scoring his second, heading a Downing cross from the left just wide of Gordon's right post.
    • 22' Andy Reid fails to beat the first man with the corner. Poor.
    • 21' Sunderland win a corner as Taylor cuts out a Chopra cut-back into the box.
    • 20' It's all calmed down a bit as the players look to get their second wind. Chopra appeals for a free kick after an aerial collision, but there's nothing giving from ref Steve Bennett.
    • 18' A huge incentive for both sides today: the winner is guaranteed to stay up if either Birmingham, Bolton or Reading lose.
    • 18' Boro work the ball well to release Downing in space on the left wing, but the sometime England man hits a heavy cross into touch.
    • 16' A frantic start to this game.
    • 13' Andy Reid whips a cross into the Boro box from the left wing. Chopra just fails to get on the end of it. Goal kick.
    • 9' A long ball puts Chopra one-on-one with Jones. The Sunderland striker dinks the ball past the keeper, but the shot bounces wide. Great chance.
    • 7' Alves is almost in for Boro as Sunderland's defence goes missing again, but he runs out of steam as he charges goalwards and loses the ball.
    • 6' After conceding, Sunderland went straight up the other end and almost scored through Chopra, whose volley was diverted just over by a desperate Andrew Taylor lunge. Boro cleared the resulting corner, but the ball was tossed in from the left from the second ball, and Higginbotham was there to power a header home.
    • 5' Sunderland hit back straight away. It's Higginbotham with a headed goal!
    • 4' Tuncay scores for Boro! He's played clean through on goal by a dinked Alves pass. The Turk races clear of the defence and slots a left-footed strike past Gordon!
    • 3' Tuncay makes a 50-metre break from his own half, but despite having bags of space, he lumps a shot miles over the bar.
    • 2' Boro start brightly, with Alves looking to bundle his way towards goal on the edge of the Sunderland box. The home side crowd him out though, and manage to clear.
    • 1' We're under way at the Stadium of Light. Sunderland kick-off.
    • 0' Team news: Keane starts with Jones and Chopra up front (probably the pick of his many average strikers). Skipper Dean Whitehead fills in for the injured Phil Bardsley at right-back. For Boro, Cattermole is in at right midfield for Aliadiere, who misses out completely. Brad Jones returns from injury in goal.
    • 0' Welcome to LIVE coverage of Sunderland vs Boro from the Premier League. A lot at stake this afternoon. If there's a winner, that team will pull themselves well clear of the relegation zone, while a loser would be deep in the mire. On top of that, it's a derby match AND it sees Roy Keane in the dugout against a man he once famously stamped on, Gareth Southgate.

  • Team Stats

    Sunderland Stats Middlesbrough
    60% Possession 39%
    12 Shots 11
    4 Shots on target 3
    1 Saves 2
    7 Corners 1
    8 Fouls 12
    3 Offsides 5
    3 Yellow cards 2
    0 Red cards 0
    16 Tackles 14
    208 Accurate passes 142
    46 Bad passes 44

  • Player Stats

    G =
    Goals
    S =
    Shots
    SoT =
    Shot on Target
    F =
    Fouls
    FW =
    Fouls Won
    O =
    Offsides
    A =
    Assists
    AP =
    Accurate Passes
    BP =
    Bad Passes
    T =
    Tackles
    • Sunderland
      G S SoT F FW O A AP BP T
      1 Craig Gordon 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 1 0
      5 Nyron Nosworthy 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 13 1 1
      15 Danny Collins 0 0 0 2 1 1 1 19 9 3
      14 Danny Higginbotham 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 8 6 0
      20 Andy Reid 0 2 0 1 2 0 0 17 9 2
      12 Liam Miller 0 0 0 2 0 0 1 34 4 1
      10 Kieran Richardson 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 27 10 1
      7 Carlos Edwards 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 14 0 1
      8 Dean Whitehead 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 26 0 5
      17 Kenwyne Jones 0 2 1 1 3 0 0 23 2 2
      16 Michael Chopra 1 6 2 1 1 2 0 12 3 0
      18 Grant Leadbitter 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 1 0
      11 Daryl Murphy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0
      3 Ian Harte 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      45 Rade Prica 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      32 Marton Fülöp 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
    • Middlesbrough
      G S SoT F FW O A AP BP T
      22 Bradley Jones 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 0
      31 David Wheater 0 0 0 3 1 0 0 7 1 3
      33 Andrew Taylor 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 17 9 1
      2 Luke Young 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 18 0 2
      6 Emanuel Pogatetz 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 5 4 2
      7 George Boateng 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 15 0 2
      27 Lee Cattermole 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 13 2 0
      3 Julio Arca 0 1 0 1 3 0 0 15 5 2
      19 Stewart Downing 0 5 1 0 0 1 0 18 9 1
      17 Tuncay Sanli 1 3 1 2 3 1 0 12 6 0
      12 Afonso Alves 1 2 1 0 0 2 1 12 2 0
      21 Ross Turnbull 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      15 Mohamed Shawky 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      10 Fábio Rochemback 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 9 2 1
      40 Jonathon Grounds 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
      28 Adam Johnson 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

  • Summary

    • 90' Sunderland score! It's Murphy who rises at the near post to head home Leadbitter's corner from the left!
    • 72' Goal Middlesbrough! Afonso Alves scores with a right-footed effort after being set up in the box by a through ball from Arca from the edge of the area.
    • 68' Chopra almost scores his second as he prods the ball at goal from a curling cross from the right, but Brad Jones makes a great save with his left hand.
    • 48' Downing goes down under a challenge inside the Sunderland box, but Steve Bennett waves play on.
    • 47' Great play by Kenwyne Jones as he collects a long ball on his knee, races past two defenders and heads for goal. He runs out of space though, as him namesake Brad comes out to smother the ball at his feet in the Boro box.
    • 43' Goal Sunderland! It's Chopra with a tidy finish into the top left corner after he'd chased down a long ball and cut past Wheater with ease.
    • 33' Brad Jones makes a complete hash of a cross into his box which he tried to catch. He rushed off his line, missed the ball by a mile but luckily for him, Kenwyne Jones failed to capitalise.
    • 29' Middlesbrough have the ball in the net again, but Downing's strike is rightly ruled out for offside. Alves had slipped the ball through, but the winger had just strolled offside.
    • 24' Tuncay comes so close to scoring his second, heading a Downing cross from the left just wide of Gordon's right post.
    • 9' A long ball puts Chopra one-on-one with Jones. The Sunderland striker dinks the ball past the keeper, but the shot bounces wide. Great chance.
    • 7' Alves is almost in for Boro as Sunderland's defence goes missing again, but he runs out of steam as he charges goalwards and loses the ball.
    • 5' Sunderland hit back straight away. It's Higginbotham with a headed goal!
    • 4' Tuncay scores for Boro! He's played clean through on goal by a dinked Alves pass. The Turk races clear of the defence and slots a left-footed strike past Gordon!

Live Team Line-Up

  • Sunderland

    Manager: Roy Keane

    Captain: Dean Whitehead

    On the Field

    • Gordon
    • Whitehead Yellow Card
    • Nosworthy
    • Higginbotham Goal
    • Collins
    • Edwards Substitution Out (59′)
    • Reid
    • Miller
    • Richardson Yellow Card
    • Chopra Goal Yellow Card Substitution Out (83′)
    • Jones

    Subs

    • Harte
    • Prica
    • Murphy Substitution In83′ Goal
    • Leadbitter Substitution In59′
    • Fulop

    Injured

    • Ward
    • Etuhu
    • Wallace
    • Bardsley
    • Evans

    Suspended

    None

  • Middlesbrough

    Manager: Gareth Southgate

    Captain: Emanuel Pogatetz

    On the Field

    • Jones
    • Young
    • Pogatetz Yellow Card
    • Wheater Yellow Card
    • Taylor
    • Cattermole Substitution Out (55′)
    • Boateng
    • Arca
    • Downing
    • Alves Goal
    • Tuncay Goal

    Subs

    • Rochemback Substitution In55′
    • Turnbull
    • Shawky
    • Johnson
    • Grounds

    Injured

    • Mido
    • Huth

    Suspended

    • O'Neil