JACK Ross rather liked the idea of his Sunderland players arriving at Wembley at the end of this month resplendent in gleaming white three-piece suits, perhaps with a hint of cream ,
“You know something…don’t put that past me,” said the manager of Wearside’s proud if not always triumphant football club.
It was hard to know whether he was serious or not.
What is not a joke is that his AFC Sunderland take on Portsmouth on March 31in the Checkatrade Trophy final. Yeah, that.
For the uninitiated, the EFL Cup, the competition’s formal name, is a chance for clubs in English football’s third and fourth tier to play at Wembley in a cup final.
And Ross’s side will be there, another achievement to add to this remarkable young manager’s CV.
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“I was at the old Wembley in 1996 believe it or not as a supporter when England beat us and the European Championship,” Ross recalled. “I’m told the new stadium is magnificent. The club were at there a few years ago at the League cup final and the guys have been raving about it.
“We will take 40,000 fans and more. So will Portsmouth. There is talk about there being more at this final than there was the League Cup final between Manchester City and Chelsea. “
When was the last time a Scottish manager took charge of a team with that many watching? It’s a long way from Alloa’s Recreation Park. Ross was manager there only two-and-half years ago.
A 2-0 win over Bristol Rovers on Tuesday, with on-loan Celtic winger Lewis Morgan a goalscorer, sent Sunderland to Wembley.
Ross has done it again. He saved St Mirren from League One and then within ten month took them to the Premiership. That’s when Sunderland came calling and with this comatose English giant third in League One and in a cup final, the 42-year-old is once again working his magic.
He said: “What does it mean to me? The thing is, and I used to say this when I was at St Mirren, I do view this as my job which means I don’t get carried away. I’ll admit that sometimes I don’t appreciate what’s happened because I’m so wrapped up in the job. Maybe that will happen in the fullness of time.
“But what I do recognise is that this is an incredible football club. It’s been through really tough times and yet the fan-base is loyal, unbelievably so, and hopefully this is a little bit of repayment for them.
“Even after we won on Monday night, you could sense how excited everyone was around the club because so many are fans. They are true Mackems and just happen to work at the club. I could see the excitement.
“We have a lot of important games between then now but in the week leading up the final it will be special.”
Sunderland need to get back into the Championship. That is the priority.
They sit third in the table two points behind Barnsley, who have played a game more, and leaders Luton Two a further five points to the good.
“There is a perception on the outside that we should win all the time; that Sunderland should be winning every week,” admitted Ross. That comes with the size of this club, the expectations are huge and the reality is that League One is tough.
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“Remember, this is a football club which hadn’t won a lot of games over a fair few years. There are new owners and, of course, a new management team. So, there was a lot of things to sort out and to be honest we still going through a lot of of transition.
“We have had two league defeats, four in total, over 43 games. We’ve scored in every league game. We’ve done a lot of good things this season.
“I do take pride in that but, and this is just the way I am, I’ll only take satisfaction in all of this if we win this trophy and get promotion, which was the targets I set myself right at the start when I took this job.”
Sunderland is a wonderful institution. The hope, always, was that someone would come along and get it right.
Why not this canny and clever Scot?
“This is a wonderful football club,” said Ross. It’s intense and demanding. I feel like every decision I make is scrutinised. But that’s the job.
“I genuinely believe it’s a privilege for me to be the manager of Sunderland. Who knows if I will get another chance in my career to be responsible for making so many people happy.”
Ross is making a lot of people on Wearside happy.
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