Black Cats back to earth as Fuller lifts Stoke’s spirits
Predictably, Rory Delap — one of three Stoke players along with Thomas Sorensen and Danny Higginbotham to play against their former club — was the architect with one of his trademark long throws.
Fuller rose above Dean Whitehead on the six-yard line to power his header past Marton Fulop in the 73rd minute.
It was Stoke’s first victory over Sunderland in the top flight since a 2-1 win in March 1984, when the Staffordshire club successfully fought a battle against relegation. Most in the Potteries will be hoping that is an omen.
Sunderland coach Roy Keane said his side didn’t deserve anything out of the game.
“We never really got started and we made it really hard for ourselves,” he said.
“We just looked very sloppy and overall in terms of our passing very poor tonight and we didn’t deserve nothing tonight.
“I think you have got to earn the right to win games of football and we didn’t do that tonight.”
Striker Kenwyne Jones showed the most desire of the Black Cats’ players when he came on to play the full second-half and Keane believed his contribution was the ‘one big bonus’ of the evening.
“He will have a chance of starting on Saturday because we need a few more attacking options because their keeper had one save to make and that is clearly not good enough,” he said.
Prior to kick-off, eight of Stoke’s 10 Premier League goals this season had been scored in the second half, while the same number of Sunderland’s 13 goals in all competitions had come after the 80-minute mark. It seemed inevitable then that the game should reach the interval goalless.
Jones started the second half having replaced fellow Trinidad and Tobago international Dwight Yorke at the break. It was only Jones’ second first-team appearance in four months after returning from a knee ligament injury as a substitute against Newcastle on Saturday.
Sunderland didn’t trouble Thomas Sorensen’s goal until the 84th minute, but he was equal to the task, getting down low to block Jones’ angled shot with a strong right hand before smothering the ball at the second attempt.
STOKE: Sorensen; Griffin (capt), Abdoulaye Faye, Shawcross, Higginbotham; Soares (Tonge 70), Olofinjana (Amdy Faye 75), Diao, Delap; Sidibe, Fuller (Kitson 90). Subs not used: Simonsen (gk), Pericard, Wilkinson, Sonko.
SUNDERLAND: Fulop; Bardsley, Ferdinand, Collins, McCartney; Malbranque (Reid, 75), Whitehead (capt), Yorke (Jones, ht), Richardson; Diouf, Cisse (Chopra, 62) . Subs not used: Colgan, Tainio, Nosworthy, Leadbitter.
Referee: Chris Foy.
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