Poom to battle for place

Sunderland keeper Mark Poom has vowed to battle all the way for the number one spot as manager Mick McCarthy assesses his options.

The Estonian, currently away on international duty, arrived on Wearside earlier this season as then boss Howard Wilkinson strengthened his goalkeeping resources amid an injury crisis.

Poom was unable to take advantage of Thomas Sorensen’s dislocated elbow and Thomas Myhre’s fitness concerns as he attempted to shake off a niggling back problem it was left to forgotten man Jurge Macho to hold the fort, which he did with some style as the Black Cats briefly rallied.

However, the 31-year-old former Derby player is now raring to go, and having acted as Sorensen’s deputy in each of the last two games, is determined to oust the Dane and claim his place in McCarthy’s team.

“My aim is to establish myself as the first-choice goalkeeper here,” he said. “That’s why I came here. My goal is to play in the first team.

“I know Thomas has been number one for a while, but that’s where I want to be.

“We work hard together, we support each other and I always wish Thomas all the best when he goes out to play, but I have my personal goal.”

What seems certain is that McCarthy does not need four international goalkeepers and that one or more could make way if the club, as seems inevitable, slip back into Division One.

Speculation has been rife for some time that Sorensen could be one of the men to go as the Wearsiders attempt to cut costs and cash in on some of their assets with Arsenal being heavily tipped to make the 26-year-old an offer neither he nor his current employers can refuse.

Relegation would prove a bitter pill for each and every one of the club’s players, but for Poom in particular, it would be a devastating blow 12 months after he made the same depressing journey with Derby.

“It’s been a hard 18 months for me,” he told the Journal. “I was devastated when I went down with Derby.

“I enjoyed my time there and I thought we did well with four or five years in the Premiership.

“It’s a new challenge here and, although it’s been a difficult start, I want to be here a long time and become the number one goalkeeper at the club.

“I hope my injury problems are behind me. It was very disappointing to sign for Sunderland and then get injured almost straight away.

“It was made worse by the fact Thomas Sorensen and Thomas Myhre were also injured at that time and it would have been an opportunity for me to establish myself.

“When you come to a new club, you want to be given the chance to impress, so it was a bad start for me in that respect. Hopefully I’ll stay fit now.

“It’s been frustrating to see the team struggling and being injured. I knew I could do nothing – I couldn’t help in any way.”