2002–03 Sunderland A.F.C. season

During the 2002–03 season, Sunderland competed in the FA Premier League.

Sunderland A.F.C.
2002–03 season
ChairmanBob Murray
ManagerPeter Reid (until 7 October)
Howard Wilkinson (from 10 October until 10 March)
Mick McCarthy (from 12 March)
StadiumStadium of Light
FA Premier League20th (relegated)
FA CupFifth round
League CupFourth round
Top goalscorerLeague:
Kevin Phillips (6)

All:
Kevin Phillips (9)
Highest home attendance47,586 (vs. Manchester United, 31 August)
Lowest home attendance14,550 (vs. Bolton Wanderers, 14 January)
Average home league attendance36,885

Season Summary

Sunderland spent the entire first half of the 2002-03 Premier League season in and out of the relegation zone. The poor form that the club had ended 2001-02 with continued into this season, resulting in Peter Reid being sacked after seven years as manager following a 3-1 loss to Arsenal in October just before the international break. Three days later, despite speculation linking recently-departed Ireland manager Mick McCarthy to the job, the board made the shock decision to hire Howard Wilkinson, who had been out of club management for six years.

Despite a loss to West Ham in Wilkinson's first match in charge, Sunderland ground out a four-match unbeaten run in the games that followed, as well as gaining a surprise victory over Liverpool and a point against fellow strugglers West Brom just before Christmas. However, a truly appalling second half of the season saw Sunderland earn just one point after Christmas. Wilkinson was sacked in March and McCarthy brought in to replace him, but the change proved too little too late, with Sunderland ending the season with a staggering run of 15 consecutive defeats, and setting new records for the fewest goals scored by a top-flight club, and the lowest points total for a Premier League club since the competition began (albeit not the lowest since the introduction of three points for a win; Sunderland would, however, break that record three seasons later).

Transfers

Summer

Date Pos Name From Fee
8 July 2002 MF Sean Thornton Tranmere Rovers £225,000[1]
15 August 2002 DF Stephen Wright Liverpool £3,000,000
21 August 2002 MF Matt Piper Leicester City £3,500,000
30 August 2002 FW Tore Andre Flo Rangers £6,750,000
30 August 2002 FW Marcus Stewart Ipswich Town £3,250,000
15 November 2002 GK Mart Poom Derby County Loan

January

Date Pos Name From Fee
10 January 2003 GK Mart Poom Derby County £2,500,000
31 January 2003 DF Talal El Karkouri Paris Saint Germain Loan

Summer

Date Pos Name To Fee
31 October 2002 MF John Oster Grimsby Town Loan
1 November 2002 FW Michael Reddy York City Loan
7 November 2002 MF Sean Thornton Blackpool Loan
22 November 2002 GK Michael Ingham Darlington Loan

January

Date Pos Name To Fee
11 January 2003 FW Dene Shields Raith Rovers £60,000
24 January 2003 GK Michael Ingham York City Loan
30 January 2003 FW Michael Reddy Sheffield Wednesday Loan
12 February 2003 DF Stanislav Varga Celtic Free
21 February 2003 MF John Oster Grimsby Town Loan
27 March 2003 FW Keith Graydon York City Loan

Players

First-team squad

Squad at end of season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  DEN Thomas Sørensen
2 DF  ENG Stephen Wright
3 DF  ENG Michael Gray (captain)
4 MF  USA Claudio Reyna
5 DF  IRL Phil Babb[notes 1]
6 DF  BRA Emerson Thome
7 MF  ENG Matt Piper
8 MF  ENG Gavin McCann
9 FW  NOR Tore André Flo
10 FW  ENG Kevin Phillips
11 MF  IRL Kevin Kilbane[notes 2]
12 DF  SWE Joachim Björklund
14 MF  IRL Thomas Butler
15 FW  FRA David Bellion
16 MF  IRL Jason McAteer[notes 3]
17 DF  ENG Jody Craddock
18 DF  ENG Darren Williams
19 FW  SCO Kevin Kyle
No. Pos. Nation Player
20 MF  SWE Stefan Schwarz
21 MF  ENG Paul Thirlwell
22 DF  MAR Talal El Karkouri (on loan from Paris Saint-Germain)
23 MF  ARG Nicolás Medina
24 MF  IRL Sean Thornton
25 DF  ENG Ben Clark
26 GK  NOR Thomas Myhre
27 DF  NIR George McCartney
28 MF  WAL John Oster[notes 4]
29 MF  ENG Chris Black
30 GK  AUT Jürgen Macho
31 FW  ENG Marcus Stewart
32 FW  ENG Michael Proctor
33 DF  ARG Julio Arca
34 DF  IRL Mark Rossiter
36 MF  IRL Richie Ryan
37 MF  ENG Jonjo Dickman
40 GK  EST Mart Poom

Left club during season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
22 DF  SVK Stanislav Varga (to Celtic)
22 DF   SUI Bernt Haas[notes 5] (on loan to Basel)
No. Pos. Nation Player
29 FW  IRL Niall Quinn (retired)

Reserve squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
13 GK  NIR Michael Ingham[notes 6]
35 DF  IRL Cliff Byrne
38 GK  ENG Craig Turns
41 DF  ENG Patrick Collins
GK  ENG John Kennedy
DF  ENG Chris Scott
DF  ENG Craig James
No. Pos. Nation Player
DF  IRL Stephen Capper
DF  TUR Baki Mercimek[notes 7]
MF  ENG Grant Leadbitter
MF  ENG Carl Shippen
FW  SCO Dene Shields
FW  NIR Neil Teggart
FW  IRL Keith Graydon

Results

Football League Cup

DateRoundOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
1 October 2002Second roundCambridge UnitedAbbey Stadium7-08,175Reyna, McCann, Arca, Flo (2), Stewart (2)
6 November 2002Third roundArsenalHighbury3-219,059Kyle, Stewart (2)
3 December 2002Fourth roundSheffield UnitedBramall Lane0-227,068

FA Cup

DateRoundOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
4 January 2003Third roundBolton WanderersReebok Stadium1-110,132Phillips
14 January 2003Third round replayBolton WanderersStadium of Light2-014,550Arca, Proctor
25 January 2003Fourth roundBlackburn RoversEwood Park3-314,315Stewart, Proctor and Phillips
5 February 2003Fourth round replayBlackburn RoversStadium of Light2-2 a.e.t.
(won 3-0 on penalties)
15,745McCann, Phillips
15 February 2003Fifth roundWatfordStadium of Light0-126,916

FA Premier League

League table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
16 Aston Villa 38 12 9 17 42 47 5 45
17 Bolton Wanderers 38 10 14 14 41 51 10 44
18 West Ham United (R) 38 10 12 16 42 59 17 42 Relegation to Football League First Division
19 West Bromwich Albion (R) 38 6 8 24 29 65 36 26
20 Sunderland (R) 38 4 7 27 21 65 44 19
Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(R) Relegated.

Results per matchday

Matchday1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526272829303132333435363738
GroundAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHHAHAAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAH
ResultDLWDLLLWLLDDWDLLLWDLLLDLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
Position1014101112181916171819181617171819171718181818181820202020202020202020202020
Source: Statto.com
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss
Date Opponents Venue Result Scorers Attendance
17 August 2002 Blackburn Rovers Ewood Park 0-0 27,122
24 August 2002 Everton Stadium of Light 0-1 37,698
28 August 2002 Leeds United Elland Road 1-0 Jason McAteer 46' 39,929
31 August 2002 Manchester United Stadium of Light 1-1 Flo 70' 47,586
10 September 2002 Middlesbrough Riverside Stadium 0-3 32,155
14 September 2002 Fulham Stadium of Light 0-3 35,432
21 September 2002 Newcastle United St James' Park 0-2 52,181
28 September 2002 Aston Villa Stadium of Light 1-0 David Bellion 70' 40,492
6 October 2002 Arsenal Highbury 1-3 Jody Craddock 83' 37,902
19 October 2002 West Ham United Stadium of Light 0-1 44,352
28 October 2002 Bolton Wanderers Reebok Stadium 1-1 Michael Gray 45' 23,036
3 November 2002 Charlton Athletic The Valley 1-1 Flo 15' 26,284
10 November 2002 Tottenham Hotspur Stadium of Light 2-0 Kevin Phillips 60', Flo 62' 40,024
17 November 2002 Liverpool Anfield 0-0 43,074
23 November 2002 Birmingham City Stadium of Light 0-1 38,803
30 November 2002 Chelsea Stamford Bridge 0-3 38,946
9 December 2002 Manchester City Stadium of Light 0-3 36,511
15 December 2002 Liverpool Stadium of Light 2-1 Gavin McCann 36', Michael Proctor 85' 37,118
21 December 2002 West Bromwich Albion The Hawthorns 2-2 Kevin Phillips 56', 64' 26,703
26 December 2002 Leeds United Stadium of Light 1-2 Michael Proctor 34' 44,029
28 December 2002 Southampton St Mary's Stadium 1-2 Flo 77' 36,242
1 January 2003 Manchester United Old Trafford 1-2 Juan Sebastián Verón 4' o.g. 67,609
11 January 2003 Blackburn Rovers Stadium of Light 0-0 36,529
18 January 2003 Everton Goodison Park 1-2 Kevin Kilbane 34' 37,409
28 January 2003 Southampton Stadium of Light 0-1 34,102
1 February 2003 Charlton Athletic Stadium of Light 1-3 Kevin Phillips 81' pen. 36,042
8 February 2003 Tottenham Hotspur White Hart Lane 1-4 Kevin Phillips 26' 36,075
22 February 2003 Middlesbrough Stadium of Light 1-3 Kevin Phillips 56' 42,134
1 March 2003 Fulham Loftus Road 0-1 16,286
15 March 2003 Bolton Wanderers Stadium of Light 0-2 42,124
22 March 2003 West Ham United Boleyn Ground 0-2 35,033
5 April 2003 Chelsea Stadium of Light 1-2 Sean Thornton 12' 40,011
12 April 2003 Birmingham City St. Andrew's 0-2 29,132
19 April 2003 West Bromwich Albion Stadium of Light 1-2 Marcus Stewart 70' 36,025
21 April 2003 Manchester City Maine Road 0-3 34,357
26 April 2003 Newcastle United Stadium of Light 0-1 45,067
3 May 2003 Aston Villa Villa Park 0-1 36,963
11 May 2003 Arsenal Stadium of Light 0-4 40,188

Statistics

Appearances and goals

No. Pos Nat Player TotalPremier LeagueFA CupLeague Cup
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Goalkeepers
1 GK Thomas Sørensen 2502104000
26 GK Thomas Myhre 301+100010
30 GK Jürgen Macho 16012+101020
40 GK Mart Poom 40400000
Defenders
2 DF Stephen Wright 29025+103000
3 DF Michael Gray 3613214000
5 DF Phil Babb 3002603010
6 DF Emerson Thome 50102020
12 DF Joachim Björklund 22019+101+1000
17 DF Jody Craddock 3012514010
18 DF Darren Williams 21112+402031
22 DF Talal El Karkouri 90800+1000
25 DF Ben Clark 200+101000
27 DF George McCartney 30016+801+202+10
33 DF Julio Arca 1827+604111
34 DF Mark Rossiter 30000+1020
37 DF Jonjo Dickman 100+100000
Midfielders
4 MF Claudio Reyna 1211100011
7 MF Matthew Piper 1408+50000+10
8 MF Gavin McCann 35329+113121
11 MF Kevin Kilbane 3413013010
14 MF Thomas Butler 8070000+10
16 MF Jason McAteer 101911000
21 MF Paul Thirlwell 21012+60101+10
23 MF Nicolás Medina 10001000
24 MF Sean Thornton 1411113000
28 MF John Oster 501+201+1000
29 MF Chris Black 20200000
36 MF Richie Ryan 200+200000
Forwards
9 FW Tore André Flo 32623+641+1012
10 FW Kevin Phillips 3693264300
15 FW David Bellion 1415+610+1020
19 FW Kevin Kyle 2219+802+1021
31 FW Marcus Stewart 2459+1012133
32 FW Michael Proctor 28311+1023+2120
Players transferred out during the season
22 DF Stanislav Varga 30000+1020
29 FW Niall Quinn 800+800000

Goal scorers

Position Nation Number Name FA Premier League League Cup FA Cup Total
FW 10 Kevin Phillips 6 0 3 9
FW 31 Marcus Stewart 1 4 1 6
FW 9 Tore André Flo 4 2 0 6
FW 32 Michael Proctor 2 0 2 4
MF 8 Gavin McCann 1 1 1 3
MF 33 Julio Arca 0 1 1 2
DF 3 Micky Gray 1 0 0 1
DF 17 Jody Craddock 1 0 0 1
MF 24 Sean Thornton 1 0 0 1
MF 11 Kevin Kilbane 1 0 0 1
FW 15 David Bellion 1 0 0 1
MF 16 Jason McAteer 1 0 0 1
FW 19 Kevin Kyle 0 1 0 1
MF 4 Claudio Reyna 0 1 0 1
Own goal 1 0 0 1
/ / / Total 21 10 8 39

References

  1. The fee was compensation agreed at an FA tribunal.

Notes

  1. Babb was born in Lambeth, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and made his international debut for the Republic of Ireland in 1994.
  2. Kilbane was born in Preston, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally through his parents and represented them at U-21 level before making his international debut for Republic of Ireland in September 1997.
  3. McAteer was born in Tranmere, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and made his international debut for the Republic of Ireland in March 1994.
  4. Oster was born in Boston, England, but also qualified to represent Wales internationally and represented them at U-18 and U-21 level before making his international debut for Wales in 1997.
  5. Haas was born in Vienna, Austria, but also qualified to represent Switzerland internationally and made his international debut for Switzerland in 1996.
  6. Ingham was born in Preston, England, but also qualified to represent Northern Ireland internationally and represented them at U-18 and U-21 level before making his international debut for Northern Ireland in June 2005.
  7. Mercimek was born in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, but also qualified to represent Turkey internationally and would represent them at U-21 level before making his international debut for Turkey in 2006.
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