As the featured game of Sunderland AFC’s always-fascinating Founders’ Week, it was vitally important that Saturday’s visit of Wolves and a chance to bank three points against a team who already look deeply in trouble was taken — and that’s what happened.
The Lads emerged from a periodically scrappy and occasionally nervy affair as victors, and as we continue to make inroads at the top of the 2025/2026 table, showing that we’re here to do far more than merely make up the numbers, there was also a chance
to focus on the off-field developments, symbolism and acknowledgements of former club icons, in addition to the ongoing progress of our crop of new heroes, who acquitted themselves very well once again.
It’s fair to say that such occasions can often feel somewhat distracting but even if the Lads’ performance didn’t quite hit the heights that we know we can reach, it proved enough to see off the Midlanders and ensures that only Arsenal are ahead when it comes to the number of home points won this season, so our on-field business was certainly dealt with efficiently — meaning that what went on elsewhere didn’t lose any of its own significance.
At the heart of Saturday’s festivities was the much-anticipated opening of the new Keel Crossing, with various club figures in attendance and hundreds of fans eagerly waiting on the south side of the River Wear as the ribbon was finally cut.
A towering symbol of Sunderland’s ongoing renaissance and the centrepiece of what’s sure to become an even more memorable trip to and from the stadium, the new span across the Wear will prove a vital addition, particularly during evening games when the fans can flock from the centre of town to the Stadium of Light via Keel Square, before making our way home without encountering bottlenecks near St Peter’s Metro Station.
After leaving the stadium and still basking in the thrill of victory, I walked back across the footbridge on my way to the Park Lane Interchange.
Midway across, I turned around and took in the view of the stadium in the creeping darkness and the hordes of fans making their way home in the foreground — and it was quite a sight, to say the least. Factor in the nearby ‘Til The End mural and the newly-added “Moments That Matter” banners that are now hanging from lampposts in and around the Sheepfolds area, and the matchday experience is evolving into something new, something deeply personal and something even more meaningful.
The retro touches that framed our clash with Wolves felt just right, leaning heavily enough into nostalgia without feeling gimmicky or forced.
With a place in the Premier League comes the scope to showcase our club — and all of its traditions — on the biggest stage possible and I don’t think anyone could accuse the club hierarchy of not making the most of the opportunity. Yes, results on the pitch should always be the main focus, but how does the love for a club filter down through the generations? By reiterating how special it is in all areas, and this is where initiatives such as Founders’ Week are so important.
If Hummel are tapping into an enduring fondness for the shirts of yesteryear, with another Vaux/chevrons-on-the-shoulders number landing in the club shop this week, there were plenty of other things to look out for and you have to credit the club for striking exactly the right tone.
From the superb Roker Review artwork on the programme and the football sticker-themed graphics to the resurrection of the iconic dot matrix-style scoreboard (complete with the simple demand for the players to ATTACK! — a glorious throwback to the Roker Park years) and the players entering the stadium to the backdrop of the theme tune from Z Cars, this was Sunderland AFC continuing to embrace a new era while showing that our traditions and heritage remain respected.
Furthermore, the half time tributes to club icons Gordon Armstrong, FA Cup-winning hero Johnny Mapson and multiple title winner James Miller felt fitting, and when you combine such valedictories with the newly-christened Jimmy Montgomery Stand and a freshly-painted concourse that features murals of club greats, it gives Sunderland fans young and old renewed (or perhaps even first time) knowledge and understanding of the men who built our club into what it is — and in whose footsteps Granit Xhaka and his teammates now follow.
Past, present and future aligned perfectly at the Stadium of Light on Saturday, and it was a memorable day all round. Both the club and the city continue to move forward, with the new era filled with promise, potential and a tremendous amount of excitement at what might lie ahead.
