a further somewhat unexpected tale off of Sunderland for you. indeed yes this happened when i was in the place for the Hugh Cornwell gig, look you see. as for what "this" is, well, i would imagine you may well have worked that one out from the title of the post.
there exists variations of reasons why i try at least once a year to post here a statue which can be found outside of a football stadium. in truth i thought this would not happen this year, and i may have had to cheat, pointing out that Sir Mick Jagger is famed for attending matches. how very fortunate, then, that my journey to stay at a hotel for the Hugh Cornwell gig took me past the (rightly) celebrated Stadium of Light stadium.
for those who do not know who(m) this is a statue of, and also missed the clue in the title, that's none other than Bob Stokoe, the manager who(m) led Sunderland to a surprise FA Cup win in 1973. this was in the days when both the FA Cup really, really mattered and was (rightly) important, and yes it was a true surprise result. Sunderland, of the second division, won 1-0 against the much celebrated, top division high flyers Leeds United. this statue captures the moment Mr Stokoe went charging off in celebration at the blowing of the final whistle.
of all the statues i have encountered on my travels, be it specifically to seek football related ones for here or simple chance sightings, this is one of the greatest. to some this may sound a bit silly, but i just love the dynamics of it, how it captures a sense of movement, of motion and of course of emotion. i would imagine it's very difficult to do so in something which by definition is motionless.
sorry, yes, i should (indeed) have put some sort of warning before the picture above, for it does indeed feature me, or moi, stood next to it. not a selfie, though.
my favourite detail, and perhaps the key to its magnificence, is the curves on the jacket belt. it gives an inescapable sense of free flowing movement. not at all sure i have done it justice here with the pictures i have added, but then i suppose that's true of all pictures here. still, all the more reason to, if you get the chance, go and see the statue yourself.
yes, as an ostensible Middlesbrough fan there should be a sense of "rivalry" here. except there isn't really. we happen to be close to them, and "derby days" are often somewhat heated. for the real, or true North East "rivalry", well, that's Sunderland vs Newcastle. for us down in Boro we are quite happy being a decent club town that frequently punches well above our weight.
going back to the importance the FA Cup used to have would be to encourage you to seek out a documentary i once saw on the 73 final. a film crew went out and filmed the streets of both cities just before kick off, and not a single person was to be seen. that's what is meant by a community spirit that has faded if not been lost. now the FA Cup is kind of dismissed by certain top flight clubs, seeing it as a distraction from seeking money via treading water in the all encompassing premier league.
how big, exactly, can a "big" club be if they are so flimsy about a competition which has inspired passion and love for the game (and teams) for generation after generation?
be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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