2003–04 Sunderland A.F.C. season

English football club season March 2015 March 2015 Sunderland 2003–04 Mick McCarthy Bob Murray Stadium of Light First Division 3rd Play-offs Semi-finals FA Cup Semi-finals League Cup Second round Marcus Stewart (16) 2002–03 2004–05 During the 2003–04 English football season, Sunderland A.F.C. competed in the Football League First Division. Season summary While the dismal ending to the previous season, combined with losses in their opening two matches lead to fears that Sunderland might spend the season battling a second successive relegation, a run of 7 wins from their next 10 matches quickly ended any such fears. A couple of spells of indifferent form meant that the club didn't convincingly challenge for automatic promotion until the closing stages of the season, and then another poor run of form in the season's closing stages, including the loss of a six-pointer to fellow promotion hopefuls West Bromwich Albion, just as quickly ended any such hopes. Sunderland were still considered favourites going into the play-offs, but a loss on penalties to Crystal Palace, who had gate-crashed the play-offs on the final day of the season, meant a second season in Division One (or, as it would be re-branded the following season, the Championship). Transfers In Summer DatePosNameFromFee4 August 2003MFNIR Jeff WhitleyENG Manchester CityFreehttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3122981.stm Whitley joins Sunderland 4 August 20035 August 2003DFIRE Gary BreenENG West Ham UnitedFreehttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3125829.stm Breen seals Sunderland move 5 August 200325 September 2003MFENG Tommy SmithENG WatfordFreehttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3139374.stm McCarthy happy with Smith 25 September 20033 October 2003MFIRE Alan QuinnENG Sheffield WednesdayLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/3161652.stm Quinn, Reddy swap places 3 October 200330 October 2003MFENG Stewart DowningENG MiddlesbroughLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3224527.stm Downing joins Sunderland 30 October 2003 January DatePosNameFromFee7 January 2004MFENG Kevin CooperENG Wolverhampton WanderersLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3372447.stm Black Cats sign Cooper 7 January 20046 February 2004FWJAM Darren ByfieldENG Rotherham UnitedSwap with Michael Proctorhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_div_1/3465317.stm Sunderland bag Byfield 6 February 200412 March 2004DFENG Colin CooperENG MiddlesbroughLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3505050.stm Cooper joins Sunderland 12 March 200424 March 2004MFWAL Carl RobinsonENG PortsmouthLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3564809.stm Black Cats sign Robinson 24 March 2004 Out Summer DatePosNameToFee1 June 2003MFSWE Stefan SchwarzRetired Retired11 June 2003DFIRE Cliff ByrneENG Scunthorpe UnitedFreehttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/s/scunthorpe_utd/3024813.stm Iron sign Byrne 11 June 20031 July 2003FWFRA David BellionENG Manchester UnitedFreehttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/m/man_utd/3030903.stm Bellion joins Man Utd July 20033 July 2003GKAustria Jurgen MachoENG ChelseaFreehttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/3048195.stm Macho to join Chelsea 21 May 20039 July 2003FWFRA Lilian LaslandesFRA NiceFreehttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/3022730.stm Nice land Laslandes 9 July 20039 July 2003DFSUI Bernt HaasHaas was born in Vienna, Austria, but also qualified to represent Switzerland internationally and made his international debut for Switzerland in 1996.ENG West Bromwich Albion£400,000https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/w/west_bromwich_albion/3040802.stm Baggies complete Haas signing 9 July 200324 July 2003MFENG Gavin McCannENG Aston Villa£2.25 millionhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/a/aston_villa/3090959.stm Villa complete McCann deal 24 July 200331 July 2003DFENG Jody CraddockENG Wolverhampton Wanderers£1.75 millionhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/w/wolverhampton_wanderers/3113667.stm Wolves sign Craddock 31 July 20038 August 2003GKDEN Thomas SorensenENG Aston Villa£2.25 millionhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/a/aston_villa/3134623.stm Sorensen joins Villa 8 August 200314 August 2003FWENG Kevin PhillipsENG Southampton£3.25 millionhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/s/southampton/3150981.stm Southampton land Phillips 14 August 200320 August 2003MFARG Nicolás MedinaESP LeganésSeason-long loanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3167711.stm Medina off to Spain 20 August 200323 August 2003FWNOR Tore André FloITA SienaUndisclosedhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3169055.stm Flo completes Siena move 23 August 200329 August 2003MFUSA Claudio ReynaENG Manchester City£2.5 millionhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/m/man_city/3189535.stm Man City sign Reyna 29 August 200329 August 2003DFBRA Emerson ThomeENG Bolton WanderersFreehttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/b/bolton_wanderers/3191447.stm Thome heads to Bolton 29 August 20031 September 2003MFIRE Kevin KilbaneKilbane 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.ENG Everton£1 millionhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/3199399.stm Everton capture Kilbane September 20031 September 2003DFENG Michael GraySCO CelticFour-month loan (September to December)https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/celtic/3197417.stm Celtic move delights Gray September 200325 September 2003FWIRL Keith GraydonENG ScarboroughFreehttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/scarborough/3139642.stm Seasiders sign Graydon 25 September 20033 October 2003FWIRE Michael ReddyENG Sheffield WednesdayLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/3161652.stm Quinn, Reddy swap places 3 October 20033 October 2003FWENG Chris BrownENG Doncaster RoversLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/d/doncaster/3163972.stm Doncaster seal Brown deal 4 October 200323 October 2003GKNOR Thomas MyhreENG Crystal PalaceLoan13 November 2003DFENG Craig JamesENG DarlingtonLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/d/darlington/3267881.stm James joins Quakers 13 November 2003 January DatePosNameFromFee27 January 2004DFENG Michael GrayENG Blackburn RoversFreehttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/b/blackburn_rovers/3435345.stm Blackburn seal Gray deal 27 January 20046 February 2004FWNIR Neil TeggartENG DarlingtonLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3466661.stm Black Cats reject windfall 6 February 20046 February 2004FWENG Michael ProctorENG Rotherham UnitedSwap for Darren Byfieldhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_div_1/3465317.stm Sunderland bag Byfield 6 February 200425 February 2004MFENG Jonjo DickmanENG York CityLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/y/york_city/3517321.stm York seal Dickman deal 24 February 200415 March 2004GKNIR Michael InghamWAL WrexhamLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/w/wrexham/3513330.stm Wrexham land Ingham 15 March 200419 March 2004DFENG Craig JamesENG Port ValeLoanhttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/p/port_vale/3551307.stm James joins Vale on loan 19 March 200425 March 2004MFENG Chris BlackENG Doncaster RoversFreehttps://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/d/doncaster/3579829.stm Penney poised for promotion 29 March 2004 Players First-team squad Squad at end of seasonhttp://www.footballsquads.co.uk/eng/2003-2004/d1/sunder.htm FootballSquads - Sunderland - 2003/04 1 EST GK Mart Poom 2 ENG DF Stephen Wright 3 NIR DF George McCartney 4 IRL MF Jason McAteerMcAteer 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. 5 IRL DF Gary BreenBreen was born in Barnet, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and made his international debut for the Republic of Ireland in May 1996. 6 ENG DF Ben Clark 7 ENG MF Matt Piper 8 NIR MF Jeff WhitleyWhitley was born in Ndola, Zambia, but was raised in England and also qualified to represent Northern Ireland internationally through his father. He represented England at U-17 level and Northern Ireland at U-21 level before making his international debut for Northern Ireland in 1997. 9 SCO FW Kevin Kyle 10 ENG FW Marcus Stewart 11 ENG FW Tommy Smith 12 WAL MF John OsterOster 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. 13 NIR GK Michael InghamIngham 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. 15 IRL MF Sean Thornton 16 ENG DF Darren Williams 17 JAM FW Darren ByfieldByfield was born in Sutton Coldfield, England, but also qualified to represent Jamaica internationally and made his international debut for Jamaica in 2003. 18 IRL DF Phil BabbBabb 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. 20 IRL MF Thomas Butler 21 ENG MF Paul Thirlwell 22 SWE DF Joachim Björklund 24 WAL MF Carl Robinson on loan from Portsmouth 25 IRL MF Colin Healy 30 ENG MF Grant Leadbitter 33 ARG DF Julio Arca 36 ENG DF Simon Ramsden 40 NOR GK Thomas Myhre Left club during season 11 IRL MF Kevin Kilbane to Everton 14 ENG FW Michael Proctor to Rotherham United 14 ENG DF Colin Cooper on loan from Middlesbrough 17 ENG DF Michael Gray to Blackburn Rovers 19 ENG FW Kevin Phillips to Southampton 19 IRL MF Alan Quinn on loan from Sheffield Wednesday 19 ENG MF Kevin Cooper on loan from Wolves 23 ENG MF Chris Black to Doncaster Rovers 24 USA MF Claudio Reyna to Manchester City 24 ENG MF Stewart Downing on loan from Middlesbrough 29 NOR FW Tore André Flo to Siena 34 ENG DF Craig James to Port Vale 37 BRA DF Emerson Thome to Bolton Wanderers 42 ARG MF Nicolás Medina on loan to Leganés Reserves The following players did not appear for the first-team this season. 26 ENG MF Jonjo Dickman 27 IRL MF Richie Ryan 28 ENG DF Patrick Collins 31 ENG FW Chris Brown 32 IRL DF Mark Rossiter 35 ENG DF Chris Scott 38 NIR MF Chris Kingsberry 39 NIR FW Neil Teggart 41 ENG GK Ben Alnwick 42 SCO GK Euan McLean 43 IRL FW Michael Reddy ENG DF Sean Taylor Results Sunderland's score comes first. WinDrawLoss League Cup DateRoundOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers 12 August 2003 First roundMansfield TownField Mill2-15,665Kyle, Artell (own goal) 23 September 2003 Second roundHuddersfield TownStadium of Light2-413,516Kyle (2) FA Cup DateRoundOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers 2 January 2004 Third roundHartlepool UnitedStadium of Light1-040,816Arca 24 January 2004 Fourth roundIpswich TownPortman Road2-121,406Smith, Arca 14 February 2004 Fifth roundBirmingham CityStadium of Light1-124,966Kyle 25 February 2004 Fifth round replayBirmingham CitySt Andrew's2-0 (after extra time)25,645Smith (2) 7 March 2004 Quarter-finalSheffield UnitedStadium of Light1-037,115Smith 4 April 2004 Semi-finalMillwallOld Trafford0-156,112 Football League First Division 2003–04 Football League First Division League table SUN Results summary 13 8 2 33 15 9 5 9 29 30 4 December 2018 11v11 May 2007 Results by matchday table b Round Ground A/H/A/H/A/H/A/A/H/H/A/H/H/H/A/A/A/H/A/H/H/A/A/H/H/A/H/A/A/A/A/H/H/H/A/H/H/A/H/A/H/A/A/H/H/A Result L/L/W/W/W/W/L/D/W/W/W/D/W/D/L/D/W/D/L/D/D/D/L/W/W/W/W/L/D/L/W/D/W/D/W/W/W/W/W/L/L/L/D/D/W/W Position 21/23/17/8/7/4/8/9/5/5/4/4/4/4/5/5/4/5/5/8/6/6/10/8/5/4/4/4/6/7/9/9/7/7/6/4/3/3/3/3/3/3/3/4/3/3 Home Away green2 Win yellow2 Draw red2 Loss 1st 2nd yellow1 red1 DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers 9 August 2003 Nottingham ForestCity Ground0-223,529 16 August 2003 MillwallStadium of Light0-124,877 23 August 2003 Preston North EndDeepdale2-014,080Thornton, Stewart 25 August 2003 WatfordStadium of Light2-023,600Wright, Stewart (pen) 30 August 2003 Bradford CityValley Parade4-014,116Thornton, Stewart, Arca, Breen 13 September 2003 Crystal PalaceStadium of Light2-127,324Kyle, Stewart (pen) 16 September 2003 Stoke CityBritannia Stadium1-315,005Kyle 20 September 2003 Derby CountyPride Park1-122,535Poom 26 September 2003 ReadingStadium of Light2-022,420Arca, Oster 30 September 2003 Ipswich TownStadium of Light3-224,840Breen, Oster, Kyle 4 October 2003 Sheffield UnitedBramall Lane1-027,008Kyle 14 October 2003 Cardiff CityStadium of Light0-026,835 18 October 2003 WalsallStadium of Light1-036,278Stewart 21 October 2003 Rotherham UnitedStadium of Light0-024,506 25 October 2003 Norwich CityCarrow Road0-116,427 1 November 2003 West Bromwich AlbionThe Hawthorns0-026,135 4 November 2003 GillinghamPriestfield Stadium3-19,066Downing, Oster, Stewart 8 November 2003 Coventry CityStadium of Light0-027,247 22 November 2003 Crewe AlexandraGresty Road3-09,807 29 November 2003 BurnleyStadium of Light1-129,852Kyle 2 December 2003 Wigan AthleticStadium of Light1-122,167Downing (pen) 8 December 2003 Coventry CityHighfield Road1-112,913Downing 13 December 2003 West Ham UnitedBoleyn Ground2-330,329Oster, McAteer 20 December 2003 WimbledonStadium of Light2-122,334Proctor, Stewart (pen) 26 December 2003 Bradford CityStadium of Light3-029,639McAteer, Smith, Kyle 28 December 2003 Rotherham UnitedMillmoor2-011,455Stewart (2, 1 pen) 10 January 2004 Nottingham ForestStadium of Light1-026,340Arca 17 January 2004 MillwallThe Den1-213,048Stewart 7 February 2004 WatfordVicarage Road2-216,798Stewart, Byfield 21 February 2004 Cardiff CityNinian Park0-417,337 3 March 2004 WalsallBescot Stadium3-17,185Arca, Stewart, Kyle 10 March 2004 Preston North EndStadium of Light3-327,181Stewart (pen), Thornton, Mears (own goal) 13 March 2004 West Ham UnitedStadium of Light2-029,533Whitley, Kyle 16 March 2004 Stoke CityStadium of Light1-124,510Byfield 20 March 2004 ReadingMadjeski Stadium2-018,019Byfield, Smith 23 March 2004 GillinghamStadium of Light2-123,262Byfield, Thornton 27 March 2004 Derby CountyStadium of Light2-130,838Smith, Oster 6 April 2004 WimbledonNational Hockey Stadium2-14,800Byfield, Stewart 9 April 2004 Sheffield UnitedStadium of Light3-027,472Breen, Smith, Kyle 12 April 2004 Ipswich TownPortman Road0-126,801 18 April 2004 West Bromwich AlbionStadium of Light0-132,201 21 April 2004 Crystal PalaceSelhurst Park0-318,291 24 April 2004 Wigan AthleticJJB Stadium0-011,380 1 May 2004 Crewe AlexandraStadium of Light1-125,311Whitley 4 May 2004 Norwich CityStadium of Light1-035,174Robinson 9 May 2004 BurnleyTurf Moor2-118,252Breen, Kyle Football League First Division play-offs DateLegOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers 14 May 2004 Leg 1Crystal PalaceSelhurst Park2–325,287Kyle, Stewart (pen) 17 May 2004 Leg 2Crystal PalaceStadium of Light2–1 (4–4 on aggregate, Sunderland lost 5–4 on penalties)34,536Kyle, Stewart Goal scorers PositionNationNumberNameLeagueLeague CupFA CupTotalFWENG10Marcus Stewart160016FWSCO9Kevin Kyle123116MFENG11Tommy Smith4048MFARG33Julio Arca4026FWJAM17Darren Byfield5005MFWAL12John Oster5005MFIRE15Sean Thornton4004DFIRE5Gary Breen4004MFENG24Stewart Downing3003MFIRE4Jason McAteer2002MFNIR8Jeff Whitley2002///Own goals1102MFWAL24Carl Robinson1001DFENG2Stephen Wright1001GKEST1Mart Poom1001FWENG14Michael Proctor1001///Totals624773 References 3 McCarthy vows to keep Arca - https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/c/celtic/3349923.stm Sunderland want Jon Stead - https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/sunderland/3410371.stm Notes notes Category:Sunderland A.F.C. seasons Sunderland