2002–03 Sunderland A.F.C. season

English football club season March 2015 March 2015 Sunderland A.F.C. 2002–03 Peter Reid (until 7 October)Howard Wilkinson (from 10 October until 10 March)Mick McCarthy (from 12 March) Bob Murray Stadium of Light FA Premier League 20th (relegated) FA Cup Fifth round League Cup Fourth round Kevin Phillips (6) Kevin Phillips (9) 47,586 (vs. Manchester United, 31 August) 14,550 (vs. Bolton Wanderers, 14 January) 36,885 2001–02 2003–04 During the 2002–03 season, Sunderland competed in the FA Premier League. 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 In Summer DatePosNameFromFee8 July 2002MFIRL Sean ThorntonENG Tranmere Rovers£225,000The fee was compensation agreed at an FA tribunal.15 August 2002DFENG Stephen WrightENG Liverpool£3,000,00021 August 2002MFENG Matt PiperENG Leicester City£3,500,00030 August 2002FWNOR Tore Andre FloSCO Rangers£6,750,00030 August 2002FWENG Marcus StewartENG Ipswich Town£3,250,00015 November 2002GKEST Mart PoomENG Derby CountyLoan January DatePosNameFromFee10 January 2003GKEST Mart PoomENG Derby County£2,500,00031 January 2003DFMAR Talal El KarkouriFRA Paris Saint GermainLoan Out Summer DatePosNameToFee31 October 2002MFWAL John OsterENG Grimsby TownLoan1 November 2002FWIRE Michael ReddyENG York CityLoan7 November 2002MFIRE Sean ThorntonENG BlackpoolLoan22 November 2002GKNIR Michael InghamENG DarlingtonLoan January DatePosNameToFee11 January 2003FWSCO Dene ShieldsSCO Raith Rovers£60,00024 January 2003GKNIR Michael InghamENG York CityLoan30 January 2003FWIRE Michael ReddyENG Sheffield WednesdayLoan12 February 2003DFSVK Stanislav VargaSCO CelticFree21 February 2003MFWAL John OsterENG Grimsby TownLoan27 March 2003FWIRL Keith GraydonENG York CityLoan Players First-team squad Squad at end of season 1 DEN GK Thomas Sørensen 2 ENG DF Stephen Wright 3 ENG DF Michael Gray captain 4 USA MF Claudio Reyna 5 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. 6 BRA DF Emerson Thome 7 ENG MF Matt Piper 8 ENG MF Gavin McCann 9 NOR FW Tore André Flo 10 ENG FW Kevin Phillips 11 IRL MF 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. 12 SWE DF Joachim Björklund 14 IRL MF Thomas Butler 15 FRA FW David Bellion 16 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. 17 ENG DF Jody Craddock 18 ENG DF Darren Williams 19 SCO FW Kevin Kyle 20 SWE MF Stefan Schwarz 21 ENG MF Paul Thirlwell 22 MAR DF Talal El Karkouri on loan from Paris Saint-Germain 23 ARG MF Nicolás Medina 24 IRL MF Sean Thornton 25 ENG DF Ben Clark 26 NOR GK Thomas Myhre 27 NIR DF George McCartney 28 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. 29 ENG MF Chris Black 30 AUT GK Jürgen Macho 31 ENG FW Marcus Stewart 32 ENG FW Michael Proctor 33 ARG DF Julio Arca 34 IRL DF Mark Rossiter 36 IRL MF Richie Ryan 37 ENG MF Jonjo Dickman 40 EST GK Mart Poom Left club during season 22 SVK DF Stanislav Varga to Celtic 22 SUI DF Bernt HaasHaas was born in Vienna, Austria, but also qualified to represent Switzerland internationally and made his international debut for Switzerland in 1996. on loan to Basel 29 IRL FW Niall Quinn retired Reserve squad 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. 35 IRL DF Cliff Byrne 38 ENG GK Craig Turns 41 ENG DF Patrick Collins ENG GK John Kennedy ENG DF Chris Scott ENG DF Craig James IRL DF Stephen Capper TUR DF Baki MercimekMercimek 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. ENG MF Grant Leadbitter ENG MF Carl Shippen SCO FW Dene Shields NIR FW Neil Teggart IRL FW Keith Graydon Results Football League Cup DateRoundOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers 1 October 2002 Second roundCambridge UnitedAbbey Stadium7–08,175Reyna, McCann, Arca, Flo (2), Stewart (2) 6 November 2002 Third roundArsenalHighbury3–219,059Kyle, Stewart (2) 3 December 2002 Fourth roundSheffield UnitedBramall Lane0–227,068 FA Cup DateRoundOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers 4 January 2003 Third roundBolton WanderersReebok Stadium1–110,132Phillips 14 January 2003 Third round replayBolton WanderersStadium of Light2–014,550Arca, Proctor 25 January 2003 Fourth roundBlackburn RoversEwood Park3–314,315Stewart, Proctor and Phillips 5 February 2003 Fourth round replayBlackburn RoversStadium of Light2–2 a.e.t.(won 3–0 on penalties)15,745McCann, Phillips 15 February 2003 Fifth roundWatfordStadium of Light0–126,916 FA Premier League 2002–03 FA Premier League League table SUN Results per matchday table b Matchday Ground A/H/A/H/A/H/A/H/A/H/A/A/H/A/H/A/H/H/A/H/A/A/H/A/H/H/A/H/A/H/A/H/A/H/A/H/A/H Result D/L/W/D/L/L/L/W/L/L/D/D/W/D/L/L/L/W/D/L/L/L/D/L/L/L/L/L/L/L/L/L/L/L/L/L/L/L Position 10/14/10/11/12/18/19/16/17/18/19/18/16/17/17/18/19/17/17/18/18/18/18/18/18/20/20/20/20/20/20/20/20/20/20/20/20/20 Home Away green2 Win yellow2 Draw red2 Loss 1st 2nd 3rd red1 complete Statto.com May 2013 DateOpponentsVenueResultScorersAttendance17 August 2002Blackburn RoversEwood Park0–027,12224 August 2002EvertonStadium of Light0–137,69828 August 2002Leeds UnitedElland Road1–0McAteer 46'39,92931 August 2002Manchester UnitedStadium of Light1–1Flo 70'47,58610 September 2002MiddlesbroughRiverside Stadium0–332,15514 September 2002FulhamStadium of Light0–335,43221 September 2002Newcastle UnitedSt James' Park0–252,18128 September 2002Aston VillaStadium of Light1–0Bellion 70'40,4926 October 2002ArsenalHighbury1–3Craddock 83'37,90219 October 2002West Ham UnitedStadium of Light0–144,35228 October 2002Bolton WanderersReebok Stadium1–1Gray 45'23,0363 November 2002Charlton AthleticThe Valley1–1Flo 15'26,28410 November 2002Tottenham HotspurStadium of Light2–0Phillips 60', Flo 62'40,02417 November 2002LiverpoolAnfield0–043,07423 November 2002Birmingham CityStadium of Light0–138,80330 November 2002ChelseaStamford Bridge0–338,9469 December 2002Manchester CityStadium of Light0–336,51115 December 2002LiverpoolStadium of Light2–1McCann 36', Proctor 85'37,11821 December 2002West Bromwich AlbionThe Hawthorns2–2Phillips 56', 64'26,70326 December 2002Leeds UnitedStadium of Light1–2Proctor 34'44,02928 December 2002SouthamptonSt Mary's Stadium1–2Flo 77'36,2421 January 2003Manchester UnitedOld Trafford1–2Verón 4' o.g.67,60911 January 2003Blackburn RoversStadium of Light0–036,52918 January 2003EvertonGoodison Park1–2Kilbane 34'37,40928 January 2003SouthamptonStadium of Light0–134,1021 February 2003Charlton AthleticStadium of Light1–3Phillips 81' pen.36,0428 February 2003Tottenham HotspurWhite Hart Lane1–4Phillips 26'36,07522 February 2003MiddlesbroughStadium of Light1–3Phillips 56'42,1341 March 2003FulhamLoftus Road0–116,28615 March 2003Bolton WanderersStadium of Light0–242,12422 March 2003West Ham UnitedBoleyn Ground0–235,0335 April 2003ChelseaStadium of Light1–2Thornton 12'40,01112 April 2003Birmingham CitySt. Andrew's0–229,13219 April 2003West Bromwich AlbionStadium of Light1–2Stewart 70'36,02521 April 2003Manchester CityMaine Road0–334,35726 April 2003Newcastle UnitedStadium of Light0–145,0673 May 2003Aston VillaVilla Park0–136,96311 May 2003ArsenalStadium of Light0–440,188 Statistics Overview CompetitionRecordP Games playedW Games wonD Games drawnL Games lostGF Goals forGA Goals againstGD Goal differenceWin % Winning percentage Premier League 38 4 7 27 21 65 yes FA Cup 5 1 3 1 8 5 yes League Cup 3 2 0 1 10 4 yes Total 46 7 10 29 39 74 yes Appearances and goals Premier League FA Cup League Cup |- ! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Goalkeepers 1 Thomas Sørensen GK DEN 21 0 4 0 0 0 26 Thomas Myhre GK NOR 1+1 0 0 0 1 0 30 Jürgen Macho GK AUT 12+1 0 1 0 2 0 40 Mart Poom GK EST 4 0 0 0 0 0 |- ! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Defenders 2 Stephen Wright DF ENG 25+1 0 3 0 0 0 3 Michael Gray DF ENG 32 1 4 0 0 0 5 Phil Babb DF IRL 26 0 3 0 1 0 6 Emerson Thome DF BRA 1 0 2 0 2 0 12 Joachim Björklund DF SWE 19+1 0 1+1 0 0 0 17 Jody Craddock DF ENG 25 1 4 0 1 0 18 Darren Williams DF ENG 12+4 0 2 0 3 1 22 Talal El Karkouri DF MAR 8 0 0+1 0 0 0 25 Ben Clark DF ENG 0+1 0 1 0 0 0 27 George McCartney DF NIR 16+8 0 1+2 0 2+1 0 33 Julio Arca DF ARG 7+6 0 4 1 1 1 34 Mark Rossiter DF IRL 0 0 0+1 0 2 0 37 Jonjo Dickman DF ENG 0+1 0 0 0 0 0 |- ! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Midfielders 4 Claudio Reyna MF USA 11 0 0 0 1 1 7 Matthew Piper MF ENG 8+5 0 0 0 0+1 0 8 Gavin McCann MF ENG 29+1 1 3 1 2 1 11 Kevin Kilbane MF IRL 30 1 3 0 1 0 14 Thomas Butler MF IRL 7 0 0 0 0+1 0 16 Jason McAteer MF IRL 9 1 1 0 0 0 21 Paul Thirlwell MF ENG 12+6 0 1 0 1+1 0 23 Nicolás Medina MF ARG 0 0 1 0 0 0 24 Sean Thornton MF IRL 11 1 3 0 0 0 28 John Oster MF WAL 1+2 0 1+1 0 0 0 29 Chris Black MF ENG 2 0 0 0 0 0 36 Richie Ryan MF IRL 0+2 0 0 0 0 0 |- ! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Forwards 9 Tore André Flo FW NOR 23+6 4 1+1 0 1 2 10 Kevin Phillips FW ENG 32 6 4 3 0 0 15 David Bellion FW FRA 5+6 1 0+1 0 2 0 19 Kevin Kyle FW SCO 9+8 0 2+1 0 2 1 31 Marcus Stewart FW ENG 9+10 1 2 1 3 3 32 Michael Proctor FW ENG 11+10 2 3+2 1 2 0 |- ! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Players transferred out during the season 22 Stanislav Varga DF SVK 0 0 0+1 0 2 0 29 Niall Quinn FW IRL 0+8 0 0 0 0 0 |} Goal scorers PositionNationNumberNameFA Premier LeagueLeague CupFA CupTotalFWENG10Kevin Phillips6039FWENG31Marcus Stewart1416FWNOR9Tore André Flo4206FWENG32Michael Proctor2024MFENG8Gavin McCann1113MFARG33Julio Arca0112DFENG3Micky Gray1001DFENG17Jody Craddock1001MFIRL24Sean Thornton1001MFIRL11Kevin Kilbane1001FWFRA15David Bellion1001MFIRL16Jason McAteer1001FWSCO19Kevin Kyle0101MFUSA4Claudio Reyna0101Own goal1001///Total2110839 References 2 Notes notes Category:Sunderland A.F.C. seasons Sun