In his epic poem The Waste Land, T.S. Eliot remarked that April is the cruellest month, but I doubt he ever had to face up to three away games in six days at the beginning of January. At any other time of year the prospect of three back-to-back trips to new stadia within six days would be the stuff of dreams for a travelling fan, but straight after Christmas when everyone is skint, freezing, and/or wrestling with attempts at self-improvement, it almost seemed like a cruel joke.
Still, at least those of us lucky enough to already be based in the capital wouldn’t have to face up to a lengthy car journey or risk putting our fate in the hands of Network Rail. Our first trip to the imaginatively named Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was earmarked by many fans back when the fixtures were released, and enthusiasm was high despite the annoying Sunday kick-off.
The blue-and-white side of North London have really taken their trademark “Spursiness” to new levels this season, boasting one of the best away records in the league while being incredibly generous in dishing out points at their shiny new home. A smug Mag mate of mine commented that the ground isn’t really “new” to most teams at this point, to which I gave the natural reply of “one-nil”.
Our African absentees haven’t affected our results as dramatically as most commentators would have expected/hoped, so most Sunderland fans were reasonably confident of adding at least one point to our tally as we passed the halfway stage of the season.
With Spurs being the second-most convenient destination for me behind West Ham, I was excited to host some of our fellow fans who had travelled south for the game at my local in Walthamstow, only to be embarrassed to learn that (contrary to its Google Maps entry) the doors would only open at 11 a.m. rather than at ten. Thankfully we didn’t have to wait too long in the cold, and a few early ales set the tone for the day. We swiftly moved on to the Antwerp Arms, which had a healthy mix of home and away fans congregating under the watchful eye of a hi-vis-clad security guard with a megaphone. This seemed a bit excessive for a pub, but I suppose you can never be too careful.
After entering the ground we basked in the spacious and well-stocked concourse, taking a moment to reflect on just how many light years away the whole matchday experience was from Accrington, Fleetwood et al. The view from our seats in the lower tier didn’t actually encompass the whole pitch, but thankfully the huge screens on each corner of the ground meant we could keep abreast of the action.
Unfortunately not much of it was down at the end Sunderland were attacking as the team served up one of the least inspiring performances of the season so far. A better side than Spurs could have really taken us to the sword, and the statuesque marking for Ben Davies’ opener seemed to unfold in slow motion.
The lethargy on the pitch was sadly matched by a subdued atmosphere in the away end. Far be it from me to say how anyone should conduct themselves at the match, but the players and coach have commented repeatedly on how much the passion and noise from the fans helps to drive the team on, so it was disappointing that many supporters weren’t able to provide more vocal backing to the team in the first half, especially given the excellent season we’ve enjoyed to date.
Thankfully there was a marked improvement on and off the pitch in the second half. The introduction of Ballard added some much-needed balance to our play, and when an excellent move was lashed home by Brobbey the away end sparked into raptures. You felt that if the game had gone on for another ten minutes we might have sneaked a winner, but a point in the circumstances is still a more than satisfactory result which made the dreaded return to work on Monday a slightly less depressing prospect. One down, three to go…