THE BALLARD OF THE BLACK CATS
“Til the End”. That was the message that flashed up on the Stadium of Light’s advertising hoardings as Enzo Le Fée lined up a corner with three seconds left in extra time. Back at the halfway line, both managers were scribbling out lists of penalty takers. Sunderland, having produced an early knockdown by winning the first leg of this Championship playoff semi-final, had spent much of the previous 121 minutes and 57 seconds of Tuesday’s second leg against Coventry on the ropes. Yet here they were. Le Fée lifted the ball towards the near post, where Dan Ballard mistimed his leap spectacularly, ending up in a sort of crouched star jump as the ball deflected off his head, on to the crossbar, and into the net. The pin-drop silence was replaced by an almighty roar, a collective outpouring of relief and joy that seemed to move in waves as the home fans realised what it all meant. After 15 seconds of letting the crowd be heard (and watching Ballard struggle to get his own shirt off), Sky’s Gary Weaver picked up the mic. “An incredible noise that can almost be heard at Wembley!”
