Sunderland academy graduate Anthony Patterson has defied all expectation in the last 12 months. It was in January last year he returned from a second loan spell with National League side Notts County, establishing himself as the main man between the sticks and he hasn't looked back.
The young goalkeeper originally joined the Magpies in September 2021 on a month long loan following Ron Thorben Hoffmann's arrival at the Stadium of Light. Patterson was highly though of by then Sunderland boss Lee Johnson, having been given his debut in the Papa John's Trophy the year prior by Phil Parkinson.
Patterson would re-join Ian Burchnall's promotion chasing side at the beginning of January, going on to establish himself as number one, clocking up nine appearances in total for County. Very few would have predicted the remarkable rise of the youngster.
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He's since helped guide Sunderland back to the Championship and won the North East Football Writers' Association's Young Player of the Year award for 2022. So with that in mind, Chronicle Live has spoken with former Notts County reporter for the Nottingham Post, Leigh Curtis, for a look at the loan spell which helped kick start Patterson's ascent.
What was the goalkeeping situation like at Notts prior to his arrival?
Leigh Curtis: "Sam Slocombe had firmly established himself as number one but there wasn't really any valid competition for his position. But that all changed when Notts moved for Anthony Patterson which meant his place in the first team was no longer guaranteed.
"Slocombe had been part of a team that had made the play-off final and remains a hugely popular figure at Meadow Lane where Notts are currently second in the National League table. But the club has always been ambitious with their transfer plans so made their move for Patterson to add strength in depth to that department.
"As it turned out, he ended up dislodging Slocombe for the time he was at the club."
Do you remember much about how the deal came to light?
LC: "What I recall is that Ian Burchnall is good friends with David Preece whose links with Sunderland are obviously well known as he was on the staff as goalkeeping coach. I think Ian had said he was on the lookout for a goalkeeper and his name obviously got mentioned and how highly rated he was.
"The background checks went in and the next thing you know, Patterson is on his way to Notts and Sunderland were keen to get him first-team football. it was a move that suited all parties and obviously served Patterson well because he quickly showed why he is such a good goalkeeper."
At the time of his move to County, he'd made just two first-team appearances, how did he fare?
LC: "He was brilliant. Burchnall liked his teams to play out from the back and while they liked Sam, they felt Patterson just had the edge in terms of his distribution.
"When he returned again in January he saved a penalty in a win over Wrexham, but it was pretty apparent that he was destined for a good career. He then ended up getting recalled after that game and went straight into Sunderland's first team so he missed Notts' charge to the play-offs."
Were there any games in particular where he stood out?
LC: "Definitely the Wrexham game. Notts won 3-1 but he made a key penalty save when the score was 2-1 to keep the Magpies ahead. He was excellent all-round and it was a shame for Notts that he didn't see the season out, but great for him personally because he went back to Sunderland and was straight in the first team."
Were there signs there he was destined to play at a higher level?
LC: "Definitely. He's got everything you want in a goalkeeper. Good presence, excellent reflexes and in the modern game, there is so much more focus now on how good you are with the ball at your feet.
"If you look at the summit of the Premier League and Ederson at Manchester City in particular if you want to build-up from the back, then you're goalkeeper has to be comfortable in that respect. And Patterson certainly showed that at Notts in the time he was there.
"It wouldn't surprise me to see him playing Premier League football at some point in his career. He has a big future ahead of him."
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