Sunderland royalty Niall Quinn thumbed through half a century of Mackems misery at Wembley and predicted: “This time it feels different.”
As a player, Quinn suffered play-off heartbreak after a penalty shoot-out against Charlton 24 years ago after the Black Cats had led the final three times. And since his spell as chairman at the Stadium of Light, Sunderland have extended their gift for losing major Wembley finals to almost 50 years, dating back to the 1973 FA Cup triumph against Leeds.
But as he surveyed the scene of so many tears on Wearside, Quinn – now 55 – hailed the impact of new manager Alex Neil, a play-off winner with Norwich seven years ago.
