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But Sunderland did it all in a few hours, one day in 1979.
It’s the story of how the Black Cats champions england with a twist, winning the Five-Man tournament on the Daily Express.
You can believe the fury now if, in the midst of a season of high flights, clubs were asked to send seven players to London for a day for a kick in an indoor stadium, as major encounters quickly loomed on the horizon.
But in the 70s and 80s, that is precisely what happened.
As English football is not as strongly represented in Europe as it is today, clubs had more on weekdays than in fashionable football, and small-scale matches reigned supremely.
The Daily Express tournament was not the only occasion of its kind held at the time.The Football League also introduced a 1981 Soccer Sixes festival, however, it was the five-nation tournament that captured the imagination.
While this would now possibly seem ridiculous, it was considered a prestigious festival at the time.
The festival was held annually, regularly in November, at Wembley Arena in front of a depleted crowd. The teams were going to the capital with some of their most productive games in tow, it was not unusual for the groups to leave the strange star at home if a critical league match approached.
The format was that of a playoff competition, with groups facing a round of penalties if they could not separate in short and fast matches.Matches were played for five minutes in all directions with sin boxes and rolling substitutions in place.Its format was nothing more than the “Masters Football” that was televised through Sky in the 21st century, but with existing players, than with the old ones.
Televised on bbc sportsnight in the middle of the week, an action-packed night, Scottish groups were also invited to compete and turned out to be the most productive on a closed court.
And in 1979, Sunderland did that.
Sunderland was a department team at the time in the 1979/80 season, but secured a position in the tournament alongside Chelsea (also at the current level at the time), Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Manchester United.
Perhaps it was not unexpected for some of the larger groups to leave in the first circulars of the competition. The Gunners and Red Devils were defeated in the first circular after aligning the weakened groups. This was sometimes the politics of the clubs competing at the top.-flight name – George Best has already run for the red look of Manchester in a first edition of the competition.
As for Sunderland, they brought a team right to Wembley Arena.
While first-team regulars Steve Whitworth and Bryan Robson stayed at Wearside, manager Ken Knighton allowed several keys to participate.
The Black Cats team the same for their 4 matches in the competition: Chris Turner, Mick Buckley, Shaun Elliott, Kevin Arnott and Stan Cummins.Roll-on and roll-off substitutions were allowed, meaning Peter Eustance and John Cooke also saw a lot of action.
The Black Cats’ career towards the full final of convincing victories, with 10 goals scored and none conceded in four games.
Sunderland’s first circular opposed Ipswich Town, who would finish third in the main league at the end of the 1979/80 season.The Tractor Boys were defeated 2-0 with a double from Arnott.
Then came West Bromwich Albion, the most sensible team to succumb to Sunderland.Arnott, who has temporarily become the star player of the tournament, scored back while Elliott added the moment in a 2-0 win.
Then came the tie that enthusiasts (and certainly broadcasters) were looking for: a Wear-Tyne derby with Newcastle United in the semi-finals.
Once he returned animated through Arnott, Sunderland made a disturbance.Their double ended with a Cummins double when the Wearsiders missed the winners 4-0 and staged a clash with Brighton in the final.
The Seagulls had beaten Tottenham Hotspur in the semi-finals, but you may not be saved by the Black Cats from taking the title.
Arnott discovered buckley’s back, sealing the victory and trophy.
In the years after Sunderland’s triumph, the appetite for festivals faded.
The increased presence of British groups in European competitions was a contributing factor, while the resolve to prevent the retransmission of the tournament in 1983 reduced interest.
The full-time whistle was despite everything whistled at the festival in 1986, with Norwich as his last champion.
But at their peak, there were few, if any, who had won as gladly as Sunderland.