ITHICS Fanzine: Does the appointment of Coleman show that Ellis Short is willing to spend?

Finally - there is some positive news to talk about around our beloved football club.

We have appointed a credible manager, whom the fans can get behind.

When the rumour broke as a reality on Friday, it was a joy to be on Twitter.

In fact, nights like Friday were why twitter was invented, in my view - it was great to witness the disbelief that we could attract such a (there’s that word again) credible manager.

Then there were the bitter mags querying his sanity, suggesting that taking the job would be the ruin of him, and also the ultra-grumpy old man, Brian McNally, pouring so much cold water on the idea that it would have frozen over by now (flimsy metaphor - apologies).

Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images

But surely the point is - and emphasised by his first official interview - that if Coleman succeeds and does resurrect the club, he will be a hero on Wearside and will be referred to in the same breath as Reid, Stokoe and... errr... Knighton (or Smith).

And that is the captivating prospect.

Finally all the dragging of heels by Bain, et al, can genuinely been seen as wanting to get their man.

A guy who has a reasonable track record of producing purses with sow’s ears; a guy we can see knocking our ragtag bunch of a team together to make a fist of this season; a guy who has excited the fans already and will create a spike in attendances.

SAFC.com

The question that nags at me is this: Is this a sea change in the regime at the Stadium of Light?

Have the club - Short and Bain - done a Mike Ashley and seen the only way forward is to appoint a football man and give him some money?

The second point is crucial. Presumably Chris Coleman wouldn’t have come without the guarantee of funds. But we know that funds were promised to the last two managers, yet were not forthcoming.

Finally, when the appointment was eventually rubber-stamped on Sunday afternoon, it deliciously coincided with David Moyes’ first match as manager of West Ham - a match that they contrived to lose 2-0. I wonder what the excuse will be this time?

And to the supporters who curmudgeonly said that Coleman was the best we could expect, I say, “Have a word with yourselves” - he’s the go-berserk-best I could have dreamed of!

Whisper it quietly, but all of a sudden it feels great again to be a Sunderland supporter.