Two Up, Two Down: We went to Wembley Stadium, ‘twas on the fifth of May!

Gary Engel says…

Jimmy, Jimmy, Jimmy!

We’ll celebrate our winner for decades to come, but Jimmy Montgomery’s double save in the second half was something else!

It was quite possibly the moment Leeds knew it wouldn’t be their day, and even Jimmy Hill didn’t realise the second effort was a save until the replay.

Montgomery’s reflexes saved us once, but to spring up for the second chance was unbelievable.

An unforgettable win

A win against one of best sides arguably in Europe right now will be remembered on Wearside for generations, and the last time a Second Division side won the cup was back in the 1930s, like our last triumph.

The magic of the cup is as good as it gets and we’ve got the great Bob Stokoe to thank for such a fantastic cup run and magnificent result.

Hopefully, we can turn that into promotion next season, but for now it’s time to celebrate!

Haway the Lads!

Cloughie bemoans a ‘calm team’

After his initial encouraging words about his former club, which was maybe a case of ‘Brian Clough bluff’, he turned a little sour before kick off.

When Sunderland had their pre-match Wembley walk around, looking as calm as any side before a final, Clough seemed to take exception and he said our manner suggested that we were already beaten.

I’m sure he’ll not be too upset to be eating his words now.

Only one red ribbon?

It was plain to see who the officials expected to win, with the white ribbon attached to the cup beforehand.

Hastily they found one lonesome red ribbon to attach but lost in a sea of white. However, in the grand scheme of things, it’s not a major thing.

Photo by Don Morley/Allsport/Getty Images

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Kelvin Beattie says…

Now you’re gonna believe us!

What a performance from the Lads against one of the best teams in England, if not Europe.

We matched them in every department and at given points in the game, individuals stepped up and delivered, inspiring their teammates to do likewise.

Dave Watson epitomised this with herculean physical effort and skilful defending as time and time again, he put himself in the right position to clear the danger.

His part in our goal needs to be acknowledged too, because his towering leap, whilst not connecting with Billy Hughes’ cross, created space and distraction as he drew two defenders to him.

Scorer and saver

Two key moments in the game, finished by two key players.

Ian Porterfield could’ve been a Leeds player but the silky Scot sprayed passes all around Wembley, hardly missing his mark all afternoon. His left thigh/right foot strike was a worthy match winner and he told us after the Luton tie that he was saving his goal for Wembley.

Jimmy Montgomery has made some saves in this cup run that easily fall into the category of brilliant.

His save from Les Bradd against Notts County kept us in the cup at the first hurdle and his cat-like reflex save from George Armstrong in the semi final bordered on unbelievable.

His first stop from Trevor Cherry at Wembley was brilliant and the follow up from Peter Lorimer was impossible, and arguably knocked the stuffing out of Leeds.

No ticket to ride

The FA has to look again at ticket allocation for this game, because giving 20,000 tickets to the competing clubs is not good enough, especially with so many tickets finding their way into the greedy hands of touts and people with no allegiance, or attending a match for the first time.

With many genuine fans unable to get a ticket, the FA should feel ashamed.

The nice guys prevail

It’s clear that Leeds United and their hierarchy do consider themselves a special case, because their antagonising and pressurising of referees, as well as their systematic niggling fouls and verbal provocation should be addressed by the authorities.

Many consider this behaviour to be cheating and at Wembley, perhaps the old saying of ‘cheaters never win’ came to pass. You can’t deny that they’ve got some great players, but they need to take collective responsibility for their on-field behaviour.

A special word for the Roker faithful who roared, sang and cheered their way through the whole occasion, and the Wembley authorities have said they can come back anytime!

Well played the team and the supporters.

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Malc Dugdale says…

Porterfield holds his nerve

What a strike from our Ian!

It’s very easy to get a chance like that and smash it high and wide, especially with a defence like Leeds to overcome, but he did us proud.

Composure like that is what makes legendary days like this happen, and in years to come, kids will know your name.

Well done.

Red and white resilience

It was backs against the wall for much of the game and the defence especially, Jimmy Montgomery, was incredible.

How did he pull that save off? It was beyond the laws of football and physics.

What a keeper, what defensive resolve and what a result.

Superior Leeds possession

We didn’t do enough to prevent Leeds from having and dominating the ball after the goal (and before it) and that meant we had to defend as we did.

I would’ve loved us to see that game out with less stress for Bob Stokoe, the lads and all our fans, but we did it, so sod it!

After all, we’re all a league below. Incredible.

No other negatives!

Sunderland fans will remember this win against Leeds (of all teams) for years to come.

David smashed Goliath and the underdog prevailed.

Let’s build from here and get to the top tier, where we belong.

Photo by PA Images via Getty Images

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