On This Day (22nd May 2021): McGeady Inspires as Sunderland Fall Short Against Lincoln
Fans returned to the Stadium of Light after the pandemic, but Sunderland couldn’t get over the line against Lincoln!
SUNDERLAND, ENGLAND - MAY 22: Sunderland fans pose for a photo inside the stadium prior to the Sky Bet League One Play-off Semi Final 2nd Leg match between Sunderland and Lincoln City at Stadium of Light on May 22, 2021 in Sunderland, England. A limited number of fans will be allowed into the stadium as Coronavirus restrictions begin to ease in the UK. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images) | Getty Images After a 2 – 0 first-leg defeat at Lincoln, Lee Johnson’s Sunderland had it all to do to overcome their opponents at the Stadium of Light.
This game was the first that allowed fans back into our home ground and, despite there only being just under ten thousand in attendance, the noise these fans created was audible to all watching on a screen, longing to be part of the action. This build-up of emotion was surely a likely source for the fast start that Johnson’s men brought to this game, as they had it all to do after the first leg. In fairness to the team, they played quite well at Lincoln without taking their chances, whilst a Lee Burge error cost us the second goal that made this tie all the more difficult.
The fast start saw the team take a 1 – 0 lead in this game after 13 minutes when Aiden McGeady skinned Regan Poole, Lincoln’s right-back, before supplying the onrushing Ross Stewart with a fabulous low cross. This goal caused pandemonium within a stadium that was only a fifth full. The sheer release of joy, relief and pent-up adrenaline was a sight to behold.
Sunderland were playing really well in this game with Johnson getting his wish of the fans being the twelfth man. In actual fact, the high Sunderland press was wreaking havoc on Lincoln’s vulnerable defence and it should have been 2 – 0 had top goalscorer Charlie Wyke not procrastinated over finishing a glorious opportunity. “Having done the hard work and rounded goalkeeper Alex Palmer, Sunderland’s leading scorer found himself confronting a gaping net about four yards out.