Page 62 - 368603 LP250721 AWY AWY AWY Book (238pp A5)

Brown to Bob Stokoe our fortunes rapidly improved. It was a classic case of a new manager inspiring what was essentially the same squad of players, who of course were also pulling out all the stops so they could keep their places. With his quiet charm and his success on the pitch Stokoe won us all over and rarely has there been such a revered figure on Wearside. Many years later our Graham accidentally sat on Bob’s trilby and squashed it, which must surely rank as a capital offence, but that’s another story.
The F.A. Cup campaign, which started on January 13th, didn’t immediately set us on fire. A 1-1 draw away to Notts County was followed up three days later by a 2-0 home win and this was fine but in the next round we drew 4th Division Reading at home and, far from the goal feast we’d expected, we were held 1-1. Their goalkeeper was called Steve Death and he kept them in it in a one-sided match. They were managed by former – no, perennial – Sunderland hero Charlie Hurley and I have to say that I was ready for the worst when we went down to Elm Park on the following Wednesday. An early Sunderland goal knocked the stuffing out of them and we ran out 3-1 winners. After the match many of our fans waited outside and chanted Charlie’s name till he emerged and signed over two hundred autographs. This is an example of what it means to support a club and share in its history.
Before the next game against Manchester City on 24th February Stokoe signed Vic Halom from Luton for £35,000
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