Keane lift-off, loud fans and a Poom goal - oh Derby joy

As Sunderland supporters have had precious little to enjoy this season, the only thing they have to cheer themselves up is the memory of better days, and with Derby being our next opponents, there’s three very special games from Pride Park I remember so well.

The first one is the 5-0 thumping Sunderland gave Derby during the Peter Reid years, when Sunderland didn’t just make the numbers up but were a real force in the Premier League, playing quick, dynamic football, and of course with Niall Quinn and Kevin Phillips causing havoc up front.

Phillips helped himself to a hat-trick that day, but the whole team was superb, anyone scoring five goals away in the Premier League goes down as a phenomenal achievement. The scoreline didn’t flatter Sunderland at all.

A few years later, Sunderland found themselves in trouble again, with Quinny retired, but pulling the strings at the club.

He appointed Roy Keane as manager, with his first game in charge away to Derby.

What happened was one of those games that make you proud to be a Sunderland fan, the team responding to Keane’s appointment, producing a performance that Derby couldn’t handle and going on to win 2-0.

That was only half the story, though. The many thousands of fans who made the trip stole the show, creating a noise and atmosphere the players couldn’t fail to react to.

That was a great season under Keane ending in promotion, but it all started with that first away win for the new boss at Pride Park.

The third highlight has to be one of the most bizarre, when goalkeeper Mart Poom, with seconds left, and Sunderland trailing 1-0, gambled on going forward for a last-gasp corner.

What happened next still brings a smile to my face, as the Sunderland keeper beat everyone in the air to score a header that Charlie Hurley would have been proud of, before running back to his goal as if he did it every week.

Poom was already popular with the fans, but his popularity went through the roof after his goal, which was a real ‘I was there’ moment.