Black Cats’ KO time at Blackpool now 12.30pm
Sunderland's League One fixture against Blackpool on Saturday will now kick off at 12.30pm.
The game was originally scheduled to kick-off at 3pm, but the time has been brought forward as a mark of respect, andtoavoidaclashwiththefuneralofHRHThePrincePhilip, Duke of Edinburgh.
Matchestakingplaceacross the Sky Bet Championship, League One and League Two this week and at the weekend willstageaoneminute’ssilence prior to kick-off.
Players, coaching staff, and match officials will also be wearingarmbandsduringthis period as a mark of respect.
*Marcus Maddison admits he’s been ‘broken’ by professional football and he’s considering quitting the sport for good.
Whilst at Peterborough United two seasons ago, there was some talk that Maddison may make the move to the Stadium of Light, with some Sunderland fans keen on a deal.
The County Durham-born attacker’s family has links to thearea,butamovebacktothe North East never materialised andhejoinedCharltonAthletic andeventuallyBoltonWanderers on loan.
However, the 27-year-old’s loan spell at the League Two promotion chasers was ended on Monday by mutual consent amidconcernsovertheplayer’s welfare.
“Well the football industry has eventually broken me,” he said. "All the abuse, pressures & monotony of the last 2 years has just got to me. I’ve tried to fitin&behappybutifIcan’tbe happy In a winning team fighting for promotion it’s clearly something deeper.
“I’m returning home to think ‘‘do I want to play footballanymore?’asitjustdoesn’t bring me any joy at all.”