Sunderland should beware the curse of Cahill
BOGEYMAN DOESN’T LOSE AGAINST CATS
JUST when you thought it was safe to go into the Lions’ den...
Sunderland could find themselves struck by the Curse of Cahill once again this weekend, with Millwall having brought Australian midfielder Tim back to South London in January for a second spell.
Cahill is a bogeyman for the Black Cats, having scored eight goals in 16 appearances against the Wearsiders in all competitions.
Not only that, he has never tasted defeat against Sunderland in those 16 outings.
Cahill has faced Sunderland twice wearing the blue of Millwall, once in the league and once in the FA Cup, and both those appearances came in the 2003-04 season.
He drew a blank the first time he faced Sunderland as the Lions won 1-0 at the Stadium of Light in the league that season, but made his mark when he scored the only goal to settle the FA Cup semi-final meeting between the teams at Old Trafford in April 2004.
Cahill then moved to Everton but his scoring streak continued, and he scored in a 3-0 FA Cup win at Goodison Park in January 2005, and then the following season he scored for the third game in a row against Sunderland to give the Merseysiders a 1-0 Premier League win at the Stadium of Light.
He also netted twice in a crushing 7-1 win over Roy Keane’s side at Goodison Park in November 2007.
And after a four-game ‘drought’ he scored in a 2-0 Premier League win at Goodison in January 2010, and then again in another league clash which ended in a 2-2 draw on Wearside in November that year.
His most recent goal against Sunderland secured a 1-1 FA Cup draw on Merseyside in March 2012, and he failed to score in the replay which ended in a 2-0 win for the Toffeemen.
Cahill left Everton in the summer of 2012 for a world tour which took in spells with New York Red Bulls, Shanghai Shenhua, and Melbourne City, before returning to Millwall.
He has made three brief outings from the subs’ bench so far, and has yet to find the net.
Sunderland can only hope that his wait extends beyond the weekend.