Ross: I would take promotion overcuprun
Jack Ross says he would settle for Sunderland not reaching the third round of the FA Cup – but winning promotion from the third tier.
That was how it played out in the 1987-88 season, the Black Cats’ only other campaign outside the top two levels of the English game.
And promotion, from what was then the Third Division, was achieved at Port Vale, who Sunderland visit this afternoon for a televised first-round fixture.
Boss Ross, who has steered the Wearsiders to second top in League One, said: “I would want to progress as far as we can in the competition and we always go out to win games.
“But I don’t think there’s anybody associated with the club, or who has a love for the club, who wouldn’t take what we’re talking about.
“If that was the scenario at the end of the season, I would have to accept it. “We want to make sure our spell in this league is short-lived and try to begin an upward journey for the football club.’’
It would be beyond the wildest dreams of even the most-fanatical supporter of the Wearside club for them to emulate the heroics of the 1973 side that shocked Leeds United in the
FA Cup final.
The Cats, who went up as champions in 1988, are clawing their way back to respectability after the humiliation of successive relegations.
And Ross, brought in from St Mirren in May by Sunderland’s new owner, Stewart Donald, believes the season to date has been ideal preparation for the clash with League Two Vale in front of the cameras.
The Scot said: “I love the pressure in this job every day.
“I’ve said often enough, when you become manager of this club, there’s an expectation put on your shoulders every day.
“The players are the same, they carry that burden, but we’ve tried to create an environment whereby they embrace it. “On top of that, in every away game this season the other team have viewed it as an opportunity to take a big scalp, so it’s been good preparation in that sense.’’