Craig

SAFC fan! into sports ⚽️🏉⛳️🏏

[Craig @Craig_SAFC]

Would anyone be willing to sponsor me? I would be very much appreciative
I'm fundraising for PROSTATE CANCER UK. Check out my @JustGiving page and please donate if you can. Thank you! #JustGiving https://t.co/hxOUGDv3NS

[Craig @Craig_SAFC]

😆🤣🤣

[The Footy Feed @TheFootyFeed]

Back in 2010, Sam Allardyce tried to fire up his Blackburn Rovers squad before facing Manchester United by showing them scenes from Gladiator.

Gaël Givet recalled: “We were all shouting, ‘Ahhhhh!’ like warriors with swords… 30 minutes later, we were 3-0 down. We lost 7-1.”

Unreal. 🤣👏

[Matthew Powell @Powell_Matthew]

The present is only possible because of the past… and then there were two 🥲 #SAFC

[The Footy Feed @TheFootyFeed]

Well played lad, absolutely well played... 😅

[WeGotitBack 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇬🇧🇺🇸 @NotFarLeftAtAll]

British humour is the best in the world.

[Roker Report @RokerReport]

Morning 🐸 ☕️

[Jonny Mac @JonnyMc1]

Anthony Gordon after doing 7 kick ups at his Barca unveiling in the July sun.

[The Football Feed @TheFootballFeed]

Anthony Gordon looks absolutely over the moon after hearing he’s swapping Newcastle for Barcelona...

[Terry Swinney @tjswin82]

Played a blinder @SunderlandAFC 👏🏻

#safc

[Luke O'Nien @LukeONien]

EUROPA LEAGUE was never the dream.

Not because I didn’t want it.

Because if I’m being honest, I never thought it was possible.

What kid would?

Especially when 12 years ago I was playing non league football in the Ryman Premier and Conference South, just trying to stay alive in the game.

What kid dreams about Europe when, two weeks into the off season, his dad has to tell him he’s been released by Watford F.C. over the phone?

I was heartbroken.

My dad looked at me and said:

“What are we doing tomorrow?”

To which I replied with the words he’d drilled into me my whole life:

“We’re training, Dad.”

So we trained.

Every single day.

My dad emailed every EFL club asking for an opportunity.

One club replied.

One.

That was all I needed.

An opportunity.

@WealdstoneFC and @wwfcofficial , I’ll always be indebted to you.

Then came the move to @SunderlandAFC .

A massive club.

A massive opportunity.

And I couldn’t wait to prove myself.

But 45 minutes into my debut… hooked.

“Rabbit caught in headlights. Waste of money. Get rid.”

Then came the Championship.

“He’s not good enough for this level.”

Then the Premier League.

“Let’s give him a debut and then get rid of him.”

I understood the doubt.

I’ve faced it my whole career.

And truthfully, you doubt yourself too at times.

But I’ve always tried to live by one mindset:

Outwork your doubt.

You don’t always need to see the full journey.

You just need to take the next step.

Then the next one.

And then another.

Even when social media tells you you’re not good enough.

Even when the voice inside your own head whispers the same thing.

Keep working.

Keep learning.

Keep showing up.

Because sometimes the places you end up are bigger than anything your younger self could’ve ever imagined.

To any young player reading this, don’t put a ceiling on yourself too early.

You genuinely have no idea where this game and life can take you.

And to the boys… thank you.

You removed the glass ceiling I’d placed on myself.

What a team.

What a club.

What a fanbase.

Sunderland… rocking all over Europe ❤️🤍

And in the words of Granit Xhaka:

“This is just the beginning.”

[Craig @Craig_SAFC]

@juliesund Exactly why I posted it @juliesund 😁 🔴⚪️

[Craig @Craig_SAFC]

So there’s fixtures over both my wife and daughter’s birthdays 😆 but the cherry on the cake is match day 7 being on my birthday. Here’s hoping for a cracking #SAFC away day 🔴⚪️😁 #SunderlandinEurope

[bet365 @bet365]

Sunderland since Régis Le Bris:

✅ Promoted to the PL
✅ Beat Newcastle at home
✅ Beat Newcastle away
✅ Matched highest ever PL finish
✅ Qualified for Europe

For the first time in 53 years, #safc have qualified for European football.

[EuroFoot @eurofootcom]

Granit Xhaka when he signed for Sunderland in the summer: "We're not here to take part, we're here to make history."

Now, Sunderland have qualified for Europe for the first time in 52 YEARS. Incredible. 🇪🇺👏

[Daniel Wales @danielwales023]

This is my Grandad, Ron. He was a Sunderland supporter all of his life, and had a season ticket from 1952 until about 2015, when he could no longer manage the stairs with his knees.

He passed away in 2022 with Sunderland still in League One. He would’ve loved today 🔴⚪️

#SAFC

[Sunderland AFC @SunderlandAFC]

Can’t help falling in love with you, Granit ❤️

[Craig @Craig_SAFC]

Fuck right off!! That’s why we don’t give a fuck about xG 🙄 European #SAFC 🔴⚪️😁

[The xG Philosophy @xGPhilosophy]

Sunderland should’ve been relegated, based on xG.

They’ll be playing in the Europa League next season.

[Betfred @Betfred]

Régis Le Bris took over a Sunderland team who’d just finished 16th in the Championship less than two years ago. They’ve just qualified for the Europa League.

Might be the most underrated gaffer on the planet. 👏

[Craig @Craig_SAFC]

#SAFC never lost when they scored first this season!! I didn’t want to share this before the match 😆😂 What a team!! 🔴⚪️

[Craig @Craig_SAFC]

Arsenal, Man City and Brighton the only teams to concede less goals than #SAFC this season! Had it not been for that freak Forest result it’d only be the top 2!! What a club man! 🔴⚪️