Jack Ross has been put out of his misery, sacked by League One underachievers Sunderland on Tuesday.
How much longer did Jack Ross realistically have at Sunderland after that dismal loss at Lincoln City? Well, we got our answer on Tuesday afternoon.
Owner Stewart Donald deserves plenty of credit for showing faith and patience in abundance while putting an end to the sack culture that epitomised the Black Cats during the latter years of Ellis Short, but Sunderland’s ongoing underachievement in the third tier meant he had no real choice but to hand Ross his P45.
That 2-0 defeat at Lincoln on Sunday summed up everything that had been wrong about the Wearside giants since the former St Mirren boss took over – vulnerable at the back, lacking spark in the final third and a dearth of quality or character.
Sunderland had little choice but to pull the trigger on Tuesday, but there are plenty of potential replacements waiting for a fresh start. Daniel Stendel, anyone? And what about Anthony Hudson.
According to TEAMtalk, The Black Cats were looking at Hudson before handing the reigns to Ross and, while the 38-year-old is hardly proven League One material, he has a history when it comes to making a team far greater than the sum of its parts.
Hudson, born in Washington (USA that is, not it’s Tyne and Wear namesake), is still out of work and hasn’t coached in Britain since a 2011 spell at Newport County. But Hudson is still very respected in some circles for taking New Zealand into the Confederations Cup in 2017 and making a limited side competitive against top opposition.
The hustle and bustle of League One is a million miles away from international football but Hudson is young, hungry and capable of getting the best out of a rather misfit bunch. Maybe that’s why Sunderland wanted him in the first place.
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