Im absolutely delighted. To come to the team I supported as a boy, my hometown team, will be really special for me. It was an opportunity I couldnt let slip. If you asked fans around the world the one thing theyd like to do before they die, it would be to play for the team they support and Ive got the chance to do that. I cant wait to pull on the black and white shirt at St. James Park for the first time. - Jack Colback, June 2014.
The reception that awaits Jack Colback at the Stadium of Light on the 4th of April will be vociferous to say the least. For a player who has spent 15 years with the club to suddenly up stakes and move across enemy lines into Geordie territory is an act of utmost treason and unforgivable treachery. There is no denying Colbacks talents - indeed, he has been referred to as the Ginger Pirlo in recent times - and he has since been called into the England squad for the first time since his move to St. James Park. The move caught everybody off guard really - particular Colback, considering he must have thought he had burned his Geordie ties by cupping his ears to the home crowd when he notched the third goal at St. James Park in February. Of course, his bridges at the club that formed him are well and truly lying in a heap of rubble, with the Sunderland hierarchy having expressed a deep distaste for the handling of his exit during the summer. Its understandable that they would feel a level of bitterness in losing a player they had nurtured for the best part of two decades to their most loathsome of rivals. The English midfielder is a player is confident on the ball, has an eye for a pass and rarely loses possession. Sunderlands loss is most definitely their rivals gain.
Recent Journalism & New Media graduate. Insatiable thirst for all things football, and hopes to break into the field of sports journalism in the near future.
Have made a significantly insignificant playing career out of receiving several slaps around the head for not passing the ball.
