O'Neill himself will have recognised that Sunderland fans will be delighted to remain top dogs in the North East and for the club to make a concerted effort to win honours via the most obvious and practical routes, the two domestic cup competitions. By the time O'Neill arrived at the Stadium of Light, Sunderland had already made their traditional early exit from the Carling Cup when bowing out in extra time against Championship side Brighton and Hove Albion at the American Express Community Stadium in August. But having began his latest managerial episode in such sensational style with four wins and a draw from six games, cup fever is brewing on Wearside.
What is particularly impressive since O'Neill's arrival is that most of the results have been achieved with an injury list as long as any bemoaned by Steve Bruce while he was in charge. O'Neill was most gushing in his praise of the players who clearly performed well above the manager's expectations in beating table-topping Manchester City and Wigan is the space of two days in a busy Christmas schedule. The boss acknowledged that his players had ran enough for three games to nullify Roberto Mancini's superstars and was visibly astonished at the energy levels they were able display in beaten Wigan by a rather flattering 4-1 margin at the DW Stadium 48 hours later. Having inspired such heroic endeavour from his depleted squad, the FA Cup 3rd Round tie against Peterborough looms with team options further hampered as frustratingly, Sunderland appear unable to finish a game without adding to the workload of the club's doctors. Captain Lee Catermole who looks transformed under the new leadership, showed his toughness by playing on after receiving a nasty looking gash on his leg during the first half at Wigan. Stand-in full back Jack Colback showed he is made of similar stuff when playing out the final minutes in obvious distress after twisting his foot late in the game, unfortunately the medics could rule him out of this weekend's trip to London Road and O'Neill faces looking for an alternative for the left back slot.
Sunderland's recent record in cup competitions is nothing short of abysmal and O'Neill must try to muster at least 14 bravehearts to survive against Peterborough who are aquitting themselves well in their second stint in the Championship under manager, Darren Ferguson. Although still in the bottom half of the table, Peterborough are unbeaten in five games going into the FA Cup tie and still smarting from Marlon King's last minute penalty for Birmingham which cost The Posh two points on Monday night. Sunderland fans will take any kind of win against the Championship side, foregoing style just for the chance to survive in the competition and get some breathing space while the squad heals. O'Neill is still waiting on news of Wes Brown, Titus Bramble, Phil Bardsley, Connor Wickham, Kieron Westwood and Seb Larsson who are all recovering from injury or ailing with sickness that hit the club over the holiday period. Craig Gordon and Michael Turner played for the reserves in midweek but probably lack the fitness levels required for Sunday's televised game. The good news that Fraizer Campbell is due to return to training following his knee problems will not impact on team selection for some time to come, as O'Neill has vowed not to rush the striker and risk a repeat of his previous ill-fated return.
The long list of injuries could be mean O'Neill will introduce some fringe players, which would give them an opportunity to impress beyond the training ground. In normal circumstances, such a decision would be met by mixed response from Sunderlands who have been frustrated by the second rate performances from second string players in recent cup competitions. However, given O'Neill's ability to get the best from individuals, even in such a short space of time at Sunderland, his decision is unlikely to be questioned regardless of team selection.
O'Neill has been winning trophies in knock out competitions since his playing days and began his managerial career with two FA Trophy titles at Wycombe Wanderers, he's continued to win domestic honours throughout his career, with two League Cups while at Leicester and three Scottish FA Cups plus a Scottish League Cup during his five years at Celtic. He will have the belief of the Sunderland fans when he said after the Wigan game: “We will definitely be trying to stay in the FA Cup. Whatever we might feel in the minutes after the Wigan game, we will be ready on Sunday to give Peterborough a game. And if we do go out of it at the weekend, it won’t be through lack of trying.”
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