MATCH REPORT: Sunderland 1-1 Luton Town

A week of heartache and anguish ended with a wonderful 1-1 draw at the Stadium of Light for the Hatters. With Luton legend Mick Harford in temporary charge following Nathan Jones’ appointment as Stoke manager, the hatters looked at their usual best in a game where they could have walked away with all 3 points.

A last word on Jones

It was bitterly disappointing to see Nathan Jones leave for Stoke so hastily on Wednesday. I respect his decision-Stoke spent £50 million in the summer and have a squad of premiership players, so it’s understandable why, for his career, he would move on. But what has irked the Luton fan base is that repeated assurances such as “only Barcelona could tear me away” (October 2018) proved to be, well, nothing short of a lie. Not to mention posing with the League One manager of the month award in a Stoke shirt.

Despite the ill feeling surrounding his departure, it shouldn’t mask the tremendous success and entertainment that he has brought us over the last 3 years. He gave us a team that plays wonderful passing, attacking football with a dogged, aggressive edge to it. He is a fantastic young manager, and ignoring all the bitterness I hope to see him facing up to Klopp and Guardiola within the next few years.

Wonderful performance shows tremendous character

So for all of this to happen in the build up to perhaps the Hatter’s biggest league game for a decade made it even more concerning. But, despite the more imposing figure of Mick Harford being in the dugout, you wouldn’t have known it. From the moment the entire squad jogged the length of the pitch pre-match to applaud the 3,000 traveling fans, it was obvious that there was a real determination about them. That proved to be the case – the Hatters played with their usual intensity, and looked sharper in the final third than in previous games against Barnsley and Sheffield Wednesday,  probing with precision and creating multiple clear cut opportunities in the Sunderland box. The Hatters could, and probably should, have scored at least 3 by half-time had it not been for some wonderful saves by Sunderland stopper Jon McLaughlin.

Sunderland looked decent, but not at their best, particularly in the final third where they failed to take advantage of the man advantage for 23 minutes. From my point of view, the confusing thing was that despite their technical quality, they only seemed to ship it wide and whip crosses in, rather than be more patient. Of course they were aiming for target-man Wyke, but with aerial giants Bradley and Pearson at the back he got on the end of very little.

Who next for Luton?

If any prospective boss was in the stands today, I hope they very quickly realised that, tactically, very little needs to change. Before NJ officially left, I thought that Michael Appleton should get the job, and I still do.  I was always impressed when watching Oxford play under Appleton, and he led them to promotion from League Two, and then an impressive 8th placed finish in League One. But what makes him stand out for me was his year as Leicester Assistant Manager under Craig Shakespeare and Claude Puel. That speaks volumes about how highly regarded he is as a coach. As of Saturday evening, he has risen from 6th favourite earlier in the day to second, behind Johnnie Jackson.

Jackson is currently Assistant Manager at Charlton, but only retired from playing in the summer. This would be a real left-field selection from the Luton board, given his little experience in coaching and management. I’m not convinced that he has the pedigree to be Luton manager and attempt to lead us into the championship.

Other favourites are Paul Hurst, current Bury boss Ryan Lowe and Motherwell manager Steve Robinson, who played 185 times in a 6 year spell at the club. It wouldn’t surprise me if someone who isn’t even on the bookies radar gets the job, as was the case with Nathan Jones. Let me know who you think should get the job!

One thing is clear from today – as a football club, adversity always makes us stronger. No manager or player leaving will ever break us, because we are Luton Town and we always find a way. The only true loyalty that exists in football comes from fans and legends, and the loyalty and togetherness at Luton will never be broken. To end with the wise words of the great Sir John Still – “the supporters…they can be the sun and the rain, and the food, to make the club grow, because what they put in on the terraces will make it grow quicker”.

words Dylan Bhundia, D3D4 Luton Town writer