Boro were experiencing a surge of season ticket interest and even tempting fans north of the Tees to the Riverside.
That was the claim of Keith Lamb on this day in 2003 who was delighted to report that although season ticket renewal forms were yet to be sent out, “several thousand” new inquiries had already been received.
And, said Lamb, it wasn’t just those who’d been Riverside regulars in the past or grown up going to Ayresome Park who were quizzing club bosses on season ticket details.
“With Newcastle being a sell-out for every match perhaps many supporters who have previously watched Sunderland realise that Boro is their only realistic chance of watching Premiership football next season,” said the chief executive.
Regardless of where the fans were coming from, the club believed the number of season ticket holders was about to rise which would reverse a diminishing trend over previous campaigns.
As well as the 22,500 season ticket holders, a further 16,000 people had been added to the club’s database.
So why the sudden surge of interest?
“We know the impact that Juninho has had since regaining fitness is an influencing factor, not to mention our unbeaten run of games,” said Lamb.
“The signs are very good. We believe that we have the players and staff in place who can take the club forward next season.
“This interest in season tickets indicates that many supporters feel very positively about our prospects.”
What Boro had to do was harness that interest and continue to impress on the pitch.
They did that the next time out, running out comfortable winners in a 3-0 stroll against West Brom.
And although they lost four of their last five including three defeats on the bounce when Boro couldn’t muster a goal, they did hammer Spurs 5-1 in the final home game of the season.
Surely that guaranteed even more bums on seats for the following campaign.
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