Sport | Football

Sunderland 2 West Brom 0: Black Cats ensure 'miracle' survival and send Norwich down

 
Loan shark: Fabio Borini celebrates scoring Sunderland's second
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Damian Spellman
7 May 2014

Gus Poyet got his miracle as Sunderland ensured their continued presence in the Barclays Premier League with a comfortable 2-0 victory over West Brom.

Just weeks after admitting they needed divine intervention when they slipped seven points off the survival pace, the 46-year-old Uruguayan saw his team secure a fourth successive top-flight win for the first time since December 2000 to end their fears.

The win means 18th-placed Norwich have only a purely mathematical chance of avoiding relegation as the season draws to a close on Sunday.

Jack Colback's third goal of the season got the home side off to the perfect start when he turned Marcos Alonso's near-post cross past goalkeeper Ben Foster.

But Sunderland were cruising 18 minutes later when Fabio Borini volleyed home his ninth of the campaign to give the home side breathing space.

Neither goalscorer may remain at the Stadium of Light next season with Colback out of contract and being linked with derby rivals Newcastle, and Borini wanted back at Liverpool after a hugely successful loan spell.

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But if their goals prove to be their last meaningful contributions - Poyet has hinted talks with Colback could yet be reopened - they could not have been any more timely.

The Stadium of Light was rocking as the bulk of a crowd of 45,181 celebrated the great escape as if it were the trophy the club came so close to securing in the Capital One Cup final at Wembley in March.

Sunderland could even afford a glaring miss from substitute Jozy Altidore, who steered a 65th-minute shot wide with the goal at his mercy as a chance to kill off a resurgent West Brom came and went.

But for all the visitors made a game of it in the second half after a tepid first 45 minutes, they rarely looked like denying their hosts three more points to go with the 10 they had garnered from their last four games against Manchester City, Chelsea, Cardiff and Manchester United.

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Sunderland AFC
West Bromwich Albion