THE INDIE- ROONEY LIFTS UNITED OUT OF THE ORDINARY
Wayne Rooney does not have the fondest of memories of the Stadium of Light. It was in the Lisbon version that his - and England's - last championship challenge came to grief. Sixteen months on from the heartache and metatarsal break of the Euro 2004 quarter-final, the national treasure began the countdown to the 2006 World Cup finals with a winning contribution yesterday at the Wearside ground of the same name.
Nine days short of his 20th birthday, he showed some 24-carat touches, three of his last teenage kicks deciding a Premiership contest in which Manchester United trod water for the opening 40 minutes.
It was a right-footed finish by Rooney that turned the tide, five minutes before half-time, and the boy wonder also threaded goal-prompting passes to Ruud van Nistelrooy and the 18-year-old Giuseppe Rossi as United resisted a late Sunderland revival to record their second successive win in the Premiership.
It was a heartening sight for most Englishmen, though not for one Barnsley-born Irishman. "I'm pissed off," Mick McCarthy said, when asked about Rooney. "He's a quality player who everyone expects to win the World Cup for England."
THE OBSERVER - ROONEY'S POWERS DAZZLE STUNNED SUNDERLAND
So this was it. Sunderland's big opportunity to show the world that their recent mini-revival was more than a flash in the pan. Chief playmakers Julio Arca and Christian Bassila were injured, but two men don't make a team, right?
Wrong. At least that was the lunchtime opinion inside the Colliery Tavern near the stadium. 'We're stuffed, that's for sure,' said the Peter Crouch lookalike at the bar. 'I just can't see where the spark is gonna come from without Arca. He's the man.'
The Sunderland manager spent much of the afternoon sarcastically applauding the travelling supporters for all the pro-Roy Keane chanting being thrown in his general direction, though the crowd was more than nine thousand short of capacity and there were significantly fewer United fans here than have turned up with other sides this season.
For Sir Alex Ferguson, there was the added pleasure of watching his side score three goals away from home for the second successive match. 'The only real disappointment of our season so far was the home defeat to Blackburn because we missed so many chances,' he said.
'We can't afford to do that, so hopefully scoring three goals away at Fulham and again today will help confidence.'
THE SUNDAY TIMES - ROONEY'S FLAIR FLOORS SUNDERLAND
He thought that his team deserved more, especially from a first half in which they took the game to their opponents, and no man is expected to enjoy the abuse hurled at him by supporters of another team, but Mick McCarthy should have known better than to respond to the taunts of the followers of Manchester United yesterday.
Continually baited by fans who remember his dispute with Roy Keane at the 2002 World Cup finals, the Sunderland manager reacted with raised fists as the teams walked off at half-time. His players should have been a goal up at that stage, rather than a goal down, and the antics of McCarthy were a measure of his frustration.
Sir Alex Ferguson, out on the touchline, fixed his charges with a menacing glare. The frustration also manifested itself in Cristiano Ronaldo, whose petulant reaction to the award of a foul against O’Shea earned him a booking.
Sunderland, though, know better than to assume that possession will be rewarded in the Premiership, especially when they lack the quality of a match-winning player. How they would love to have in their ranks someone who could make their efforts worthwhile, never mind a teenager with the individual brilliance of Rooney.
Rooney’s remarkable ability to single-handedly rescue his team was cruel on Sunderland. When Ji-Sung Park played him in midway between the centre circle and his opponents’ penalty area, the 19-year-old striker charged down on goal like a man possessed, bundling his way past the goalkeeper and releasing his shot from a narrow angle. Despite Justin Hoyte’s best efforts on the goalline, the ball went in.
In one explosive combination, Rooney nearly set up a second. Blink and you would have missed his quickfire exchange with Van Nistelrooy in midfield, after which he rode a lunging tackle by Breen and squared an inviting pass across the six-yard box. His Dutch striking partner, sliding in at the far post, was just too late to make a connection.
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH - ROONEY'S MAGIC INSPIRES UNITED
It took a while for the Wayne Rooney Show to unfold but eventually it was there in all its match-winning trickery. He scored the goal that broke the opposition's spirit. He made the one that condemned Sunderland to another weekend of soul- searching and he touched the stars with his feel for entertainment.
The Stadium of Light dazzled to his tune.
Until Rooney's inspired, opening Pele-Best strike Sunderland had been a blaze that needed dousing but there were too many holes in United's bucket. The stocky young Liverpudlian changed all that. His delivery could have been a thank-you to his goalkeeper, Edwin Van der Sar, who had kept United in the match for the previous 40 minutes.
Sunderland's surge of attacking play was based on solid teamwork. Man for man they were inferior but Andy Welsh, who cost £15,000 from Stockport County and used to have Manchester United pictures pinned to his bedroom wall, was lifted by the occasion.
His trickery on the left, where Julio Arce usually excites the fans, brought him the accolades but Van der Sar was stealing the show from the start. His greatest moment came when Gary Breen burst through a ruck to meet Liam Lawrence's right-wing corner. The header was powerful and accurate but somehow Van der Sar launched himself to the angle of post and bar and pushed the ball against the wood.
Almost immediately the Dutch international goalkeeper was snatching the ball from Welsh's feet before picking it off Dean Whitehead's head. He foiled Breen a second time and as the ball kept coming back in his direction.
Anything cohesive in this first half was a rarity for United. Paul Scholes and Cristiano Ronaldo combined in one sweeping attack to give Ruud Van Nistelrooy a chance that was deflected for a corner.
Sir Alex Ferguson was clearly unhappy with his static midfield and was a frequent visitor to the touchline with an admonishing finger. Rooney ended his anguish and the force stayed with United as quality made its mark.