Wigan's Kilbane out to sink Sunderland
Kevin Kilbane plans to help steer Wigan into the fourth round of the FA Cup at Sunderland's expense tomorrow.
And then he hopes to go on the best cup run of his career – eclipsing the fifth round he managed with the Black Cats in the doomed 2002-03 season when Sunderland were knocked out by a single goal from then Watford player Tommy Smith at the Stadium of Light.
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The 30-year-old said: "I'd really love to have a good FA Cup run. I've never had a good run in the competition with any club I've been at over the years.
"I've got to the fifth round a couple of times – once with Sunderland, once with Everton – but never really got well into the competition and a good run would be great for me and everyone else at Wigan.
"Wigan have never really been a force in the FA Cup but have recently proved they can do it in the Carling Cup, reaching the final in 2005.
"And hopefully this time we can have a successful run in the FA Cup."
Kilbane has largely been playing at left-back at Wigan since the departure of Sunderland target Leighton Baines to Everton in the summer.
It's a role he has been doing well in though at Sunderland he was overwhelming used in his preferred left-wing position.
Kilbane played 102 league games for Sunderland scored eight goals after a 2.5million transfer from West Bromwich Albion in December 1999. But his time at the club up until his transfer in 2003 coincided with a couple of seasons of real decline culminating in their 19-point relegation and his eventual sale to Everton.
Though he never tried to hide on the pitch and always gave his all, there were some fans who blamed him directly for unbalancing the team and not producing the form required of a quality Premiership winger.
And when a hate-campaign developed against Peter Reid in the final few months of his stay at Sunderland, Kilbane as a high-profile Reid signing also suffered the backlash.
Ironically enough he was just starting to turn supporters in his favour the following season in the Championship when he was signed by David Moyes at Everton and spent three productive years on Merseyside before moving to Wigan at the start of last season.
Despite the unhappiness of much of his time in the North East, the Republic of Ireland international has tried to take only the good times out of his stay on Wearside, although that won't stop him doing everything he can to help Wigan beat the Black Cats at the weekend although he's the first to admit it won't be easy.
"I really enjoyed my time up at Sunderland," he said. "And it will be great to go back up there and see a few familiar faces. It's going to be a really tough match for us and I know Roy Keane will have Sunderland pumped up.
"It will be freezing cold and we will need to prepare right for the conditions. But it's a great tie and it's a game that we know we can win."
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Weather for Sunderland
Friday 10 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: -3 C to 2 C
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