Plymouth Argyle v Sunderland: Memorable meetings ahead of Championship return

Sunderland fans are set to make the long journey to Home Park on Saturday but history suggests it could be worth the 800-mile round trip. While a game against 19th-placed Plymouth may not appear to guarantee a thrill, previous games have provided plenty of drama both good and bad for the Black Cats.

With that in mind, here are five of the most memorable meetings since the year 2000 between Sunderland and Plymouth.

01/05/2021: Plymouth 1-3 Sunderland

Sunderland sealed a League One play-off place with a 3-1 victory against 10-men Argyle during the Covid era.

Lee Johnson’s side took an early lead when Ross Stewart netted his second goal for the club in just his first start.

Plymouth captain Joe Edwards equalised in the second half but a red card for Jerome Opoku derailed the home side, with Chris Maguire and Denver Hume netting late on to earn the three points and secure Sunderland’s place in the League One play-offs.

The game was on a knife-edge going into a nervy end to the match, but the late goals ended a frustrating seven-game winless run for the Black Cats.

12/08/2006: Sunderland 2-3 Plymouth

It was a third straight Championship defeat for Niall Quinn’s Sunderland, who were beaten in a five-goal thriller at the start of the season.

But, looking back, this was the ultimate blessing in disguise.

Daryl Murphy put the Black Cats ahead within one minute, but David Norris and Barry Hayles both found the net before half-time.

Stephen Elliott then equalised after the break before a late strike from Nick Chadwick sealed the victory for Argyle.

This result was part of a wider poor start by Sunderland to the 2006-07 season. But it resulted, a fortnight later, in the appointment of Roy Keane as manager.

And the rest of the campaign is history…

15/03/2005: Sunderland 5-1 Plymouth

A first-half three goal haul from the Black Cats meant victory was all but confirmed after 45 minutes, but they didn’t ease off the gas and kept their Championship promotion hopes alive with a five-star result.

Dean Whitehead, Julio Arca and a Marcus Stewart penalty gave Mick McCarthy’s men a handsome lead going into half-time, with Steve Caldwell and Sean Thornton adding to the victory after the break in front of just over 25,000 fans.

The win meant the Black Cats stayed in second place, despite promotion rivals Wigan also winning 2-0 that day. With a tense promotion push still to come, it was important that Sunderland won the game but preserved some energy.

Ultimately McCarthy drove the team to a first-placed finish, taking the club to the Premier League after two seasons in the Championship – and this 5-1 victory is often referred to as a turning point in the promotion campaign.

11/12/2021: Sunderland 2-1 Plymouth

Another recent reminder of Sunderland’s time in League One, this game saw Dan Neil and Nathan Broadhead put the Black Cats ahead within 15 minutes before a second-half goal from Dan Scarr made it a nervy finish.

Despite Plymouth proving to be a handful on the counter-attack, Sunderland did manage the final stages of the match well and created several chances in the last few minutes.

The victory – watched by almost 29,000 at the Stadium of Light - moved the Black Cats up to third in the table under Lee Johnson, while Argyle dropped to sixth after a fifth game without a win.

But Johnson would be sacked by Sunderland just over a month later, with Alex Neil ultimately coming in to achieve Wembley play-off glory.