BLACK CATS EARN ‘BEST TEAM OUTSIDE SUPER LEAGUE’ ACCOLADE

Sunderland started the 2010-11 season still feeling the pain of their failure to land a place in the newly established FA Women’s Super League - but by the end of the campaign they had at least proved themselves the country’s best team outside the new top flight. 

The Premier League title and with it, the biggest trophy triumph in the club’s then 32-year history, was clinched 10 days before the WSL’s inaugural campaign kicked off. 

A 3-2 win at struggling Millwall Lionesses, who were destined to finish bottom of the table, confirmed Mick Mulhern’s team as champions with two games of the season to spare. 

Manager Mulhern said: "We're still frustrated that we're not in the Super League, but you can only win what's there for you and it's been a great effort by the girls. We wanted to show everybody that we're the best team outside the Super League and I think we've done that."

The Black Cats had not made the best start to the season in the shrunken eight-team league, losing their first outing to a Nottingham Forest side that was to become their main rival for the National Division’s top spot.

But they recovered well and by mid-November were five points clear of Forest. A number of postponements during the winter held up the race for the title, but when Forest lost at home to Watford in the last week of February it left Sunderland requiring just one win to claim the trophy.

And just a week later the trophy was won, though they had to come from behind at Millwall to bag three points, Abby Holmes heading in her team’s most important goal of the season two minutes from time.

Sunderland were to prove a dominant force in the National Division, which in 2011-12 was set to be expanded from eight to 10 teams. Despite the expansion, 2010-11’s bottom two clubs, Blackburn Rovers and Millwall, were relegated to the Northern and Southern Division respectively.

FINAL TABLE

RESULTS

22/8/2010
Barnet 1-2 Reading
Blackburn Rovers 4-4 Watford
Millwall Lionesses 1-2 Leeds
Sunderland 1-2 Nottingham Forest

5/9/2010
Leeds 1-1 Barnet
Nottingham Forest 2-1 Millwall Lionesses
Reading 1-2 Blackburn Rovers
Watford 1-1 Sunderland

19/9/2010
Sunderland 2-1 Reading
Barnet 0-0 Nottingham Forest
Blackburn Rovers 2-0 Leeds
Millwall Lionesses 2-2 Watford

26/9/2010
Leeds 1-3 Sunderland
Nottingham Forest 0-0 Blackburn Rovers
Reading 1-3 Millwall Lionesses
Watford 0-0 Barnet

10/10/2010
Blackburn Rovers 2-1 Barnet
Reading 1-1 Sunderland

17/10/2010
Reading 2-0 Nottingham Forest
Sunderland 4-1 Blackburn Rovers
Watford 1-2 Millwall Lionesses

24/10/2010
Leeds 0-1 Nottingham Forest
Millwall Lionesses 1-3 Blackburn Rovers
Sunderland 4-1 Barnet
Watford 2-2 Reading

07/11/2010
Leeds 1-1 Millwall Lionesses
Nottingham Forest 1-1 Sunderland
Reading 5-1 Barnet
Watford 1-0 Blackburn Rovers

14/11/2010
Blackburn Rovers 0-2 Reading
Millwall Lionesses 2-2 Nottingham Forest
Sunderland 4-2 Watford

12/12/2010
Reading 1-2 Leeds

9/1/2011
Blackburn Rovers 2-2 Millwall Lionesses
Nottingham Forest 2-1 Leeds
Reading 1-3 Watford

16/1/2011
Barnet 5-2 Watford

23/1/2011
Leeds 3-0 Reading

30/1/2011
Barnet 3-1 Millwall Lionesses
Nottingham Forest 1-2 Reading
Watford 0-3 Leeds

13/2/2011
Sunderland 3-2 Millwall Lionesses

06/3/2011
Leeds 3-1 Blackburn Rovers

13/3/2011
Blackburn Rovers 1-3 Nottingham Forest

20/3/2011
Millwall Lionesses 2-1 Barnet
Sunderland 1-0 Leeds

27/3/2011
Nottingham Forest 1-2 Watford

3/4/2011
Barnet 3-0 Leeds
Millwall Lionesses 2-3 Sunderland

10/4/2011
Barnet 1-0 Sunderland
Leeds 0-0 Watford
Millwall Lionesses 0-3 Reading

17/4/2011
Blackburn Rovers 0-2 Sunderland
Nottingham Forest 3-2 Barnet

24/4/2011
Watford 1-1 Nottingham Forest

1/5/2011
Barnet 0-0 Blackburn Rovers