MEAD FIRES BLACK CATS TO SECOND SUCCESSIVE TITLE
Two standout teams dominated the 2011-12 National Division season, with Chris Welburn's Leeds United snapping at the heels of Mick Mulhern’s defending champions Sunderland.
Yet it was newcomers Coventry City who initially caught the eye, their impressive start including the scalps of both the Black Cats and Leeds on consecutive weekends in early September.
Riding high on the back of successive promotions the Sky Blues were even on/off leaders with Leeds and Sunderland for a time, but their challenge fell away after the Whites gained revenge with a 1-0 win on the road in November.
Any aspirations held by Aston Villa – who also inflicted defeat on Sunderland in October, stealing victory with the last kick of the game – were thwarted along with those of Barnet and Charlton Athletic as the northern duo found some consistency in their form and began to stretch away from the rest.
Reflecting on their campaign in an interview in She Kicks magazine, Sunderland skipper Kelly MacDougall identified the 4-1 away win at Barnet in November as a pivotal performance en route to their title defence:
“It stepped our season into a higher gear, especially against a tough side, with good players,” said MacDougall. “We knew mid-season that we couldn't afford to drop any more points after a couple of blips against Charlton and Villa at home, especially with Leeds picking up their points. Silly errors had cost us points, but we are a very young side and we learned quickly.”
MacDougall had opened the scoring with a penalty in that victory at Barnet, whilst 16-year-old striker Beth Mead netted twice. Those goals took Mead’s tally to 12 from 10 appearances in her debut season in senior football, the youngster going on to take the league’s top scorer gong with 18 in total. Nikki Watts of Reading and Barnet’s all-time top scorer, Stacey Sowden, were her closest rivals with 14 and 13 goals respectively.
Also talking to She Kicks at the time, proud Leeds captain Clare Sykes alluded to the gripping contest between the two contenders and how her teammates had not wavered in their belief that they could win it until the very end.
“Each week something small seemed to change,” explained Sykes. “Sunderland would drop a point, then we would a week later. It wasn't until into the second half of Sunderland's final game of the season at Cardiff that I actually thought we might just miss out. That's football for you.”
That decisive game at Cardiff, which Sunderland needed to win to be crowned champions, was played in atrocious, wet and windy conditions. Nicola Devine put the leaders ahead before Terri Beddows equalised and then hot-shot England U-17 forward Mead grabbed the winner in the second half.
“Beth [Mead] has had a lot of attention for the tremendous number of goals she has scored - in her first season - but the girls never let her forget the service she has had,” noted MacDougall.
“We have a lot of attacking options. I think the playing units, collectively, have all played their part. The manager [Mick Mulhern] deserves a mention, not only for his service to the club but to the way he has tackled this season. We believe in his game plan and he more than shares our passion for the club.
“The committee and back room staff also play a massive part, plus our injured players have been there like rocks. That team love just solidifies the family ethos we have. I think we can take credit for #sunderlandfamily tweets, which we started, that other teams now use!”
Tight margins were not limited to the top of the table, as Cardiff City clawed themselves to safety, with a goalless draw against Aston Villa in their final fixture.
Only two points separated the bottom four sides by the end of the campaign, but Cardiff’s superior defensive record secured their survival on goal difference. The previous season’s runners-up, Nottingham Forest and Reading, were relegated, with Northern and Southern Division winners Manchester City and Portsmouth set to replace them in 2012-13’s top flight.
FINAL TABLE
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sunderland | 18 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 49 | 18 | 42 | 31 |
| 2 | Leeds | 18 | 13 | 2 | 3 | 36 | 10 | 41 | 26 |
| 3 | Aston Villa | 18 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 24 | 21 | 27 | 3 |
| 4 | Barnet | 18 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 30 | 21 | 26 | 9 |
| 5 | Charlton Athletic | 18 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 24 | 23 | 26 | 1 |
| 6 | Coventry City | 18 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 19 | 19 | 26 | 0 |
| 7 | Watford | 18 | 5 | 2 | 11 | 16 | 39 | 17 | -23 |
| 8 | Cardiff City | 18 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 11 | 19 | 16 | -8 |
| 9 | Reading | 18 | 5 | 1 | 12 | 25 | 43 | 16 | -18 |
| 10 | Nottingham Forest | 18 | 4 | 3 | 11 | 21 | 42 | 15 | -21 |
RESULTS
21/8/2011
Charlton Athletic 4-1 Nottingham Forest
Leeds 2-0 Watford
Reading 1-0 Coventry City
28/8/2011
Barnet 0-1 Leeds
Cardiff City 0-0 Aston Villa
Coventry City 1-0 Charlton Athletic
Nottingham Forest 1-3 Reading
Watford 2-8 Sunderland
4/9/2011
Aston Villa 4-0 Watford
Leeds 0-1 Coventry City
Reading 3-5 Charlton Athletic
Sunderland 2-1 Barnet
11/9/2011
Barnet 5-1 Reading
Charlton Athletic 0-3 Aston Villa
Coventry City 3-1 Sunderland
Nottingham Forest 0-2 Leeds
Watford 1-2 Cardiff City
18/9/2011
Aston Villa 0-2 Coventry City
Sunderland 2-2 Charlton Athletic
25/9/2011
Barnet 4-0 Watford
Charlton Athletic 0-2 Leeds
Coventry City 0-0 Cardiff City
Nottingham Forest 0-2 Sunderland
Reading 0-6 Aston Villa
2/10/2011
Leeds 5-0 Aston Villa
Nottingham Forest 3-0 Barnet
Sunderland 6-3 Reading
Watford 0-0 Coventry City
9/10/2011
Aston Villa 1-2 Nottingham Forest
Barnet 3-0 Coventry City
Charlton Athletic 2-0 Watford
Leeds 0-1 Sunderland
Reading 0-2 Cardiff City
16/10/2011
Cardiff City 1-2 Barnet
Coventry City 2-4 Nottingham Forest
Sunderland 1-2 Aston Villa
Watford 1-3 Reading
23/10/2011
Barnet 4-0 Aston Villa
Coventry City 1-0 Reading
Nottingham Forest 0-3 Charlton Athletic
Watford 0-3 Leeds
30/10/2011
Charlton Athletic 0-2 Coventry City
Leeds 2-2 Barnet
Reading 6-1 Nottingham Forest
Sunderland 5-0 Watford
6/11/2011
Barnet 1-4 Sunderland
Charlton Athletic 1-1 Reading
Coventry City 0-1 Leeds
Nottingham Forest 0-0 Cardiff City
13/11/2011
Aston Villa 1-1 Charlton Athletic
Cardiff City 1-0 Watford
Leeds 1-1 Nottingham Forest
Reading 1-0 Barnet
Sunderland 2-2 Coventry City
27/11/2011
Aston Villa 1-0 Reading
Leeds 3-0 Charlton Athletic
Watford 1-0 Barnet
4/12/2011
Aston Villa 1-4 Leeds
Barnet 4-2 Nottingham Forest
Charlton Athletic 2-0 Cardiff City
Coventry City 1-3 Watford
Reading 0-1 Sunderland
11/12/2011
Cardiff City 3-0 Reading
Sunderland 2-0 Leeds
Watford 0-1 Charlton Athletic
18/12/2011
Barnet 2-2 Charlton Athletic
8/1/2012
Cardiff City 0-1 Charlton Athletic
Leeds 3-2 Reading
Sunderland 6-1 Nottingham Forest
Watford 1-1 Aston Villa
15/1/2012
Barnet 1-0 Cardiff City
22/1/2012
Sunderland 2-0 Cardiff City
Charlton Athletic 0-0 Barnet
Watford 2-0 Nottingham Forest
18/3/2012
Aston Villa 0-0 Barnet
Cardiff City 0-2 Coventry City
Charlton Athletic 0-2 Sunderland
Reading 0-3 Leeds
25/3/2012
Leeds 2-0 Cardiff City
Reading 1-3 Watford
1/4/2012
Coventry City 1-1 Barnet
Nottingham Forest 1-2 Aston Villa
8/4/2012
Cardiff City 1-2 Nottingham Forest
15/4/2012
Aston Villa 0-0 Sunderland
Cardiff City 0-2 Leeds
Nottingham Forest 1-2 Watford
29/4/2012
Cardiff City 1-2 Sunderland
6/5/2012
Aston Villa 0-0 Cardiff City
Nottingham Forest 1-1 Coventry City
17/5/2012
Coventry City 0-2 Aston Villa
