Sunderland were now by far the most dominant association football team in their town. During the previous season they had absorbed the Bede's (St. Bede's) club which had been sharing their previous home at Abbs Field. Another club with which they were closely linked - Workman's Hall - had folded after being unable to find a field to play on. The better players from both of these clubs, such as Jake Spain, Bill Kirkley and Fred Dale, now became prominent in the Sunderland ranks.

The Newcastle Road ground they had moved to towards the end of the previous season was fully enclosed and had great potential for expansion, and Sunderland's reputation had travelled beyond the North-East and they were able to arrange fixtures with teams much further afield in Scotland and the Midlands.

The relationship with the Durham FA had been patched up, so Sunderland entered, and regained, the Challenge Cup trophy, beating Darlington in the final. They shared the Durham and Northumberland Challenge Trophy, contested between the cup-winners from each county, following a goalless draw with Shankhouse Black Watch.

In the FA Cup, Sunderland at last won a tie for the first time, but the joy was short-lived. The 2-1 victory over Newcastle West End was objected to by the Tynesiders, as the game ended in near darkness; Sunderland lost 1-0 in the replayed match at St. James' Park. West End went out in the Second Round, the FA Cup eventually being won by Aston Villa.

Several friendlies against strong opposition from beyond the North-East were played. Glasgow Rangers, FA Cup Semi-Finalists, were beaten 1-0, whilst Scottish Cup Finalists Dumbarton defeated The Lads 5-2. Football had still not reached a level of organisation to support any leagues at this time.

SCHEDULED FIXTURES FOR WHICH NO REPORT CAN BE FOUND:

We can be confident that this website provides a complete record of Sunderland's matches for this season. The playing record published at the AGM a week after the final fixture against Accrington was: played 33, won 17, drawn 7, lost 9, goals scored 63, conceded 60. This exactly matches the playing record recorded here.

REPRESENTATIVE MATCHES INVOLVING SUNDERLAND PLAYERS:

13/11/1886: Durham lost 3-2 to Northumberland at Bedlington, but both county teams were depleted due to the omission of Sunderland and West End players involved in the FA Cup Replay the same day.

18/12/1886: Jimmy Allan and Jim McMillan played for Durham in a 5-0 victory over Cleveland at Darlington.