“Dan Ballard’s Emotional Post-Match Speech Leaves Fans in Tears”

A jubilant Dan Ballard praised the effort of the team and the immense impact of the fans as Sunderland booked their place at Wembley Stadium following the victory over two legs against Coventry City. And the star of the show admits his play-off heroics are timely after feeling his contributions this season have been lacking.

The second-leg match-winner highlighted the contribution of the squad following a resilient 120-minute battle with the Sky Blues at the Stadium of Light. The game was finally decided when the big defender headed home in the dying seconds to book their place at Wembley for the Championship final against Sheffield United.

Sunderland had trailled 1-0 on the night, with the scores level on aggregate. The game was set for a penalty shootout before Ballard’s intervention.

“It was a mad moment. It was a really tough game,” Ballard said. “We didn’t have the game our own way. We had a style up to when they scored, and we didn’t have as much control as we would have wanted but it was working.

“When they scored, I think the lads responded brilliantly because it would have been easy to fold under that pressure. The lads stuck their chests out and dealt with it really well.

“For the last 15 minutes of extra time, we really dominated and credit to the lads, not having much energy left, to put in a 15 minutes like that, we put them under pressure and it led to the goal.”

Scoring a last-minute winner in front of a thunderous 46,500-strong crowd, the defender emphasised the outstanding effect of the support of the fans to drive the team on.

“The fans really came out,” he added. “I was devastated that it felt like we weren’t going to give them that moment to celebrate. With the frustrations of the game and the way the goal went in at the end, I’ve never seen anything like it.

“From the fans lining the streets before the game, in the warm-up the noise was frightening. They really deserved that because they came out when we needed them.

“That goal at the end was for them and I’m just glad they enjoyed that moment.”

Finally, the 25-year-old discussed his colossal performance over the two legs after a ‘frustrating’ season through injury. Ballard was man of the match in both legs, having been given the nod ahead of Chris Mepham for the semi final clashes.

Now he is hoping to take the confidence, form and fitness into next weekend’s showdown under the Wembley arch against Sheffield United.

“It’s been a frustrating season for me personally, so I was nervous coming into these games,” he reflected. “The gaffer made the call to put me in and I was so up for it.

“I feel like I’ve not played my part during the season so I thought it was really important that I turned up for these two games and gave it my all.

“In the manner we’ve won the tie, it’s going to give us confidence going into that game. They [Sheffield United] finished strongly in the league, they’re a good team but I thought we played well against them both times. I feel like the lads will go into it with more confidence than the Coventry game.

“In isolation, it was a mad moment and it should be enjoyed, and then over the next few days we’ll get our heads down, recover because it was a big 120 minutes, and then we’ll start looking towards the final.”