Sunderland Take Action to Stop Newcastle Fans From Celebrating Relegation at Stadium of Light

Sunderland will close their cash turnstiles for the upcoming home clashes against Burton Albion and Wolves in order to prevent Newcastle fans gaining access to the games and celebrating the Black Cats' expected relegation to League One inside the Stadium of Light.

Sunderland are six points adrift of safety with only 12 left to play and defeat away at Reading this weekend would all but confirm the club will be playing in the third tier of English football in 2018/19.

Burton and Wolves are the only two remaining home games, separated by an away trip to promotion chasing Fulham later this month.

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The last thing the club needs is gleeful Newcastle fans turning either game into a 'relegation party' and creating a security nightmare.

According to Sky Sports, tickets for the Burton and Wolves games will only be available from the ticket office to supporters with a purchase history that will allow for vetting.

It is hoped that such measures will prevent a repeat of 1987 when 1,000 Newcastle turned up to Sunderland's old Roker Park home to watch the club be relegated to Division Three, the old equivalent of League One.

Sunderland have seen attendances at the Stadium of Light dwindle this season. In the Premier League in 2016/17, the club recorded a home average attendance of over 41,000, despite poor performances that ultimately led to relegation.

This season, however, that average league attendance on Wearside has dropped to just under 28,000, and the last time more than 30,000 fans attended a game at the Stadium of Light was the 2-0 defeat at the hands of Leeds way back in August.