A DAY after Bob Murray vowed not to bow to pressure from angry fans and quit Sunderland, Kevin Phillips is expected to confirm today that his six-year love affair with the club is over.

Opinion among supporters may be divided on Murray, but what cannot be questioned is the Sunderland chairman's courage.

It would have been easy for Murray to join the anticipated mass exodus from the club this summer.

He admitted again yesterday that his health had suffered as a direct result of this disastrous season.

Murray could even have held open the Stadium of Light exit door to enable Phillips to follow him out of Wearside.

Yet after bringing success to Sunderland, and then watching aghast as his grandiose plans unravelled, Murray is hell-bent on bringing back the good times.

Of course, he is almost certain to be in charge of a club that is deprived of the services of its main talisman for so many seasons.

Phillips's loyalty to Sunderland is also highly commendable, but one cannot help but wonder what might have been had he not shown such faith.

A move to Arsenal or Leeds United two years ago, for instance, would have catapulted him into contention for honours.

That, in turn, would have improved his international chances no end.

Instead, Sunderland fans saw his talent wither away in front of their eyes, and he has cut a disconsolate figure for so long.

Phillips will celebrate his 30th birthday less than a month before next season starts. Leaving Sunderland will give him one last chance to shine.

In almost two decades at Roker Park and subsequently the Stadium of Light, Murray has rarely seen a bleaker time.

Yet he seemed reinvigorated yesterday; as if the task to return Sunderland to English football's top table has given him a voracious hunger to succeed.

It would be difficult to say anything positive about Sunderland this season.

Murray refused to hide behind pathetic excuses yesterday, and accepted he was culpable in the club's fall from grace.

But he has a ruthless streak - as Howard Wilkinson would testify - and that shone through as he outlined his plan to make Sunderland great again.

Whether Murray will be a winner again remains to be seen. But with or without Phillips on board, his bravery cannot be faulted.

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