Jack Clarke celebrates in front of the Ipswich Town fans after scoring against Sunderland (Image: Adam Davy/PA Wire)
Jack Clarke celebrates in front of the Ipswich Town fans after scoring against Sunderland (Image: Adam Davy/PA Wire)
JACK CLARKE admits his intention to be respectful to Sunderland might well have gone out of the window when he scored Ipswich Town’s dramatic 90th-minute winner over the Black Cats at the weekend.
Clarke enjoyed considerable success during his time as a Sunderland player, scoring 27 goals in 94 appearances, and left on good terms when he joined Ipswich in a £15m move in the summer of 2024.
Saturday’s game was his first meeting with his former club and as he looked ahead to the game last week, he had every intention of keeping his celebrations to a minimum if he managed to score.
Instead, after curling home a last-gasp winner less than 20 minutes after coming onto the field as a substitute, Clarke wheeled away in celebration in front of the jubilant home fans, something he hopes was not interpreted as a sign of disrespect to Sunderland.
“It’s sort of bittersweet [scoring against Sunderland],” said the winger. “Even now, it’s not sunk in too much in terms of how surreal of a moment it was.
“I’d had it in the back of my head coming in to the game that if I did get the opportunity and score, I’d try to be as respectful as possible. I don’t know if the moment or the adrenaline took over.
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“It felt like it had been a long time coming. I didn’t quite manage to do it [score] last time in the Premier League, but probably had a few opportunities to do so. It was more relief than anything else, and hopefully it can help me and the team kick forward.”
Clarke watched on from afar last season as Sunderland made a hugely-successful return to the Premier League, qualifying for Europe in their first season back in the top-flight.
The 25-year-old was delighted for his former team-mates who remain part of the Black Cats squad, and admits Sunderland’s achievements, allied to those of another of his former clubs, Leeds United, have provided inspiration for Ipswich as they look to successfully reestablish themselves back in the Premier League this season.
“I think all of us newly-promoted clubs will be looking at what Sunderland did last season and wanting to do something similar,” said Clarke. “Obviously, the last time we came up, all three of the promoted clubs went back down.
“But if you look at last year, Sunderland and Leeds managed to do what many people thought was the unthinkable nowadays. Sunderland were above and beyond what anybody could have expected. It gives everybody belief that it can be done and we can do it. It’s what we’re striving to replicate.”