Jack Clarke reveals Sunderland happiness after picking up POTY gong

Clarke has established himself as Sunderland’s key figure this season with 15 goals and four assists to his name while Hume has featured more than any other outfield player in the squad this year with the full-back making a regular breakthrough into the Northern Ireland squad on the back of his continued success at the Stadium of Light.

Both Hume and Clarke joined the club in 2022 and have been integral to Sunderland’s success in recent years having narrowly missed out on promotion to the Premier League last season. Both players arrived on Wearside for nominal fees and have seen their value rocket owing to that success. Clarke, in particular, has taken his game to another level this season as he has shouldered most of the burden for Sunderland in the final third following the exits of both Amad Diallo and Ross Stewart last summer.

But the talismanic winger has credited his team-mates for the recognition of being named player of the year with the 23-year-old targeting an improved season for Sunderland in 2024-25 after admitting he remains happy at the Stadium of Light.

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“For me, individual awards are more of a reflection on the team rather than just an individual,” Clarke told BBC Tyne and Wear. “If the players I’m playing with week in, week out can’t put the ball in the right areas then I’m not the one who can steal all the glory at the end, so to speak.

“It’s nice to be recognised and I’m very happy to win the award, but I’ve got to give a lot to them because they’ve given a lot to me during the season.

“I’d like to think I’ve grown a lot during my time here and it’s due to the fans, due to the club and due to the players I’ve had around me,” he added. “We’ve had a really good group and I’ve had some really good people to learn off in the last couple of years so that’s a credit to the club and it could be the fact that I’m at home and playing football.

“Whenever you’re playing you feel better and you only play your best stuff, I feel, when you get a run somewhere and I’ve been happy ever since I walked through the door.

“I’m happy with how I’ve done. I’d have loved to have been able to contribute in those games [I missed through injury] and score a few more goals here and there, there’s still a lot more chances I missed and games we let slip through our fingers. Hopefully next year we can kick on again and keep improving.”

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Clarke missed six weeks of the season following the dismissal of Michael Beale as head coach in February after picking up an ankle ligament injury in the 2-1 defeat to Birmingham City in February. Sunderland won just one game in Clarke’s absence before his return from the bench on Easter Monday against Blackburn Rovers.

“It was a bit of a nightmare, to be honest,” he said. “We didn’t expect it and it just came out of nowhere. I like to think I can carry on and if I’ve got the opportunity to play football I’m never going to shy away from playing, whether I’ve got kicks and bruises or knocks.

“I’m paid to play football so I’m going to play football for as long as I can, but the injury was an unfortunate one. I was gutted with the timing of it and where we were at because there was still a bit of promise left in the season – I just wanted to be playing a part in that.

“When I came back into the team we were left in a much different predicament which is just how the season has panned out in the end, so it was disappointing. At the same time, I can’t be too disappointed because we’ve had some success this season.”

Jack Clarke has led the way for Sunderland this season with 15 goals and four assists (Image: Ian Horrocks)

Sunderland are set to face a struggle to retain Clarke’s services in the summer with the winger drawing plenty of interest from the Premier League and in Europe after Italian Serie A side Lazio saw two bids rejected for Clarke in the January transfer window.

Hume is another player Sunderland may also face a battle to keep at the Stadium of Light – something interim head coach Mike Dodds addressed recently when sharing his admiration for the full-back after being named Northern Ireland’s player of the year for 2023. Hume arrived from Linfield and has gone from strength-to-strength since breaking into the starting line-up on Wearside.

“I’ve really enjoyed my football this season,” he said. "I’ve played a lot of games, it’s been tough on the legs because a lot of lads get a break whenever the international games come around but I have another two games to play so it has been tough but I’ve loved it.

“You just need to look after your recovery after games, especially with the amount of games you play. I’ve had to look after myself off the pitch. It’s just about being professional and taking care of yourself.”

Hume is ranked number one in the Championship when it comes to tackles and interceptions this season and the 22-year-old admits he will never shy away from that side of the game.

“It’s the way I’ve grown up, I don’t think that’s going to change,” he said. “It’s the way I like to play football. I like to work hard and get stuck in. I get told a lot from fans they like the tackles and they like me getting stuck in. Sometimes you don’t want to do that because you want to keep it nice and simple.

“You can win games like that but if the game calls for it I’m not shy with that and I’ll get stuck in if I need to.”