A thrilling 3-0 victory for Sunderland capped off the final matchday of the 2022-23 EFL Championship season as the Black Cats joined three other clubs in the upcoming promotion play-offs.
Sunderland started the day in seventh place ahead of their visit to Preston North End, in need of a victory and for the team above them, Millwall, to drop points against Blackburn Rovers. A scoreless first half at Deepdale belied the grandstand finish that would come, as Sunderland scored all three of their goals in an 11-minute span during the second half.
With Millwall falling 4-3 to Blackburn, Sunderland's path into the top six was cleared.
The Black Cats rode a torrid run of form into the final play-off position, going undefeated over the final nine games of the season to finish with 69 points. Even with the red-hot end to the campaign, they still required tiebreakers to advance over Blackburn, whose win at Millwall on Monday also boosted them to 69 points.
Sunderland will face Luton Town in the play-off semi-finals next week. The other semi sees Coventry taking on Middlesbrough.