As he said goodbye to the Stadium of Light and Sunderland faced the difficult task of replacing a footballer who often carried our destinies on his thin shoulders, it struck me that Jack Clarke’s Championship career in red and white came to an end out of nowhere.

He scored our first second division goal in four years against Coventry City in 2022, opening the scoring with a header against the Sky Blues, and on Sunday his final action against Sheffield Wednesday – and as a Lads player – was to set up Eliezer Mayenda, who scored the fourth goal in a comprehensive dismantling of the Owls.

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Beautiful symmetry, a final climax and the perfect end to his memorable performance in Wearside.

For Clarke it’s “next stop: Portman Road” and Ipswich Town.

After two consecutive promotions under Kieran McKenna, the club is in good spirits and has spent enough money to give them a chance of staying in the Premier League. A good club; a traditional club with a fanbase that, like us, has seen its fair share of turmoil since the days of George Burley and Marcus Stewart.

I’m fully prepared to be in the minority here, but I have no problem at all with Ipswich or its fans, nor do I feel let down or betrayed by Clarke himself, even if his agent Ian Harte has not exactly emerged from this whole saga as Wearside’s darling of the month.

If the Tractor Boys survive, all the better for them, and if not… well, depending on how things go for us, there might well be a chance of a Clarke reunion next season.

All in all, Clarke was a great player for Sunderland. And while one red and white hero in Chris Rigg continues to thrive, another is leaving the club. The ‘Clarke 20’ replica shirts are now out of date, Régis Le Bris is without a key player and there is a huge gap behind him on the left wing.

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Romaine Mundle and Tommy Watson now face potentially the most devilish of challenges: proving they have what it takes to keep the left side of the Red and White attack sharp, powerful and in sync. Can they do it? The potential is there and let’s hope lightning strikes twice, maybe three times, as we try to get back on track.

Depending on whose numbers you believe, the transfer fee received for Clarke is miles below the true market value of such an influential player. But as always, how we reinvest that money and the quality of the players brought in to keep things going will be the real litmus test – and that is something where confidence could be shaky.

After all, while Ross Stewart’s departure was a financial incentive, we were unable to capitalise on it on the sport, so let’s hope history doesn’t repeat itself now.

While it might be tempting to wish Clarke the worst for his move to Suffolk, I would urge you to consider his impact at Sunderland before allowing bitterness to overwhelm you. Because when he arrived in January 2022, little did we know that the former Tottenham player, who was inexperienced, unpredictable and occasionally uncontrollable, would become such a popular figure.

The great goals, the precise ball control, the absolute confidence in his abilities and the ability to deliver for us when it mattered most were all things that made him special. Rotherham, Reading, Cardiff, Bristol City, Hull City… the Yorkshireman gave us so many great memories and moments and that’s what really counts.

His form (like everyone else’s) has had its ups and downs, but in this league, and in keeping with Sunderland’s ethos of attacking football, there were few better at full strength. From Alex Neil to Tony Mowbray, Mike Dodds, Michael Beale, Mike Dodds and Régis Le Bris, Clarke was always there, always toiling, always keeping his end of the bargain.

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The question of what will happen with Clarke’s departure from Sunderland’s much-vaunted ‘model’ is far more delicate.

As fans, we have often sat back recently, safe in the knowledge that our best players would not be sold for a song if a top team came knocking on our door. However, Clarke’s departure has certainly shaken that theory to its foundations and one can hardly blame fans for being concerned about the future ahead.

Are we now considered ripe for the picking? Will the potential acceptance of low offers become the norm in the future?

I sincerely hope that is not the case because if we look at the transfer fees we have received for the best attackers in the Championship this summer, £20-40 million is an average amount. This transfer looks like an outlier. All the other players need to be brought in straight away from the start to prove that we can and will recover from Clarke’s departure.

There is a fair argument that if Clarke were in our position we could develop a more varied attacking game, with a more even distribution of goals and more players in key roles.

It is possible. And it must be done. Let’s see if the players and Le Bris can recover from this setback and build on their encouraging start to the season.

And as for Clarke? Take care, enjoy the Premier League and be a hero down at Portman Road. Thanks for everything since 2022.