Editing Len Shackleton (section)

===Sunderland===
In February 1948, Shackleton was sold to [[Tyne–Wear derby|Newcastle's rivals]] [[Sunderland A.F.C.|Sunderland]] for a [[Progression of British football transfer fee record|British transfer fee record]] of £20,050.<ref>{{harvnb|Malam|2004|p=73}}</ref> He was one of a number of a squad full of big name players signed by the club for a total outlay of around £250,000 during the post-war era, which earned Sunderland the nickname of the 'Bank of England' club.<ref>{{harvnb|Malam|2004|p=81}}</ref> However Shackleton made his debut in a 5–1 defeat to [[Derby County F.C.|Derby County]] at the [[Baseball Ground]], and Sunderland finished just four points above the relegation zone – at that time the club had never been relegated out of the [[Football League First Division|First Division]].<ref>{{harvnb|Malam|2004|p=83}}</ref> He later admitted that the players were more a collection of talented individuals than a true team, and that "it takes time to harness and control a team of [[thoroughbred]]s. It took time to achieve the blend at [[Roker Park]]".<ref>{{harvnb|Malam|2004|p=84}}</ref> Shackleton and centre-forward [[Trevor Ford]] would never build any kind of relationship on or off the pitch however, and Ford once threatened to never play in the same Sunderland team as Shackleton until he was forced to back down by manager [[Bill Murray (footballer, born 1901)|Bill Murray]].<ref name="Malam 2004 87">{{harvnb|Malam|2004|p=87}}</ref> Ford was sold on to [[Cardiff City F.C.|Cardiff City]] in November 1953.<ref>{{harvnb|Malam|2004|p=88}}</ref>

Shackleton never won any honours with Sunderland, the closest he came to doing so being a third-place finish in [[1949–50 Football League|1949–50]], when they finished one point behind champions [[Portsmouth F.C.|Portsmouth]].<ref>{{harvnb|Malam|2004|p=90}}</ref> Shackleton felt that a surprise home defeat to [[Manchester City F.C.|Manchester City]] on 15 April was both decisive and galling, as teammate [[Jack Stelling]] twice missed a penalty in a 2–1 loss.<ref>{{harvnb|Malam|2004|p=91}}</ref> Sunderland lost fewer games than any other team in the [[1954–55 Football League|1954–55]] season, but still ended up four points behind champions [[Chelsea F.C.|Chelsea]].<ref name="page 92">{{harvnb|Malam|2004|p=92}}</ref> They also reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup in 1955 and in 1956, losing 1–0 to Manchester City at [[Villa Park]] and then 3–0 to [[Birmingham City F.C.|Birmingham City]] at [[Hillsborough Stadium|Hillsborough]].<ref name="page 92"/> He injured his ankle on the opening day of the [[1957–58 Football League|1957–58]] season, and announced his retirement shortly afterwards.<ref>{{harvnb|Malam|2004|p=103}}</ref> This meant he played only 45 minutes for new manager [[Alan Brown (English footballer)|Alan Brown]], who had a reputation as a tough taskmaster.<ref>{{harvnb|Malam|2004|p=104}}</ref> The club were reluctant to grant him a benefit match, but relented after Shackleton threatened to tell [[The Football Association|the FA]] about illegal payments the club had made.<ref name="page 113"/>