They have been relegation certainties for months and were never expected to get the win at Old Trafford tonight to prolong the agony any longer, but they did go out with a fight and earned themselves a fully deserved 0-0 draw against all the odds.
Only last week's snow held off the inevitable until today and it will now mean our third visit to the Stadium of Light next season where we have previously drawn and lost. Wins against Sunderland haven't been too regular an event for the Clarets, it is now over 33 years since two Paul Fletcher goals gave us a 2-0 win on the night we clinched promotion in 1973 and we haven't beaten them since, home or away.
It is looking increasingly likely that they will go into the new season with the familiar figure of Kevin Ball in charge of them, he's been in temporary charge since Mick McCarthy was sacked and might well have done enough to get an extended stay as manager. They would certainly struggle to find anyone more committed.
The next few weeks will determine who joins them in the drop from the Premiership but it won't be either of the two sides who went up with Sunderland a year ago,