The story of Sunderland Women's rollercoaster season and why a crucial summer lies ahead

It has been by Sunderland's own admission a rollercoaster campaign, one with obvious positives and one in which the realities of competing as a part-time team in a mostly full-time league became obvious.

Sunderland ended the season two points and two places behind their debut campaign in the division, and yet it wouldn't be fair to say they didn't progress. All over the pitch, you can see that they did. Katy Watson emerged as one of the division's most exciting prospects up front, while Emily Scarr took her game to the next level and was in the race for top scorer for large periods of the season. Their summer recruitment added some welcome experience and quality in key areas, while the January addition of Liz Ejupi finally gave the side the centre-forward they had been lacking for so long. The impact on results and performances was instant, and one of the key reasons any fears of relegation were eased emphatically either side of Christmas.

There were real highs, too. Sunderland produced a stunning comeback win against Durham in front of a packed Eppleton, and then competed every step of the way with a strong Manchester United side in the FA Cup.

That their campaign didn't quite realise the end result they had initially hoped for last summer, to surpass their tally and place in the table from 2021/22, can be attributed to a number of factors.

Injuries were a central part of the story, summed up by the fact that captain and top scorer from last season Keira Ramshaw was barely able to pick a ball. Tyler Dodds, who had been outstanding in the 5-0 win over Coventry United just before the winter break, was then unable to impact much of the second half of the campaign due to a persistent toe problem. Abby Holmes had been a big miss over the final stages of the campaign with a knee issue, having been such a key presence as the team's form improved considerably from the early weeks of the season. You could name so many others; finding a settled XI from week to week was a challenge for Mel Reay and there were some weeks where the issues were so myriad it wasn't easy to work out how a substitutes bench would come together.

It felt as if there was an element of second-season syndrome at play, too. Sunderland rode the positivity of their promotion last time around, making an exceptional start to the campaign that kept them well away from trouble even as results understandably began to level out a touch.

This time, to their credit, they managed the pressure of a sluggish start and found a way to climb clear of Coventry United at the bottom.

Above all else, Sunderland were simply operating in a division that got much, much stronger.

There may not have been a standout team and runaway leader as Liverpool were in the campaign previous, but below that the standard has risen quickly in line with a game where investment is rightly growing. They say that by the end of the season the table doesn't lie and if that is the case then this one tells a story, only one or two exceptions from the rule that the full-time, heavily-backed teams soared and the mostly part-time operations found it hard to match their levels of consistency.

There were very few weeks in which Sunderland were not hugely competitive, summed up by the fact that eight of their defeats were by a single goal. Though by their own admission there were some weeks where they fell short, for the most it was a question of the finest of margins. And yet the table shows that with two teams being relegated next season, Sunderland will have to find more.

Sunderland had to some extent anticipated this change, announcing earlier in the week that they would move to a hybrid model this summer. The potential benefits are obvious, as in theory it should allow the club to retain and develop their best young talent while also retaining more experienced players of the squad who wish to continue pursuing their careers away from football.

Most significantly, the move should allow the club to recruit from other regions in the country and further explore the prospect of bringing in talent from the WSL in the loan market. That was one major advantage other clubs had on Sunderland this season, but the arrival of Esther Morgan in January hopefully was the first of many and that could be vital for Reay.

What the move should also allow is proper recovery time, which the club believes has been another vital advantage for the full-time sides.

The future of women's football in the city and the region looks exceptionally bright, and it is to the credit of the club's hierarchy group that they have backed the building of the infrastructure that will support the growth of this team and those that follow. A five year-plan was designed when they assumed control to realise the vision of a successful, full-time side on Wearside and it is clear to see that many of the building blocks for that are now in place.

The confirmation last week that the club had been awarded a place in the Academy system means that there is now a pathway for a youngster to join the club at U10 level and become a professional footballer in one of the top tiers of the game on Wearside.

There are exciting times ahead and even in what was a frustrating defeat to Blackburn Rovers on the final day of the campaign, you could see that. Neve Herron was arguably the best player on the pitch, tenacious and bringing the ball out from the back with composure. Libbi McInnes and Grace Ede, 18 and 17, came off the bench and looked entirely at ease in possession. In truth it was another game that Sunderland should never have lost and with better luck on the injury front next year, their points tally will surely improve.

To say that there can be no room for complacency from the club's hierarchy, though, would be an understatement. National League's North and South are increasingly packed with ambitious Premier League clubs eager not just to get to the Championship but to push through it. Even on Sunderland's doorstep the competition is increasingly fierce and that is not going to change anytime soon.

The fundamental goal for Sunderland this season was to protect their Championship status and they did in the end with relative ease. This team has done exceptionally well to bounce back from the pain of that enforced double relegation and five years on the picture is unrecognisable. It's a team continuing to grow and the onus is on the club to ensure that it can grow fast enough to keep pace with both the rest of the division and the rest of the women's game.