MICK McCARTHY has confirmed Sunderland have no plans for a "lap of dishonour" as the curtain falls on their season of shame tomorrow.

After 14 successive defeats, the Sunderland manager knows it would be laughable for his players to accept the plaudits from supporters following the game with Arsenal at the Stadium of Light.

Last Saturday, Aston Villa boss Graham Taylor was booed by a large section of his fans as he addressed the crowd at the end of their 1-0 win over Sunderland.

McCarthy accepts his squad ought to receive brickbats rather than bouquets for their attempts during this miserable campaign, despite a recent upturn in performance levels.

He said: "Our fans deserve us to recognise them and to give them applause.

"We want to acknowledge the fans; we should, and we will. But I haven't got a plan for a lap of honour, or a lap of dishonour, or a lap of anything.

"The League table doesn't lie. We're the worst team in the Premier League this season."

McCarthy has begun the huge task of overhauling his squad as he bows to the financial constraints at Sunderland while trying to build a team capable of winning promotion in 12 months' time.

Kevin Phillips, Thomas Sorensen and Gavin McCann are expected to say farewell to the Stadium of Light tomorrow in Arsenal's final game before next Saturday's FA Cup final.

McCarthy said: "I've had a number of calls, but I won't go into details because it would be unfair to us and unfair to them.

"Likewise, I've been phoning around as well, but that's part of the job.

"It's a bit frustrating because I can't bring somebody in unless somebody leaves; I won't add to an over-inflated wage bill."

Perversely, given that he is desperate to end his club's losing streak, McCarthy wishes Arsenal were travelling to Wearside with the destiny of the title still at stake.

Instead, the Gunners' late-season collapse - culminating in last Sunday's dramatic 3-2 defeat to Leeds United - means tomorrow's fixture is effectively a "dead" Premiership game.

McCarthy said: "I was hoping Arsenal would have to win to have a chance of winning the League.

"That would have made it a great occasion; the intensity and build-up would have been different.

"It's not a flat game but it could have been more important and a more hyped-up fixture.

"Since Leeds beat them, the season has almost been viewed as being over a week early."

Defender Jody Craddock confessed last night that he cannot wait to say goodbye and good riddance to this season.

The Sunderland defender will breathe a huge sigh of relief when the final whistle is blown to signal the end of the 2002-03 campaign that has seen his club set a welter of unwanted records.

A run of just four Premiership wins from 37 games has taken its toll on Craddock, who is believed to be wanted by Everton and Charlton Athletic.

He said: "It will be a relief when the season has finished, to be honest.

"It's been long and tough, and to get it over with and be able to start fresh next season will be good."

His views were backed up by McCarthy, who has used his eight games in charge to weigh up the merits of the squad he inherited in March.

McCarthy said: "I'd be glad for it to finish so we can prepare for next season.

"We've been playing as a relegated team for a long time; relegation was almost a foregone conclusion long before I came here.

"When I took over we needed six wins out of nine games, having won four all season. Despite everyone talking it up, it was an impossible situation.

"When players have been playing for ten or 15 games with relegation almost inevitable, they want to wash their hands of it.

"But there's no magic wand; there's nothing that says we'll go into next season and be good. That didn't happen here from last season to this season.

"The question is: has our spiral downwards bottomed out? We've got to make sure it has."

Craddock insists he wants to stay at Sunderland, although the club's £26.6m debts may force McCarthy to sell him.

He has played in each of their four games after recovering from injury, indicating the Stadium of Light manager is keen to keep the former Cambridge United centre-back.

But Craddock admitted: "What happens in the summer is out of my hands, but I want to be a Sunderland player until Sunderland get rid of me.

"The financial situation might come into it, though, and that could decide the futures of some of the players.

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