TWO years; 24 months of almost unbroken frustration. Everyone associated with Sunderland has suffered in recent seasons, but no one’s anguish has been as painful or protracted as the personal traumas suffered by Duncan Watmore.

In so many ways, the 24-year-old is a personification of an entire football club’s plight.

December 2016, and Watmore had the world at his feet. He had just helped England Under-21s win the Toulon Tournament, breaking a 22-year run without a win at that level, and was in the process of establishing himself as a Premier League regular. He had played a critical role in Sunderland’s successful survival battle towards the end of the previous campaign, and had a new four-year contract to prove how highly he was regarded at the Stadium of Light. Then, in a home game against Leicester City, disaster struck.

Watmore snapped his cruciate ligaments and would not play again that season. When he returned to action the following September, he managed six first-team appearances before suffering a recurrence of the problem in a 2-2 draw with Millwall. More cruciate ligament damage, more lost months. By the time he returned again earlier this month, he had spent a combined total of 92 weeks on the sidelines.

Those 92 weeks witnessed Sunderland’s implosion as they suffered back-to-back relegations, as well as the first hints of a rebirth under the current regime of Stewart Donald and Charlie Methven. Crashing into League One has hit everybody hard, but Watmore’s experiences mean he has a better sense of perspective than most.

It is not that he cares any less about the Black Cats’ decline, it is just that he can appreciate that playing in League One is hardly the disaster some might portray it as. Five years ago, he was thrilled to be playing in the National League with Altrincham. Back then, the extent of his ambition was to carve out a professional career.

There have been times over the last couple of years when he feared he might not play again, so while a ten-minute substitute run-out against Bradford City might seem beneath a player who was being touted as a potential England international a couple of seasons ago, Watmore still regards it as a massive thrill. Sometimes, you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s just about gone.

“It definitely makes you look at things differently,” said Watmore, reflecting on everything he has gone through since that fateful day in December 2016. “I’ve said before, 30 years ago, I wouldn’t still be playing football now with the injuries I’ve had.

“Even these days, sometimes two injuries of the same type keeps people out of a career. So I feel very lucky, with the care that I’ve had from the club and everyone around me.

“Yeah, I am really grateful, because everything is almost like a bonus from this point on. Thirty years ago, I’m not playing again, and I have to keep reminding myself of that. I want to keep enjoying it, and that’s what I am doing. I know I’m very lucky to have the chance to do that.”

Often, it is hard to get a wider sense of perspective in football. The games come thick and fast, every defeat is portrayed as a disaster, and the thirst for 24-hour sports news turns each and every hiccup into a crisis.

Taking a step back can be difficult, but as he assesses the current state of Sunderland, a club at its lowest ebb for more than three decades, Watmore can see plenty of reasons to be positive.

Yes, it is Shrewsbury Town visiting the Stadium of Light this afternoon instead of Manchester United or Chelsea, but after a period in which the club became disconnected from its supporters and the community it was supposed to be serve, a new sense of belonging and purpose has grown.

Donald and Methven have helped fuel it, working assiduously to embrace and encourage the fans, and thanks to the efforts of Jack Ross and his players, Sunderland were able to attract a record crowd of more than 46,000 for their Boxing Day game with Bradford.

Even the Netflix documentary, ‘Sunderland ‘Til I Die’, which could have been a bitter trawl through a litany of failures, has helped reinforce the club’s position at the heart of its city. The outside world might continue to view Sunderland as something of a basket case, but it has also been left in no doubt as to the football club’s importance to those it inspires.

“It’s so important to have that,” said Watmore, who used some of his time on the sidelines to complete his graduate studies in economics. “You talk about a reconnection with the fans, and I’ve certainly seen that in the last couple of months.

“I just think there’s a lot of positivity around the whole place at the moment. You see that inside the club, and you also see it on the outside to. People are talking about Sunderland in a really positive light, which is really nice. It’s nice to be involved with because there’s obviously been some tough times around the place in the last few years. I’m really enjoying being part of that.”

Wednesday’s result helped maintain that momentum, although Watmore feels the renewed sense of pride and belonging is strong enough to survive an occasional knock, which is surely inevitable as the League One promotion race nears its climax.

“It was important to get the right result, although I have to admit I haven’t really been feeling that vibe that’s maybe been there in the last few seasons,” he said. “I just think there’s been a real break to the past.

“There’s a really positive vibe around the whole place, from the new owners and coaches to the players and on to the fans. It’s everyone. I just feel like there’s a really good vibe now, and it’s our job as players to harness that. I think the fans feel that – and the players do too. It’s our job to harness that, and keep giving them reasons to smile.”

Watmore had reason to smile three days ago, with his appearance off the substitutes’ bench garnering one of the biggest cheers of the afternoon. The fans clearly admire the attacker’s resilience, perhaps because his own personal struggles mirror their own.

“Getting that reaction from 46,000 fans was incredible,” he said. “It’s just so incredible to get that kind of support. It’s testament to the supporters, and also to this club. All of the players just want to thank them so much.

“You can use that energy from them on the pitch, and we’re going to need that in the rest of the season. The positivity that’s around at the minute is so good for all of us. It’s just fantastic to be part of something positive here at Sunderland.”