The programme gave unprecedented insight into the goings-on in and around a Premier League football team, with the 45-minute episodes following a chronological order, beginning in December 1996 with the club sitting comfortably mid-table and mapping the next five months until relegation on the final day of the season.
The most memorable feature of the series was the language used by manager Peter Reid and his assistant Bobby Saxton during team-talks, usually at half-time, which were often full of swearing.
Four lifelong fans comprising a cross section of the local population, from schoolgirl to painter to lab technician to retailer, also gave insight and reaction to results and club decisions.
Again, the opinions of a cross-section of local fans were canvassed, and post-promotion transfer activity (something which hindered Sunderland's 1996–97 season) was probed at great length as the signings of Steve Bould, Thomas Helmer and Stefan Schwarz were discussed.
The documentary showed the apparent discomfort of supporters at the lack of transfer ambition and the unrest caused by the closing down of the popular local Vaux Brewery, which had sponsored the club since 1985, and the search for a subsequent sponsorship deal.