Injury-plagued midfielder Matt Piper has left Sunderland after managing just 29 appearances in almost three and a half years.
The Black Cats confirmed today that his contract has been terminated by mutual consent after a nightmare stay on Wearside.
Piper, 24, was heralded as a major signing when he joined the club in £3.5million switch from Leicester in August 2002, but a devastating succession of fitness problems, which has seen him undergo a series of operations, has sidelined him for the vast majority of the time since.
His last game came in the Carling Cup second round victory over Cheltenham in September last year.
