When last heard of, Pete Sixsmith was planning to drown his sorrows in Fagan’s Bar on Drumcondra Road after Sunderland’s last pre-season friendly, against Shamrock Rovers, was swept away by torrential rain.
The team was on its way to Tolka Park in Dublin when the Garda ruled that the approaches to the ground were unsafe because the river – seen above in better behaved times – had burst its banks. Had they not done so, the referee would apparently have had no choice but to call the game off anyway. The pitch was waterlogged.
Niall Quinn said the game would be re-arranged and expressed sympathy for the fans who had spent “good money” in hopes of attending the match.
Three points next Saturday evening would go a long way to making it better……….but expect word here first on Pete’s exploits in Dublin’s Fair City.
By way of consolation, anyone who has not already seen it might enjoy this clip of a recent Niall interview on Irish television. My computer at present resists anything that needs Real Player or similar, but I’m told it is good.