Twice ahead, thanks to Steven Fletcher on each occasion, we slipped back into the bad old ways of defending far too deep, invited the inevitable and saw it happen. Even after the equaliser, indeed even after Swansea went down to 10 men, Sunderland lived dangerously That assessment relied on the trusty BBC Radio Newcastle duo of Nick Barnes and Gary Bennett, both of whom felt Swansea fully deserved at least a point. But Sixer’s Sevens draws on what a Sunderland supporter sees from the stands.
That fan is almost always Pete Sixsmith and is intended to capture the glory and shame, hope and despair, excitement and ennui of the Sunderland matchday experience. The full archive – see link below – sums up what all Sunderland supporters feel, from darkest gloom to sublime elation, in the words of one who is usually there. On those rare occasions when he is not – which included today, or when his own verdict is delayed, the seven-word assessment is preceded by an asterisk to denote his absence. Thanks to John Marshall, a SAFC fan in Bristol, for standing in at the Liberty Stadium …
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Sept 1 2012 Swansea City (1) 2 SAFC (2) 2 *Lack of ambition against 10 cost points
Aug 28 2012 Capital One Cup Round 2: SAFC (1) 2 Morecambe (0) 0 Shrimps potted as we stroll to victory
Aug 18 2012 Arsenal (0) 0 SAFC (0) 0 Gritty, determined and a well earned point
To see Sixer’s Sevens in full, click here.
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You are all making very good points about the performance of the team yesterday. The emphasis Martin O’Neill placed after the game on match fitness was quite revealing. Fletcher is not really fully fit yet, but he showed focus and acceleration when he needed to.
Sess is also clearly not himself yet, after his preseason injury. So in the end we can be happy with the “smash and grab” with two fine strikers’ goals from our “million pounds a goal” signing.
The full-back situation will hopefully pick up once Bardsley is fit and Rose is brought into the team. I could not really fault Gardner or Colback, but I did think again of Nedum Onuoha when I saw the Man. City vs. QPR game – he would have made a good defensive signing. Perhaps MON tried but was pushed back by Mark Hughes.
Fletcher took both his goals really well, especially the first, but a bit worrying that he went down too easy in the box when Sess put a canny cross in. If he’d stayed on his feet he had a good chance to score. Hope he’s not a diver. Also, not convinced Saha was touched when he went down in the red card incident. As Arsene would say, “I need to see it again”.
Jake – I think the hole in his head is evidence enough.Swansea have been told to damage dangerous opponents, and that’s probably why Johnson was a bit cautious. The Swans could have been down to eight men (had their only red not been to someone who should have had one earlier) but the ref was way too soft with them
However good Swansea’s form is, Sunderland managed to come away with the point that any fan would have been happy with before the game. Great striker’s goals by Fletcher, but the makeshift defence with two stand-in full backs was shown up now and again.
The team will surely improve in coming weeks as the new signings blend in. Overall a decent performance.
Meant to say “need more fitness, especially Sess”
Thought we were a wee bit lucky. Swansea looked dangerous with their wingers.
Great encouragement with Fletcher scoring (two chances, two goals), but Johnson wasn’t really in the game.
I think Sess and Fletcher need more fitness, especially Fletcher. I’ll take a point, especially away at Swansea given their start.
But, we’ve got to get JOhnson in the game more.