This is a Guess the Score and Who are You? combined for the FA Cup 3rd round replay at Burnley.
Salut! Sunderland is not on a go-slow or work-to-rule or in any greater sulk than usual. It just seemed unnecessary to run yet another interview with a supporter of a team we will by tomorrow night have played three times since New Year’s Eve. There’ll be a reminder later in this piece of the refreshing thoughts of our previous Burnley interviewee, Andy Robinson, about the importance of the cup to him.
Jack Rodwell admitted after the Stoke City nightmare that it must be tough being a Sunderland supporter when such dreadful displays are served up.
In the same report, David Moyes seemed to acknowledge that his costly defender Papy Djilobodji seemed almost to stop playing at one point and, as the report put it, had to be “cajoled by John O’Shea”. Elsewhere, the manager explained his decision not to sue use (see Comment below – Ed) a single substitute by saying he simply had no one on the bench that could offer a better attacking option than Defoe, Borini and Januzaj.
Wherever you turn, the post-Stoke inquest makes for bleak reading.
Pete Sixsmith wondered here yesterday, in his agonised but compelling match analysis, whether we were witnessing the beginning of the end in terms of unswerving, active loyalty.
This was his conclusion:
As for us, the crowd, we keep on going. 42,000 there yesterday but many will not be back. For those who go to every home game, there is no pleasure in this and we are becoming numbed by the pain of wretched season after wretched season. Could this be the one where the habit of going is broken?
I hope we win at Burnley. The cup is a distraction when your team is in such a mess as ours, but it can also be a confidence builder as was shown in the League Cup run to Wembley under Gus Poyet. Our players are in sore need of that sort of fillip.
No one won Guess the Score on Saturday because no one among the entrants could bring himself/herself to predict a Sunderland defeat.
I shall keep the prize mug ready for tomorrow night. The winner shall be whoever is first to post a correct prediction of the scoreline at the end of 90 minute or, if scores are then level, after stoppage time (but not including any penalty shoot-out.
As always, opposing supporters are welcome to enter. A Burnley winner would received a Burnley mug. The editor’s decision shall be final and any winner must have a UK delivery address.
And here, as promised, is a recap on what Burnley-supporting Andy told us about the FA Cup in one of his excellent recent interviews ahead of the previous games between our sides.
Like (for) everyone else it used to be massive but now it seems to matter less each year. I blame the FA for presiding over the downfall of the best domestic cup competition in world football.
I would exchange an FA Cup win for relegation all day long. As fans we should live for moments of glory not mid table mediocrity, easy decision! I would love to win the FA Cup in my lifetime but I don’t expect it to happen. Last time we were in the semi final was 1974 and I still remember fans leaving on the morning of the game (I was deemed too young to attend) and we haven’t been to another semi since.
Ha’way the Lads, ours not Andy’s.
No winners here so I’ll be a mug and offer one again for WBA. Watch a space near here
SAFC have not a bloody chance of winning this, so I will go for Burnley 0 – 3 SAFC
We have to go all out to win this one, so 3-1 to The Lads.
Well, I would like to forecast a win but am getting so close (again on Saturday) to my 3-3 draw that I must stick with it.
From bad to badder to baddest as Burnley stick 4 past Vito Mannone without a hint of a reply. And Jack Rodwell thinks he’s got it tough!
Can’t see us winning. Probably 0-0 and Burnley win on penalties
2-0 to the Lads, with some confidence returning?
Dire dire disheartening display I assume the writer of the above article meant that Moyes should sue the onfield players under the trades descriptions act rather than the substitutes! TLC
Witty response and thanks for pointing out the error, now corrected. I am afraid that “sue” for “use” is one of the most common of my many typos.
“one of the most common of my many typos”
I’ll confirm that! 🙂
Look out for my muscle memory typing as I always initially put forwrad and no matter how many times I check my drafts I nearly always have to make three or four corrections after publishing.
Tablet and smart phone auto correct functions and default US spellings are a pain in the ears.
Great riposte a bit of humour (especially with Sunderland) goes a long way towards making our days happier. Keep the excellent reports coming. I first started watching Sunderland in the 1958/59 season when I was 15 travelling in by bus 8 miles up the A19 with the other outlying supporters, That was the year of our first ever relegation from the old first division so I luckily watched the Hurley and Clough eras commence from behind Stair 13 in the Roker end which got me hooked for life, At that time in that end alone it held about 25000 supporters. Which is where the Roker Roar came from especially FA cup weekends. I have always preferred a “birdseye view” rather than a pitchside view so you can see the space and pattern of play develop. Or not! I gave up my season ticket in despair at the end of the 15 point season but still occasionally go to home matches. I always listen to B&B on radio Newcastle. Over the years I have watched some very poor Sunderland sides but any group of moderate players can be harnessed to play as a winning team with good team spirit, confidence and a will to give all for the supporters and the club. if David Moyes can engineer that we can still survive.
I think we might get a positive reaction to the awful display against Stoke. 0-1 to SAFC.
I first went to Turf Moor in 1966 and have seen every Sunderland game there since – although I remember little of the 1979 Cup tie as the Lancashire Constabulary made two of us quaff a half bottle of Bells at the turnstile.
I am going for a 2-1 win with Defoe scoring the first and his protege Asoro grabbing the winner in the 88th minute. I shall be there.
Brilliant blog…always even handed and fair and for a crack at the Burnley mug I’m going to go for 3-0 Burnley…sorry lads and lasses.