A couple of days from now things will be different and Pete Sixsmith will not be a feature of these pages. But that’s for the future and he’s here today.
Actually, he’s in Doncaster, from where he sent a number of texts keeping us up to date on the progress of our team, including the seven words below, which arrived shortly after the final whistle.
And don’t you wish you had been there with him?
29 December Doncaster Rovers 1 (1) Sunderland 2 (1) A performance that could turn our season
We intend to move Sixer’s Sevens to our Facebook page in the New Year, possibly in a different format, especially as Pete doesn’t intend to go much further south than Doncaster. You’ll find our Facebook group at this link . It is open to all; if you receive a prompt asking you to join, be assured that it is a simple process and approval is very quick.
26 December Sunderland 0 (0) Bolton Wanderers 0 (0) So many weaknesses to address in January
14 December Sunderland 1 (1) Blackpool 1 (1) * A slight improvement on grim recent displays
7 December Gillingham 1 (0) Sunderland 0 (0) *Robbed, but only of a single point
and from Bob Chapman who witnessed the whole thing: This has to be the worst yet
26 November Sunderland 1 (1) Burton Albion 2 (1) Rubbish from the first to last minute
23 November Sunderland 1 (0) Coventry City 1 (1) Not great but got a deserved point
19 November FA Cup 1st Round: Gillingham 1 (0) Sunderland 0 (0) AET *Come back Danny Graham¹, all is forgiven.
(¹choose your own, it doesn’t have to be Jozy)
12 November, Leasing.com Trophy. Scunthorpe United 3 (0) Sunderland 0 (0) *Pete Sixsmith got it right first time / Another game and yet another embarrassing performance.
9 November FA Cup 1st Round. Sunderland 1 (1) Gillingham 1 (0) We are getting worse game by game / Relegation looks likelier than promotion after this
5 November Leasing.com Trophy. Sunderland 1 (1) Leicester City U 21 2 (0) Experienced players humiliated by far superior teenagers / Trafalgar Square shenanigans cancelled for this season.
2 November Sunderland 1 (0) Southend United 0 (0) Where would we be without Luke O’Nien?
29 October Carabao Cup: Oxford United 1 (1) Sunderland 1 (0) Oxford win on penalties *No clean sheet, no surprises, no Wembley
26 Oct Shrewsbury Town 1 (0) Sunderland 0 (0) *Frenzied fightback fails to paper over cracks
22 Oct Sunderland 5 (3) Tranmere Rovers 0 (o) Performance and win impressive with Maguire outstanding
19 Oct. Wycombe Wanderers (1) 1 Sunderland (0) 0 No chance of promotion this season whatsoever
8 October Leasing.com Trophy Sunderland (0) 3 (a) Grimsby Town 2 (0) Hardly a resounding triumph but will do or The Wembley train is leaving the station
5 October Lincoln City 2 (1) Sunderland 0 (0) Cannot offer any defence against this embarrassment.
27 September Sunderland (2) 2 MK Dons (0) 1 Hung on: something we don’t always do or Good first half but shakier after break
24 September Carabao Cup: Sheffield United (0) 0 Sunderland (1) 1 Everything we want from our Sunderland team or A very impressive performance; clean sheet too
21 September Bolton Wanderers 1 (1) Sunderland 1 (1) Apathetic performance which exposes our weaknesses.
17 September Sunderland 1 (1) Rotherham United 1 (0) Decent half hour, very poor sixty minutes
14 September Accrington Stanley 1 (1) Sunderland 3 (3) Scrappy and stuttering, result better than performance
31 August Peterborough United 3 (1) Sunderland 0 (0) Not a single positive from this shocker*
28 August Carabao Cup: Burnley 1 (1). Sunderland 3 (1) I just love a midweek in Lancashire/ Loads of effort and plenty of quality.
24 August Sunderland 3 (1) AFC Wimbledon 1 (1) Comfortable win which should enthuse American visitors
20 August Rochdale 1 (1) Sunderland 2 (1) Ecky Thump, that were a tight un
17 August Sunderland 2 (2) Portsmouth 1 (1) Up and running. Committed rather than classy
13 August Carabao Cup: Accrington Stanley (0) 1 Sunderland (1) 3 Had to work hard with McGeady outstanding
or this second 7 which came in as the draw for round two sends us back over the Pennines: Could just as easily have said McNulty
10 August Ipswich Town 1 (1) Sunderland 1 (0) *Decent recovery from absolutely shocking first half
3 August Sunderland 1 (0) Oxford United 1 (1) Looks like a repeat of last season
