The bare bones of it, courtesy of safc.com, are that Sunderland beat Toronto with a Jermain Defoe double after his former club took the lead: ‘two well-taken efforts … the first, in the 65th minute, reward for Defoe’s persistence in a scramble on the edge of the area, the second four minutes later after of a flowing counter-attack led by Adam Johnson’. And no battle royal with Jozy Altidore, who did not play. Dick Advocaat was happy for the fans and for Defoe, as his post-match email shows. Much coverage and photos to come – and yes, the players acknowledged the support …
Dear Colin,
It was a good 2-1 win; the players gave everything to get a better result than the previous two games.
We’ve had a 12-day pre-season camp with two training sessions every day and performances will improve when we don’t train as often.
We were much improved in the second half from the first.
The two goals are important for Jermain [Defoe]. It will be a good boost to his confidence, they were good goals and we’ve still got another two games to go before the season starts so hopefully there’ll be more to come.
There won’t be as many training sessions now and the power will come back.
That’s why I reiterate that results aren’t important at this stage, it’s important we go back in good shape.
The players have two days off now; after that you will see that they feel much better.
The new signings weren’t fit to play. They’re still a little bit behind.
[Jeremain] Lens is coming on, but [Younes] Kaboul and [Sebastian]Coates need a little longer. Give it a week and that could all change because they will get extra sessions over the weekend.
Thanks for your support,
Dick Advocaat
It’s good to hear that there was some recognition of the fans who had paid good money and traveled a hell of a long way in many cases.
Trust in the gaffer!
“The players gave everything…” From where I was sitting, they could have given more. They were sluggish at times and even when their bodies were working, their minds seemed to be lagging behind.
Obviously it’s early days and, as Advocaat says, there’s a lot of work to be done. I’m a little surprised at how much of that needs to be devoted to getting them to play as a team.
Trust in the gaffer? I’m not sure I do trust in this gaffer. But he’s what we’ve got for the season and chopping and changing again could only make things worse.
And on the Club’s official website a clear acknowledgement of the travelling support. I quote “Upon the final whistle the entire squad and backroom team made their way across the pitch to thank the travelling red and white contingent who had made the long trip to watch their side in action.”
Whether or not the disappointment expressed by Jesse Burch and others, here and elsewhere prompted this is hard to say, as the club often praises the fans, but I’d be surprised if there hasn’t been a few words said somewhere.