I seriously thought of leaving this blank. But this is Steve Bruce‘s mess so let his post-match email do the explaining …
Dear Colin,
Too often we’ve been at home and created enough chances but not done enough to go on and win the game.
We’ve created enough, but haven’t taken those chances. It’s happened too often in recent weeks.
We have to be bigger and better. We need to have the ability, when the chances fall for us, to stay calm and not get edgy or nervous, and take a few of them.
We piled people forward to try and win the match and we made a mistake.
Wes Brown has been terrific for us in all the games he’s played and he’s made a bad mistake today, but I’m not going to hold him responsible for their goal.
You can’t keep making excuses, week in, week out. Unless we handle it and deal with it we’re going to have afternoons like this one.
I fully understand the frustrations of the fans, but I’m still convinced the dressing room will turn it around.
It’s in my nature never to chuck anything so we’ll be ready to go again on Monday morning.
We will dust ourselves down and get ready for the challenge ahead.
All the best,
Steve Bruce
Click here: £9.50, post-free for UK buyers, from the Salut! Sunderland Shop
If you said `Parc I`d have understood. A simple reversal of letter order.
I meant as Marc!
I think he posts on here are Marc!
Bruce is so full of self pity, and this distances himself further even from the fans. He says that he undestands our frustration but his remarks are all about him. He makes light of his terrible record, and even fails to acknowledge that he is responsible for where we are. I find his comments on the BBC site about “being on the right track” inconceivable. We have just lost at home to Wigan, couldn’t beat Fulham or Villa or WBA but he thinks we are “on the right track.”
They should send for the men in the white coats!
grow up and smell the coffee – which manager do you think that would be better – so many ready to winge.
There seems to be an assumption in football that good players make good managers. There is no doubt that Steve Bruce was a very good player. However, the skills required to play well are not those that are needed in management.
I hate to say it but time after time Bruce is like the proverbial rabbit in the car headlights. He fails to react quickly enough and when he does it is in a predictably ineffective way. He has a fixed mindset, both tactically and in the off the field aspects of his job.
I was never a very good footballer but I also see some basic errors in the side that must be down to ineffective coaching. As Bruce is in charge of that he must accept responsibility for a) not picking up on weaknesses and b) appointing and remaining faithful to staff who are not getting the job done.
Two examples. (I can think of many more.)
1. We always defend a corner or free kick with 11 players in our own penalty area. Not only does this allow the opposition the luxury of sending an extra player forward but when we do defend effectively there is no outlet and the clearance comes straight back again to renew the pressure on the defence.
2. Someone (Sess, Richardson, Larsson etc.) takes the ball towards the corner flag. We have three players charging in on goal waiting for the cutback. But what do they do? All three make the same run and the ball goes behind them. Not one has the nous (or been coached to think) that by hanging back just slightly or taking a different angle gives the player on the ball more options and consequently the team more opportunities on goal. This happened again yesterday.
After the Fulham game I decided I had better things to spend my cash on but nearly went. I was sure we couldn’t play as badly again. Thankfully I saved my £25. Hopefully by the time I make the Blackburn game (I have my ticket :-?) things will have moved on.
Can i just ask if he is pushed because he will certaintly not walk and oneill refuses the job who is available, dont get me wrong i want him out asap, but there really seems to be a shortage of candidates.
Well I think he’s doing fab.
Everything is about Steve. He is hurt, He is angry, He wants to prove to himself and his mates that he is a top class manager, so how ever long it takes-from now to the end of time-he will keep plugging away and take us further in the mire. It isnt about the Club, the team or the fans , it is all about Steve. Trouble is I just dont think he is bright enough to understand his profound limitations. Surely there will be an announcement on Monday-if not the fans will have to act.
When he brought off O’Shea and brought on Ji. I thought, “This is like playing a Do or Die card in Risk”.
It did not do. Therefore he has to die. figuratively speaking.
I don’t think he realises how people feel towards him, 3 of our next 4 are away now how bad is it going to get? Please act Ellis or boy the fans are going to become ‘extremist’!
Bruce’s Banter is extremely short this week, thanks for small mercies. However it is some what short upon the rehtoric of how SB is seriously damaging this Clubs standing, future prospects and supporters.
The time has well passed but, ‘Bruce out and out now’.
Dear Chairman, do the right thing and do it now please!
I agree Tim I have spent thousands of pounds on season tickets and away trips to let this sad man drive me away from our club he will go first our supporters will make sure of that S B O Steve Bruce out banners are getting made now big style
He says he won’t go.
He will go alright. It just depends on the circumstances. He can go the easy way, or the supporters will make him go, and that’s the more difficult way. The worm has turned on him, but it’s nothing compared to what he’ll see and hear if he is allowed to continue.
I was shocked and gutted after losing to wigan today. I was absolutely convinced we’d beat them comfortably.
I can’t defend Bruce’s performance this season, but I will say this.
The man looks distraught in that interview. His face is even more red than usual so you can be sure he’s given the players an absolute bollocking. To stand there, on national television knowing full well the hatred tens of thousands of people have for him takes balls of gigantic proportions and you’ve got to admire that.
If the players had the same level of fighting spirit that man has, we’d be battling for a place in europe.
Oh, and just for the record he didn’t say he was upset that his family heard it. He just said it’s not easy… ofc it’s not.
By the way Ellis your article in today’s program was stupid to say his job is safe grow some balls and get him out we don’t want him his record stinks and so dose he
Bruce you are pathetic exuce to call yourself a manager bog off and don’t come back you make my blood boil if you think you got some stick today it has just started and we won’t stop till you bog off and don’t come back
We don’t want you. On your bike.
Steve do what’s right and leave SAFC so we can get Martin o Neil in now and let him have the January transfer window to get some decent players in and not some of the trash you bought and save us from relegation go now before you kill our club not your club I said our club I will be there after you have gone and I was there a long time before u came so go to Dubai with Gyan and stay there
The Banter finally showed up, did it? It must’ve taken whoever writes it for him quite a while to come up with something.
Meanwhile, I just picked this up off the BBC site.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/15906194.stm
The man’s mad – he’s upset because his family heard the fans shouting rude things about him. That seems to be uppermost in his mind. I imagine Alex Bruce is far more embarrassed by his father’s ineptitude and probably goes in fear of SB’s next job being at Huddersfield. His daughter, too, is old enough and close to football to know what’s what. I imagine if anyone asks her what her father does for a living she tells them he plays the piano in a knocking shop or something like that. Anything rather than admit the shameful truth.
“I pick myself up, dust myself down and start all over again”.
An old record Steve and one that we are getting mightily tired of hearing.