Malcolm Dawson writes…..normally Salut! Sunderland relies on its tried and trusted team of contributors for regular input but every now …
Will Sunderland get a first win of the season, boosting morale with any luck ahead of the trip to Villa? Or will Exeter City slip banana skins under our feet?
Fans of the Devon side, including the 300-500 expected to travel up for the game, are welcome to join in Guess the Score though it will probably be a just-for-fun comp. On the basis that no prize is only marginally worse than a coffee mug, have a go anyway.
Exeter City and York City drew in their League Two game on Saturday as did Sunderland and Swansea, the Premier teams some might expect to waltz past them in the League Cup. Whatever happens in Swansea-York, however, we know better than to count chickens, though it’s a fair bet the travelling Exeter fans will be counting empty home seats at the SoL. We found two fans of the Grecians willing to contribute to the Who are You! series – Paul Sussex*, who runs the Exeweb site (@exemsg at Twitter) and Neil Le Milliere** – and promised to use both sets of replies. Both will be at the game and here they give refreshing accounts of life beyond the Premier …
Malcolm Dawson writes…Last night’s downpour has passed and shadows in the garden indicate the presence of some sunshine so Peter …
Malcolm Dawson writes…..it’s usually a good sign when I can watch a game and not spend time thinking about what …
Malcolm Dawson writes…it has just started to teem it down here in West Durham which may upset Pete Sixsmith’s plans …
Given how little many Sunderland supporters expected out of the match against Swansea, a fighting display brought not only a point but a glimmer of hope. One point from nine is still a rotten start but this was a big point to claim. Pete Sixsmith was among the pessimists before the game to the extent he was even making plans for an evening-long sulk. But he liked some of what he saw, especially the comeback and slick Defoe equaliser after the Lads had conceded right on half time. There were chances to win it, including a Seb Larsson feee kick from just outside the box for which he came on as a substitute for his only touch of the game, and the card-happy ref Neil Swarbrick denied what looked a strong penalty appeal, but the Swans had a lot of possession and frequently threatened more goals …
As a Swansea supporter studying at Durham University, Bobby Gardiner* could not have been much better placed for making it to Saturday’s game. But the agreeable life of a student means he still has plenty of holiday left and cannot get up to the North East. But he’s more than satisfied with the Swans’ start to the season (draw at Chelsea, home win vs the Mags), predicts an away win against Sunderland but is the first WAY interviewee of the new season not to predict relegation for us
Marcus Procopio*, a supporter Down Under, is a welcome occasional visitor to Salut! Sunderland. This is his assessment of the current crisis, with perhaps only its timing in our favour …
An insipid preseason has now been followed up by two losses to start the season – to teams unlikely to feature in the top half of the table come the end of the season. There are plenty of questions and there is genuine concern that we do not have the answers.
Yesterday, Salut! Sunderland attracted more than 6,000 hits. That is an astonishing volume of traffic for a piddling little site but what a shame it takes a crisis to draw in such numbers. There was plenty of good writing to greet those arriving here for the first time, or so we like to think, but not much of it was upbeat. Can Dick Advocaat and his team at last repay the strength of support they get (er, until things go wrong)? Guess the Score in Sunderland vs Swansea City ….