Brazil 2014: right said Fred, let’s have a penalty

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WCB2-300x255‘We was getting nowhere’ as Bernard Cribbins put it, so we conned the ref. From camporetro.com‘s WC range

A desperately poor opening match of the 2014 World Cup was effectively settled by a penalty awarded, along with a yellow card, for a non-existent foul by Croatia’s Dejan Lovren after Fred tumbled theatrically to ground while probably fouling Lovren.

Oscar’s neat stoppage-time toe poke gave the scoreline a flattering look – 3-1 – but the damage was done by the fraudulent penalty.

Yuichi Nishimura, the Japanese referee, ought to be on a plane back to Tokyo tomorrow. He had already allowed himself to be fooled repeatedly by Brazilian play-acting in less dangerous parts of the pitch.

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Calling warm, witty or wise Leicester, Burnley and QPR fans: you’re needed

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Sunderland: the new away top*
Sunderland: the new away top*

First off, here – with SAFC’s much appreciated co-operation – is the new away strip for 2014-2015. It will be officially released on June 27 but orders can be placed now at www.safcstore.com or at official SAFC stores at the Stadium of Light, in Debenhams, Sunderland or at The Galleries, Washington. Now on to business of our own …


QPR being what we were and threaten often enough to become again, a yo-yo club, their supporters know the drill. Burnley ones with slightly longer memories will have an idea what is coming, too. For Leicester fans, it is uncharted territory.

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Farewell Jack Colback. Newcastle’s prodigal did a good job for Sunderland

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Jake captures that rare moment as Colback celebrates his goal
Jake captures that rare moment as Colback celebrates a cracking goal in the rout of Newcastle Mark II

At the time of writing, no one has yet confirmed that Jack Colback’s free transfer to Newcastle United has finally gone through. But it’s all over the internet, with the Sunderland Echo and Sky among many reporting the deal.

ESPN was sufficiently sure of the transfer happening to ask for a quick piece on players who have made the Wear-Tyne or Tyne-Wear switch, or just played for both clubs. As I said there, supporters on each side of the divide have little need of record books to rattle off a parade of names.

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Brazil 2014: USA, Uruguay and Belgium lead our poll

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Scroll down for Campo Retro's Father's Day promotion*
Scroll down for Campo Retro’s Father’s Day promotion*


With just a few days left before the kickoff in Rio, Jozy Altidore’s USA continue to lead – by a substantial margin – our poll to find an honorary second country to support in the World Cup.

Of 237 votes cast last time I looked, 26 per cent had gone to the USA, with Gus Poyet’s Uruguay closest behind on 14 per cent and Belgium on 10.

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Gambles Rambles: a cry for fairness on Paolo Di Canio

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'You decide,' as Jake used to say. But is there a middle ground?
‘You decide,’ as Jake used to say. But is there a middle ground?

Is it possible to believe both that Ellis Short was utterly right to dismiss Paolo Di Canio when he did and that not every scathing appraisal of PDC was fair? Ken Gambles regards the merits of the sacking to be proper ground for debate but finds unjust and unpleasant the almost cliched view of the Italian as a man not quite right in the head …

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Foul football and early baths

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John McCormick:
John McCormick: looking for the answers

The average age of our readers has probably been reduced to below 100, thanks to Hayley and Keir, and our brilliantly successful season will no doubt have brought in new readers. Or maybe not, I don’t actually have a clue except for M Salut’s recent post that the site’s had 2.4 million visitors since it opened in 2007. Whatever, it’s likely that some of those 2.4 million hits will be from the parents of football-mad kids who, struck down by World cup fever, will shortly be negotiating bedtimes and giving plaintive cries of “just a bit longer…”

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