Evra, Anelka & co: saints not sinners after all?

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lequipe
Salut! Sunderland readers produced a healthy response to my account of the French Football Federation’s individual punishments for four of the five players called before a disciplinary commission.

One, presumably Irish reader still hadn’t forgotten the Hand of Henry; someone else considered it a mark of arrogance to have a point of view at all. And two Sunderland fans in Canada – both regular contributors to these pages – described events in terms suggesting a struggle between downtrodden labour and ruthless capitalism.

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Anelka, Evra, Ribery: just desserts or light bites?

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Image: slinz0

An 18-game international ban for Anelka, a five-match exclusion for Evra and taps on the wrist for Ribery and Toulalan. Have we heard the last of this French farce? Probably not; they can appeal …

Fair play to Patrice Evra, Jérémy Toulalan and Eric Abidal. Of the infamous five French World Cup rebels summoned to a disciplinary hearing in Paris today, they did at least deem the occasion worthy of their presence.

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Cheer up Andy Reid

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Transfer speculation is generally a pain. Agents, players and management spread or plant the most ridiculous tosh, because they have an agenda to serve. And some lazy journalists, I am sure, lap it up and also willingly come up with their own names and scenarios, based on pure invention or the flimsiest of information, to throw into the ring.

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Should the Lee Bowyer question replace the Eduardo question?

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leebowyer

Fans with highly developed abilities to read lips and interpret body language detected attempts by Lee Bowyer to influence decisions by the referee, Anthony Taylor, in Saturday’s match against Birmingham City.

In particular, Bowyer – old pic courtesy of “Michael Kjaer”‘s Flickr pages – stands accused of trying to persuade Taylor to reduce us to nine men by sending off Kieran Richardson.

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Salut!’s Nice corner: Eric Roy 4 Jean-Louis Triaud 0

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This old clip, starting with Eric Roy waltzing through the Chelsea defence to set up Niall Quinn’s first goal in that 4-1 hammering of too long ago, seemed as good a way as any of illustrating a quick look at events in French football over the weekend.

The team Eric now manages, Nice, who therefore qualify for Salut! Sunderland support in the way Paraguay and Ghana did in the World Cup. came back from the long trip to Brittany with three points after an excellent 2-1 win over Lorient. Loïc Remy, for whom each game is described as probably his last for Nice (Marseille have joined the clubs wanting him but Spurs look favourites) got the winner.

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Soapbox: stupid, stupid, stupid

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soapbox


Immediately before 3pm, Anthony Taylor and Lee Cattermole shook hands, both proud to be performing new roles for the first time: one as a Premier referee, the other as captain of Sunderland AFC. The amity lasted less than three-quarters of an hour. Was Lee the victim of an overzealous debutant, or clattering Cattermole? This, ladies and gentlemen is how Pete Sixsmith saw things …

Thanks to Colin for the kind words in his introduction to Sixer’s Sevens. I’m not sure that my analysis is always first rate as I have more mood swings than a nightclub full of hormonal females over the course of a season. Brilliant one week, hopeless the next – but it is Sunderland we are talking about……

However it doesn’t take the perceptions of a Hugh McIlvanney , a David Lacey or a Frank Johnson to work out that the combination of a rookie ref and Lee Cattermole was liable to end in tears. And it did as our captain was given his marching orders just before half time for two offences that barely deserved a yellow card in common sense terms, but which did in refereeing by the book terms.

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SAFC (1) 2 Birmingham City (0) 2: normal service resumes

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darren bent

Two up early in the second half, but with only 10 men, Sunderland were forced onto the back foot and had to make do with a point after Birmingham fought their way back …

Normal service is Darren Bent getting on the scoresheet.

Unfortunately, it is also Sunderland players falling foul of the referee, to the extent that Lee Cattermole was sent off for his second yellow a few minutes before half time.

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HT: Sunderland (1) Birmingham City (0)

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Result: SAFC 2 Birmingham 2 …

THIS REPORT HAS NOW BEEN SUPERSEDED BY
SAFC 2 Birmignham City 2: normal service resumes

A second goal early in the second half – Stephen Carr into his own net (not his day, since he committed the foul that produced the dodgy penalty) – gave 10-man Sunderland a cushion, which was just as well since we allowed Birmingham to sneak one back with 13 minutes to go, and then a late equaliser …

Darren Bent scores from a penalty that replays suggest wasn’t (edge of box), Birmingham defender lucky to escape a red all the same.

Lee Cattermole then sent off before half time for what Nick Barnes and Gary Bennett, on BBC Radio Newcastle, thought were two exceedingly soft yellows – though in fairness the BBC site’s main Saturday Live coverage was a lot less sympathetic, implying that he’d offended not twice but three times.

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