This is where Pete Sixsmith usually records his instant verdict, in seven words, on each Sunderland game. Today, wise man, he was in posh Ascot watching Shildon win 4-1 in an FA Vase replay. So he missed a dreadful reverse, 3-1, at Loftus Road. The verdict came from his phone, and accurately sums up what Monsieur Salut saw, but may have been relayed from someone at the game, hence – either way – the asterisk. From a winning position, albeit against the run of play, Sunderland produced as bad a performance as you’ll see in the Premier League and deservedly lost to a cool Remy finish from a(n) (un)lucky O’Shea deflection and then two fine volleys from outside the box by two Spurs refugees, Townsend and Jenas. Funeral? Maybe premature but it’s going to be tight as we attempt to prevent our Premier status being buried …
March 9 Queens Park Rangers 3 (1) SAFC 1 (1) * We deserved nothing from another shocking performance
March 2 2013 SAFC 2 (1) Fulham (2) 2 Better in second half after woeful first
Feb 27 1973 FA Cup 5th round replay SAFC 3 (2) Manchester City 1 (0) City slickers subdued by scintillating Sunderland show
Feb 24 1973 FA Cup 5th round Manchester City 2 (1) SAFC 2 (1) Magnificent performance that belies our lowly status
Feb 23 2013 West Bromwich Albion 2 (1) SAFC 1 (0) Another disappointment. Looking over our shoulders again
Feb 9 2013 SAFC 0 (0) Arsenal 1 (1) *Second half fightback fails to earn point
Feb 2 2013 Reading 2 (1) SAFC 1 (1) *More points thrown away by shoddy defending
Jan 29 2013 SAFC 0(0) Swansea City 0(0) Be thankful Swansea don’t have a Fletcher
Jan 19 2013 Wigan Athletic (1) 2 SAFC (3) 3 Important win but nerves shredded at end
Jan 15 2013 FA Cup Third Round replay: SAFC (0) 0 Bolton Wanderers (0) 2 What a difference three days make: awful
Jan 12 2013 SAFC (1) 3 West Ham United (0) 0 Great show by Vaughan inspired comfortable win
Jan 5 2013 FA Cup Third Round: Bolton Wanderers (1) 0 SAFC (0) 2 *A Gardner wonder strike saves the day
Jan 2 2013 Liverpool (2) 3 SAFC (0) 0 Our heads went down second half – worrying
Dec 29 2012 SAFC (1) 1 Tottenham Hotspur (0) 2 Nearly a draw but not quite there
Dec 26 2012 SAFC (0) 1 Manchester City (0) 0 What a wonderful way to spend Boxing Day
Dec 23 2012 Southampton (0) 0 SAFC (1) 1 Jingle bells, jingle bells, Sunderland win away <
Dec 16 2012 Manchester United (2) 3 SAFC (0) 1 Dismal first half defending cost us dear
Dec 11 2012 SAFC (2) 3 Reading (0) 0 Just a comfortable win against poor oppositon
Dec 8 2012 SAFC (0) 1 Chelsea (2) 3 Far better performance than the scoreline suggests
Dec 2 2012 Norwich City (2) 2 SAFC (1) 1 Took too long to get into game.
And read Monsieur Salut at ESPN: http://soccernet.espn.go.com/blog/_/name/sunderland/id/710?cc=5739
Nov 27 2012 SAFC (0) 0 Queens Park Rangers (0) 0 Won’t see a poorer game all season
Nov 23 2012 SAFC (0) 2 West Bromwich Albion (2) 4 Ridiculous scoreline but too many basic errors
Nov 18 2012 Fulham 1 (0) SAFC 3 (0) Good goals, better performance, 3 important points
Nov 10 2012 Everton (0) 2 SAFC (1) 1 Chances created, which is progress. Much better
Nov 3 2012 SAFC 0 (0) Aston Villa 1 (0) Another abject performance. A long winter looms
Oct 30 2012 Capital One Cup Fourth Round: SAFC 0 (0) Middlesbrough 1 (1) Plan B even worse than plan A
Oct 27 2012 Stoke City (0) 0 SAFC (0) 0 Don’t bother with MoTD: a real stinker
Oct 21 2012 SAFC (0) 1 Newcastle United (1) 1 Got out of jail. Just about deserved
Oct 6 2012 Manchester City (1) 3 SAFC (0) 0 Never gave up but City simply better.
Sept 29 2012 SAFC (0) 1 Wigan Athletic (0) 0 Scrappy performance but a win’s a win
Sept 25 2012 Capital One Cup 3rd Round: MK Dons (0) 0 SAFC (0) 2 Second goal settles nerves for comfortable win
Sept 22 2012 West Ham United (0) 1 SAFC (1) 1 Need to be more positive when ahead
Sept 15 2012 SAFC (1) Liverpool (0) 1 More than happy to take a point
Sept 1 2012 Swansea City (1) 2 SAFC (2) 2 *Lack of ambition against 10 cost points
Aug 28 2012 Capital One Cup Round 2: SAFC (1) 2 Morecambe (0) 0 Shrimps potted as we stroll to victory
Aug 18 2012 Arsenal (0) 0 SAFC (0) 0 Gritty, determined and a well earned point
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Sorry for getting the match prediction correct on the podcast, but QPR are coming into form (at last! For me, of course, not so great for the Mackems)… oh yeh, and Jenas isn’t on loan, he is a QPR player (Sorry: may have been misled by TV commentary but corrected now – ed).
Good luck with the rest of the season, and may QPR and Sunderland be meeting in the Premier League for the re-runs next season…
Come ON U Mackems…
Come ON U Rs!!
Freudian etchings all over that last post “What I fail to understand about Bruce” I meant to type O’Neill of course, but the accuracy of Kev’s suggestion of the similiarity between Graham and Belfitt is now in risk of being eclipsed by the increasing similarities between O’Neill and the departed Mrs Doubtfire.
Now, for the third time I am back to the wilderness. I sincerely hope that a Moses appears for us soon.
I read that and didn’t even notice but followed the gist of it.Only when I went back I saw you had indeed written “Bruce”.
Its like that moment in Orwell’s Animal Farm were the farm yard animals see the pigs living in the farmhouse looking and behaving like the humans they chased out.
We can’t tell the bloody difference either.
Course we will be all smiles if we beat Norwich….ahhhh .the ups and down of being a supporter.
you are needed in the trenches Jeremy, not the wilderness.
Kev S. He is chillingly Belfittian in all manners, I’m sorry to say. What I fail to understand about Bruce is him going on record as saying that the squad is too small.
Out went; Elmo, Meyler, McFadden, Campbell, Ji and Wickham on loan (6 in all), and in come three in the form of Graham, N’Diaye and an unfit Mangane.
As well as an absence of any tactical nous he can’t even bloody count (and I am back in the wilderness again properly now).
This team has relegation stamped through it like rock. It’s rubbish and is arguably worse even than what Bruce left us with in many ways. O’Neill has been a complete disaster. Where are those who were defending him and lambasting me when I said he should have gone in October? They are all very quiet now.
I suppose its taken til now for O’Neills inaction to bite us. We really could go down couldn’t we? We’d be hunting this bloke down tonight if he was a rookie manager. Can’t wait for him to go.
Only older readers will be able to relate to this….but Danny Graham looks the most immoble/useless striker we’ve signed since Rod Belfitt in the mid 70’s. After he’d failed as a striker, Stokoe had the foresight, much to everyone’s surprise, to move Belfitt to centre-back, where he was excellent. Perhaps Graham could be moved there…he can’t be any worse than Bramble.
Martin – please go, as soon as possible, and take your medieval tactics and your medieval back-room staff with you.
Yeah, Martin, before you say it, we’re ALL disappointed. In fact, some of us are gutted.
I said on this forum in December that the January transfer window would be crucial to Sunderland’s survival this season. IMO O’Neill has completely wasted an opportunity to consolidate. He appears to have brought in three indifferent players; let two, arguably better ones go at knock down prices [ Campbell and Meyler ] and allowed another, Wickham out on loan.
I certainly don’t know what our manager is doing, and I have a suspicion that he dosen’t either. What is very clear is that we will be very fortunate to avoid relegation now. Perhaps almost as worrying, in my view, would be for O’Neill to be given responsibility to re-shape the squad in the summer. Against all the odds, he appears to have produced an even worse team than Steve Bruce!
Oh my word. We just were very sloppy. NDyaie especially was sloppy passing. Quality balls lacking, and outdone by the basement boys.
Next week is a must win for us because we face a run of tricky fixtures after that.
The effort is there but the quality wasn’t.
4-4-2 doesn’t seem to be working. We’re not getting the balls to our strikers. My finger again points to a poor midfield as being the overall reason for our demise.
We need to win our next game otherwise we are in real trouble.
Clueless once again.
Bad tactics. Can’t string two passes together and Danny graham couldn’t kick my arse.
No hope for the rest of the season and dreading derby day!!
Here’s my 7.
O’Neill is a failure. Needs to go.
Great podcast Goldy mate. Another dreadful performance and result. How many other teams will play QPR twice this season and not get a win.
What a great signing Graham is Martin. He’s a real threat isn’t he? A class act.
Back to the wilderness now.
What a shambles mon is clueless how to put the team on track again.grahem would not get his place in a pub side, who the hell recomended him? We have ateam full of one pace midfielders who dare not go foreward because they lack the energyand the will to battle back. Playing two midfielders at full back its a joke and why don,t they practice passing and shooting in training as its quite obvious to the fans they need it.As far as players stating on web sights we will put it right- don,t talk about it DO IT AND EARN YOUR WAGES. I was one like a lot of our fans who thought O,niels signing was a master stroke i,m beginning to wonder as he seems to have lost the plot with his signings and team selection. We need a miracle now to avoid the drop, come on martin earn your corn now.
Oh boy, we re in trouble now.No wins in the last 6 games,and struggling.New signings are just not delivering at all.We will be going to the wire biting our nails.
I have no answers we will just have to grin and bear it.