Darren Bent - SAFC Blog

Darren Bent: how ‘love and respect’ bleatings might cut ice

October 25, 2011 by Colin Randall

Darren Bent may be true to his word and walk serenely back to the centre of the field without so much as a smile should he score for Aston Villa against Sunderland on Saturday. Most of the others in the ground will do a lot more than smile if he a) doesn’t score at all but misses every chance that comes his way b) ends up on the soundly beaten side and c) is sent off.

Sunderland supporters generally give a fabulous welcome to former players who gave their hearts to SAFC for several seasons – look up several, Darren – before moving on for readily understandable reasons. Think SuperKev; there is a minority of boo boys but they are simply drowned out.

Official: Darren Bent’s commitment to Aston Villa ‘solid as ever’

July 21, 2011 by Colin Randall

ALS T-shirt, presumably yours for a song

Three great Darren Bent comments posted at the Blackcats list in recent days, linked to Steve Bruce’s own pursuit of new recruits, deserve wider currency. I haven’t specific consent so will limit attribution to initials:

What does the chase for Martinez say about Aston Villa?

June 10, 2011 by Colin Randall

There’s a large body of Villa supporters who are just up M Salut’s street: proper fans of a proper football club. In questioning what the interest in Roberto Martinez tells us about AVFC, our shady Birflatt Boy does not have them in mind, but the humourless, Houllier-than-thou self-delusionists who can express their allegiance only in terms of braying about what a big club they follow (and how much bigger they are than us) …

I wonder how Darren Bent is feeling now.

He left Sunderland for Aston Villa because according to him he was going to get the chance to play for a “top manager” with chances a plenty being created by their talented wide players Ashley Young and Stuart Downing. The Villa Park of mid June is looking a completely different place to the one that so bedazzled Bent in the cold January transfer window.

Sunderland report cards: (3) how we missed Darren Bent’s goals

May 26, 2011 by Colin Randall

The report cards are coming in thick and fast now. If Bill Taylor brought us down to earth with his pastiche of the post-match Steve Bruce e-mails, stand by for a few more home truths as Jeremy Robson casts a highly critical eye over goings-on at the Stadium of Light. Salut! Sunderland readers who think they know better should make contact and offer their own end-of-season reviews …

Few of us expected the wonderful start made to this last campaign.

Sadly, most of us could have expected from experience to suffer a second half collapse in form that occurred since Christmas and the departure of one Darren Bent.

Irrespective of whether we find the facts comfortable, Bent’s goals even in a lacklustre period for him, accounted for the difference between the first and second halves of the season.

Darren Bent, Kenwyne Jones and other strikers we don’t have

April 25, 2011 by Colin Randall

The tweet from LMuir89 – Liam Muir, a journalism student at Sunderland Uni – brought a wry grin.

Saturday’s games were in full flow, we were goalless again and Liam wrote this: “Kenwyne Jones and Darren Bent on the scoresheet yet Sunderland can’t buy a goal!”

Blackpool, Wigan, West Ham, Wolves favourites for drop; what odds us?

April 19, 2011 by Colin Randall

The following headline, a staggeringly self-evident gem of its kind, appeared at the Ladbroke’s site (where you can get only 10/1 on us to go down) …

Home games liable to determine Sunderland’s season

With insight like that, who needs to consult any other pundit?

Darren Bent, the curse of the ‘calculated gamble’ and a Stoke ps

April 18, 2011 by Colin Randall

At some stage this week, we need to stop banging on about how to apportion blame for an atrocious run that has taken Sunderland from the fringes of European competition to the bleak familiarity of a relegation scrap.

We need to get behind the team, whatever some may think about its leadership, and provide encouragement for the home game (nearly said vital but they all are, potentially, now) against Wigan Athletic.

As seems to be our lot, we will face newly emboldened opponents. The 3-1 win at Blackpool has Latics fans simpering at the prospect of survival, not least when they see our state of disarray. It also shows, ominously, that they can score goals.

Steve Bruce, racism and journalism for the hard-of-thinking

March 25, 2011 by Colin Randall

Image: The View from the Press Box

There are times when I rise up and defend my confrères in the press, and times when they make me despair. Today’s headlines about Steve Bruce being caught “in another race storm” make it a day for despair.

Getting on for 12 years ago, I saw Sunderland beat Watford 3-2 away in the first of Peter Reid’s seventh top seasons. SuperKev grabbed two of the goals, one of them having taken a massive deflection, and Gavin McCann the other.

Fabio Capello, Bent and Villa: a storm in a teacup?

February 15, 2011 by Colin Randall

Mark Freeman

Andy Humble, out in Oz, was among the first to raise it, deploring at Salut! Sunderland the reported comment of Fabio Capello to the effect that Darren Bent had improved his chances of playing for England by moving from Sunderland to Aston Villa.

England, our England – provided you play for Aston Villa not Sunderland

February 11, 2011 by Colin Randall

Elliott Brown

Andy Humble, SAFC-supporting Aussie exile and stalwart of the Blackcats list,, took the words clean out of our mouths after reading Darren Bent’s staggering comment that Fabio Capello had told him his chances of playing for England had improved because of his move from top-seven Sunderland to struggling Villa …

Having heard about this the other day, and just read more about it, I was surprised to see no further comments.

I was at least expecting Jeremy Robson to have passed comment. As no one has mentioned it, I thought I needed to vent my spleen …