EFL Championship

Sixer’s Sevens: Hell, Bent on relegation as Burton come back

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Jake gives Sixer star billing

You could see it coming, couldn’t you. Darren Bent comes on with 15 minutes left and equalises with two minutes to go. Then in injury time they score a second from another cross. Which just goes to show that what we’ve been saying all season – indeed, for a few seasons, is correct: You can create all the midfield play you want but you without a proven goalscorer it will come to nothing. So we’re sunk  and Burton might think they did enough to stay up today. One of the seven word texts Pete Sixsmith sent: “clear why these two are going down” suggests not, but let’s concentrate on ourselves, as Pete sent another at the final whistle:

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The First Time Ever I Saw Your Team: Burton Albion

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Sixer: soon to be reunited with cricket grounds and tasty cornets

Salut! Sunderland didn’t get round to entering this year’s football blogging awards. This was not a case of sour grapes after our also-ran status in previous years; the deadline simply came and went. Perhaps we should just have sent the organisers links to Pete Sixsmith‘s matchday reports and the twin series, The First Time Ever I Saw Your Team/The First Time Ever I Saw Your Ground. In a fair world, we’d then have walked it. Voting still seems to be open so you can keep it in the family and give Roker Report a helping hand.

Here, Sixer admits to being a little lost for words when describing a team Sunderland have played only once (he was there) having written this cracking piece before his visit. What more is there to say, beyond reflecting on a rare SAFC win that should have changed the course of our horrendous season but didn’t? …


Tricky one this: the Brewers have only ever played us once and that was five months ago when George Honeyman and James Vaughan scored in our 2-0 win at the Pirelli Stadium. This was the game that many of us thought would see us turn the corner, move up the league and maybe get on the fringe of the playoffs.
Shows how much we know.

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SAFC vs Burton Albion Who are You?: ‘let’s jump together into oblivion’

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Dave Child: ‘sorry – we met professionally’

Monsieur Salut writes: the pain of relegation is not eased that much because everyone expected you to go down anyway. But Dave Child*, who combines being a fully-fledged Brewer with a spot of radio commentary (that’s how he met PDC), didn’t think the season would be as bad for Burton — or us for that matter – after their escape a year ago. I took the easy option for this edition of ‘Who are You?’, not because there are so few Burton fans to choose from but because Dave did a good job first time round and is a home-and-away regular who’ll be at our last-but-one home game this Saturday.

Dave is also a food critic, reviewing pies at the grounds he visits. Let’s see what he makes of the SoL fare …

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SAFC vs Burton Albion prize Guess the Score: a mere battle for second bottom?

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There is a prize. You judge whether it’s a great one

First of all, let Salut! Sunderland add its tribute to the supporters who have put up with this season’s woeful absence of quality, commitment and results and attended games week after week.

Almost as a further act of torture, the mathematical possibility of survival cannot vanish altogether if SAFC beat Burton Albion in what otherwise looks little more than a case of who avoids bottom place.

And if two out of three – Bolton (home to Wolves), Barnsley (away to Leeds) and Birmingham (home to Sheff Utd) – were to lose this weekend, a win for us would keep a weak flame flickering. It’s more complicated than that, with three possible relegation sides battling for points and Barnsley also having their game in hand at Forest on Tuesday, but that about sums it up.

It’s also the stuff of flying pigs. Bolton and Birmingham only need to draw and SAFC to lose for us to be down whatever happens to Barnsley.

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The First Time Ever I Saw Your Team: Norwich City

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Pete Sixsmith

John McCormick writes: the cup tie at Carrow Road mentioned below has a certain resonance but I don’t remember the replay. 1968 is very much a time when I’d have been there but there’s nothing, absolutely nothing, that I remember about it.

Pete Sixsmith, once again, comes to the rescue. He was there. He remembers it. He leaves me hanging my head in shame.  I can say no more and I humbly apologise, much as so many of our players should do.

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Hutch’s patch from Leeds: Olivia checks in as we (just about) check out

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Rob: a long road back?

Rob Hutchison was driving, he told Olivia, who texted Colin, who group e-mailed asking if anyone could put this up and I (John Mac) picked up the message. That’s teamwork.

Did we see any teamwork at Elland Road? I thought we were OK, Pete’s seven word text suggests we did and now we have some corroboration.

What a pity it’s too late

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Sixer’s Sevens – Leeds United: close but no cigar

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Jake: ‘it’s not always pretty’

Unless Radio Newcastle had their effects microphone turned up extra loud today the Sunderland fans at Elland Road were in fine form. The Barnes and Bennett commentary conveyed a pleasing performance from the Lads, who it sounds as if dominated the game for long periods. But at one goal ahead the expectation this season is more one of waiting for the opposition to score than going home with three points. Sure enough Leeds got one back and despite going down to 10 men with a few minutes left the pressure from the boys in red and white was not enough to produce a winner. Pete Sixsmith was there and as usual sums things up in only seven words.

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The First Time Ever I Saw Your Ground: Leeds United and Elland Road

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Pete Sixsmith

John McCormick writes: Some time in the early sixties, after my dad had taken me to St James Park for my very first proper game, he and I were listening to a match on the radio. It was Sunderland v Leeds or  more probably Leeds v Sunderland. I think I’d decided to support Sunderland by then but it was possibly this match that confirmed it for me and turned me away from the Dark Side for all time.

It may have been another ten years before I got round to seeing Leeds live.  Not so for Pete Sixsmith; it looks like he was there in the flesh as me and my dad sat listening to the light programme  in the kitchen.

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Sixer’s Sevens: Awful Defending Gives Sheffield Wednesday the Game

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Jake: ‘it’s not always pretty’

You might notice the headline has seven words. You might think Pete Sixsmith sent them. You would be wrong.

Pete’s own seven words, sent immediately post match, convey pretty much the same sentiment, only more emphatically, and they spell out the implications for Sunderland rather than for Sheffield Wednesday:

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