EFL League One

Salut Sunderland’s 13 years and Sunderland’s 13 managers: Jack Ross

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John McCormick writes: I started to put this up not long after Pete Sixsmith sent it, then had to switch off and do other stuff before I could add an introduction. In between I put some music on, courtesy of a USB stick I think my brother-in-law Ed must have left behind.

First up came The Small Faces and “Sha La La La Lala Lee”, which was released in 1966 and echoed round our World Cup venue in honour of the goalkeeper who had helped us gain promotion and who would go on to help us win the cup. Ed, currently a season-ticket holder in the North Stand, Pete, Jake, Malcolm and Colin will no doubt fondly remember those days, as do I and probably many of our readers.

Second up on Ed’s playlist came something from 1982. We were still a first division club then, and would shortly revisit Wembley before enduring a single season in the Third Division. But endure we did.

Now, perhaps, that song is more appropriate. The name of the group -The Jam. The title of the song – “The bitterest pill (I ever had to swallow)”. Step forward one last time, Pete.

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Sixer’s Sevens: Blackpool prove a rock too hard to crack for 10-man SAFC

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Monsieur Salut writes: Pete Sixsmith was doubtless relieved to be on Santa duty and not at the Stadium of Light when, minutes after Barnes and Benno had talked of the first goal being crucial to Sunderland, the mood of the crowd and Phil Parkinson’s future, Blackpool duly took a fourth-minute lead.

Wyke got the equaliser after 37 minutes (Barnes wasn’t sure he knew much about how it went in) and the play, generally, appears to have been less dire than in recent weeks. As most will realise, that is not saying a great deal and there is little to suggest Parky is about to lead SAFC on a charge up the table.

George Dobson managed to get himself sent off, making the search for a winner more challenging. And it didn’t come, though at least we did not succumb at the other end against such mighty opposition. The asterisk preceding the seven-word verdict shows it to be a contingency offering, from me, and not from the absent Sixer Santa …

 

 

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Sixer’s Substitute Sevens: Gillingham corner Sunderland at the death

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John McCormick writes: Pete Sixsmith has assumed his Santa duties and wasn’t at Gillingham, which he wasn’t going to visit anyway, so there were none of his usual texts at half time or at key points during the game.

What, I wonder, would he have sent after 80 minutes when Charlie Wyke’s goal was disallowed?  Or nine minutes after that when Gillingham snatched a winner?  Or five minutes later when the ref finally blew?

My thoughts at the final whistle are below, followed by a more accurate summary from travelling stalwart Bob Chapman, which arrived later in the evening:

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Wrinkly Pete on Sunderland’s crisis: ‘an element of fans could drive me away’

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Wrinkly Pete: ‘the attitude of some worries me’

Monsieur Salut writes: there are views that are unpopular to hold in Sunderland and the SAFC-supporting catchment area that stretches throughout County Durham and beyond. One such view, as a mostly disappointing start to the season under Jack Ross is followed by a mostly woeful spell in new hands, is that we must be patient, maintain our loyal support and avoid the sort of collective negativity that unsettles the very players we want to perform better.

After the alarming defeat to Burton Albion, prolonging a calamitous opening (5-0 vs Tranmere apart) for Phil Parkinson, Peter Lynn, aka Wrinkly Pete, wanted to get this off his chest …

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Sixer’s Sevens: Singing Sweating in the rain against Coventry City

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Ho ho ho(a)’way the lads

John McCormick writes: Pete Sixsmith will be on Santa duty shortly. I suspect he will be happy to have a break from poor defending and poor forwards although we may have done just enough to stay in contention on a day when other late goals worsened our position.

Perhaps Pete will let us know in a match report tomorrow if Malcolm Dawson is not the designated provider. Whoever it is, until then we’ll have to rely on Pete’s seven word text from a very wet Stadium of Light

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Sixer’s Southend Sevens. The world is just a great big O’Nien

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Our technical problems have not been completely fixed. Readers cannot post comments. We are working on this.

In the meantime, you can always have your say on anything that appears here, or for that matter any SAFC topics which do not, at Salut! Sunderland’s Facebook group. Click on any of the preceding four words. If you are told that you need to join the group, you can do so easily. Approval is very quick.

We’ve often enough fallen foul of  clubs who have made recent changes, so it came as non surprise that we struggled against Southend. But we won, which keeps us in the running. Pete Sixsmith ‘s seven word text, immediately on the final whistle, tells us what makes the difference between a team on the edge of an abyss and one that just might, at some indeterminate point in the future, get into the playoffs:

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What Sixer made of Southend United: a repeat of last season’s 3-0 would do nicely

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                               Sixer by Jake


Monsieur Salut writes: it is now fairly well known that Pete Sixsmith‘s wonderful twin series at Salut! Sunderland – the First Time Ever I Saw Your Team (or Ground when  Sunderland were the away team) – ran its sublime course at the end of last season. From time to time while we are still in League One, and maybe beyond, we will reproduce the pieces he wrote about our next opponents.

As ever, bear in mind that this was written a year ago, just before we recorded a fourth win a row, beating Southend United 3-0 to keep up pressure on the top place. This time, we nee a similarly emphatic scoreline to restore a fair amount of diminishing faith. Let Pete’s restored gem from October last year set the scene …

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What you think about Sunderland vs Southend (updated)

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Jake: ‘time for a Will Grigg hat trick?’


Well, I asked and you’ve started to answer, says Monsieur Salut.

Because our Comments section is still inaccessible after recent technical nightmares, I suggested posting your scoreline predictions at Salut! Sunderland’s Facebook group but also invited comments on the bigger Sunderland picture.

Since your comments can still be seen behind the scenes if you attempt to post them in the normal way, they can be copied and pasted to a new article such as this.

Phil Davison, a Mackem exile in Mexico, set the ball rolling, starting with his SAFC-Southend prediction. Other comments will be added as they arrive and/or appear at the Facebook group.

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Sunderland vs Southend: most Black Cats eat shrimps but are Shrimpers edible?

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Jake: ‘time for a Will Grigg hat trick?’

NB: our technical problems have not been completely fixed. Readers cannot post comments. We are working on this.

In the meantime, you can always have your say on anything that appears here, or for that matter any SAFC topics which do not, at Salut! Sunderland’s Facebook group. Click on any of the preceding four words. If you are told that you need to join the group, you can do so easily. Approval is very quick.


Even after three shameful away defeats, not counting our league cup exit at Oxford United after Will Grigg and Marc McNulty flopped in the penalty shootout at Oxford, Sunderland would be most people’s tip to beat Southend this Saturday in some style, writes Monsieur Salut.

Despite recent form, patchy at best, SAFC are just outside the playoff zone at eighth. The Shrimpers (or Seasiders or Blues, according to taste) , with Sol Campbell newly installed as manager, are second bottom and would be bottom if it were not for Bolton’s point deduction. Our goal difference may be a thoroughly unimpressive +5 but their is -27.

There is a but coming.

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Sixer’s Sevens: Shrewsbury Town1 Sunderland 0, and a weekend away is spoiled

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NB: our technical problems have not been completely fixed. Readers cannot post comments. We are working on this.

In the meantime, you can always have your say on anything that appears here, or for that matter any SAFC topics which do not, at Salut! Sunderland’s Facebook group. Click on any of the preceding four words. If you are told that you need to join the group, you can do so easily. Approval is very quick.

John McCormick writes: Pete Sixsmith wasn’t at Shrewsbury this time round. Nor was I, neuropathy having more or less put an end to my travels before torrential rain shut down the railways and extinguished my last fleeting hopes of getting there. It didn’t look too good at half time, according to  a half-time text from John Marshall to Pete  (“Pretty lacklustre showing no real attacking threat”) while the man himself opined “huffed and puffed but not good enough”, and I suspect it wasn’t the weather that spoiled Colin’s weekend break, from what our leader sent at the final whistle:

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