So we have the regional bragging rights again and, more important to me, three precious points.
But beating an abysmal Newcastle United team is no more than a confidence-boosting warm-up for the potentially far greater task of grabbing another vital win, this time at home to Crystal Palace.
Yes, everyone will remember Jermain Defoe’s goal-of-the-season contender. Tim Krul will especially remember it, having been rubbished by an infantile lynch mob led by Jamie Carragher for his sportsmanlike gesture of congratulation in the tunnel at half time.
But spare some thoughts, too, for Billy Jones and William Cowell.
Well we all know Fletch won’t score three unless the Mags put out Gibraltar’s un-Rocklike defence.
But could he or Jermain Defoe or Connor Wickham or, indeed, Danny Graham or Duncan Watmore get the goal that wins the latest edition of the Wear-Tyne derby?
No Sunderland supporter truly cares where a winner might come from. Newcastle fans will think more or less likewise.
A new era, even if turns out to be a mini-era, dawns. It is fitting that the first Guess the Score with Dick Advocaat in charge of the team should be a rollover, offering two mugs from which to drink your generous servings of what Wikipedia calls “Advocaat or Advocaatenborrel, a traditional Dutch alcoholic beverage made from eggs, sugar and brandy”.
Stan Collymore, well-known Villa fan and – in Monsieur Salut’s humble opinion – not a bad radio pundit, had a golden opportunity to reach out to both sets of supporters ahead of this Saturday’s crucial relegation battle between Sunderland and Aston Villa.
He didn’t reply to the invitation, though we must allow for the possibility, remote as I believe it to be, that it was not forwarded to him. Instead, we had a marvellous set of responses from a free-thinking lifelong Villa fan, and a director of the club’s Supporters’ Trust, Howard Hodgson, and these will appear at Salut! Sunderland tomorrow (see footnote* for a sample).
Well the headline gives you the hope. The reality comes at the KC when Gus Poyet once again tries to a) send out a team that can defend and score and b) avoids defeat against Hull City.
It is difficult to be optimistic after recent gormless displays but we have to keep the faith. Hull win more games than us but also lose more. We have players who should be bursting to prove themselves, a manager who ought to be raring to go for victory not just another goalless draw.
Decades of Sunderland support should bring an element of gallows humour to anyone’s personality. If our situation were not so dire, or so familiar, it would be wall-to-wall fun, which it isn’t.
But I’ve still enjoyed the doom-laden banter here since Bradford (actually you could insert your own team name after “since” as there have been so many: Watford, West Ham, Notts Co, Wimbledon, Brentford, Southampton, Palace, QPR, Everton, Ipswich, Norwich all spring to mind and I have barely begun).
The lamentable collapse against QPR puts an entirely different complexion on the 5th round FA Cup game at Valley Parade.
I am of the school that wants Sunderland to win every game we compete in, even if it is a meaningless end-of-season match and even if victory for us might save Newcastle skins. I fret about defeats in reserve and youth fixtures. I hate losing the Sunderland-themed Monopoly game.
Apologies to all for pulling these two items together, a necessity given constraints on time between the two games, at Swansea on Saturday and at home to QPR tomorrow. Agree or disagree with Keir Bradwell’s man-by-man ratings from the 1-1 draw at the Liberty Stadium and then have a stab at the scoreline in tomorrow’s crucial game…
Malcolm Dawson writes……a return to a flat back four, a midfield three and two forwards in support of our new …