guess the score

Sunderland v Arsenal Guess the Score: Shakespeare, Shack and shaking expectation

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So, Guess the Score is again a prize edition and again there’s a catch. Only a correct entry predicting a winning scoreline for Sunderland qualifies; it must be the first to be posted before kickoff to claim the prize. Since the cost would be borne by Monsieur Salut, and he supports Sunderland and we need the points, that can be seen as rough justice but justice all the same. And as the prize is only a mug, it hardly matters anyway …

Football can really be quite simple. If Newcastle United can play like men unaccustomed to the sport for most of the season and then come close to beating a top four team, albeit one that barely bothered to turn up despite bringing its own linesman, Sunderland – having been quicker to overcome the same malaise – must go one better.

But at the very least we have to avoid defeat against Arsenal on Sunday.

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The Leicester Guess the Score: anything they did, we should do better

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Jake: 'time to turn improvement into points, just when the pundits least expect it'
Jake: ‘time to turn improvement into points, just when the pundits least expect it’


Here it comes. The stiffest challenge for a while to Sunderland’s entitlement to Premier Division status. We’ve been playing well without being able to beat lesser opponents; can we give ourselves a real fighting chance of survival by turning that improvement into points plural against the leaders?

Only a year ago, Leicester were rock bottom. Their great escape made ours look like day release with an electronic tag. And we all know what they’ve gone on and done since under Claudio Ranieri.

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Sunderland v West Bromwich Albion ‘Guess the Score’: time for strong men

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WbaH

Jake’s image says it all.

There have been many occasions when we have said “no slip-ups this time, Lads”, “get it right”, “it’s a must-win” and other variants of “it’s time to play”. This time, we can roll up all those nervous words of encouragement into one cliche and, wherever we all find ourselves in the world at 3pm, GMT+1, on Saturday, blow the ball into the net at one end while sucking it out of harm’s way at the other.

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Newcastle United v Sunderland: mildly important game, prize Guess the Score

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MagsA


Biggest in history – and you see Jake wondering about that above – it may or may not be, but we do know rather a lot rides on Newcastle United v Sunderland.

Two of the three sides battling for the one obvious position of safety meet with all the baggage of not only a nerve-shredding relegation scrap but a long tradition of enmity and rivalry given the added spice of opposing managers who, shall we say, have not always got along too well.

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SAFC v Manchester United Guess the Score: only four words matter

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ManUtdH

OK, we usually offer a few random thoughts on the forthcoming game as we invite readers – whoever they support – to Guess the Score.

Cue a break with tradition.

For this week only, our illustrator Jake provides not only the image but the only four words that really concern Sunderland supporters. He repeats them many times, but there are still, essentially, just the four words.

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Liverpool v SAFC Guess the Score: maybe making a point

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Jake: 'a good time o start winning'
Jake: ‘a good time to start winning but we’d take a draw’

Can the new-look Lads make our Canadian diarist Martin Bates‘s trip “home” feel all the more worthwhile?

Martin has already vividly described his first few days back on Wearside, where bis parents were born and raised before emigrating, and promises more. He has a ticket for the Liverpool game and also for the next home tie, against Man Utd a week later.

How sweet the flight home would feel if, somehow, it was made after Sunderland’s points tally had risen to 25. Even a draw and a win would send him home happy.

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