Jordan Pickford - SAFC Blog

Wrinkly Pete says what we’re thinking: ‘beginning to look a lot like Christmas’

December 21, 2016December 20, 2016 by Colin Randall

John McCormick writes: Wrinkly Pete is quite prescient. I was thinking of doing a relegation review before the end of the week and might still do so, depending on what comes down the Salut chimney in the next few days. I know there’s a “Who are you?” due but there may well be other posts – and you can take that as an invitation to send us something of your own if you wish. Like our esteemed manager we’re always on the lookout for young talent and not above taking on a good old’n.

Which, I suppose, returns me to Wrinkly Pete himself:

Pickford and Kone: must-keeps or let-goes to Everton, West Ham, elsewhere?

November 10, 2016November 8, 2016 by Colin Randall

Kone: yet again the subject of transfer talk

Monsieur Salut says: the international break makes me twitchy. No serious interest in the football, lots of time to worry about Sunderland. So let’s have a poll …

Are we, then, resigned to Jordan Pickford becoming another Jordan Henderson, red-and-white through and through but grasping, understandably, at opportunities higher up the footballing ladder than where Sunderland find themselves placed?

Do we reluctantly accept that pressure from Everton, or West Ham or someone else with pots of money to spend and heads to turn, will lure away Lamine Kone in January?

And could we live with one or both departing provided – are you listening, Mr Short? – adequate replacements are secured before anyone is let out of the door? So not just Vito Mannone fit again – though that matters, too – but people coming in, and coming in as a pre-condition of anyone else’s departure.

Bournemouth banter: (2) just one win but already part of Sunderland folklore

November 9, 2016November 7, 2016 by Colin Randall

Rob’s daughter Olivia would have loved this souvenir, but had to make do with dad taking a photo of another girl’s prize acquisition

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Bournemouth away was an occasion to remind supporters of Sunderland AFC, from nippers to long-in-the-tooth codgers, why they care so much about football. And this lovely piece from Rob Hutchison, the perfect complement to an excellent Chapman Report, captures our part of a special day …

“Which is the away end mate?” asked Colin, aka Monsieur Salut, as we approached the stadium. “Follow the voices”, the young friendly steward replied “They sound nothing like us!”.

We’d just been putting the world to rights in the Sir Percy Florence boozer with a few hundred other Mackems who had started drinking when the coaches left at 6am by the sound of the place.

A hearty cheer for Jordan Pickford. In tomorrow’s squad, England’s future No 1?

October 10, 2016October 10, 2016 by Colin Randall

JP - unlucky after a string of fine saves — JP – a string of fine saves each time he plays for SAFC

Even a site that professes relatively little interest – on the part of its main contributors – in international football can stand back and applaud when England call up a player who is not only a Sunderland team member but “one of our own”.

Jordan Pickford therefore carries Salut! Sunderland‘s warmest congratulations into Tuesday’s World Cup qualifying game against Slovenia.

Taylor Made: a cynical look at the A to Z of footballers’ origins

August 30, 2016August 30, 2016 by Colin Randall

Bill Taylor remembers someone says football becoming like watching their Italians play your Italians. If he is right about the authorship of the quote – he thinks Len Shackleton may have said it – and a quick internet search did not help – imagine what Shack would have made of today’s Premier League. Bill wonders whether it’s time to acknowledge that when we shout for our team, we’re really shouting for ourselves …

Too much is never enough – songwriter Jim Steinman

Whore (verb): to compromise oneself for money

Perhaps we’ve been doing this all wrong…

A popular question for visiting writers of Who Are You is, “Club or country?” [It was a stock question but you remind me I have not asked anyone in ages – Ed]

I don’t remember anyone ever putting country first. This might, I’m beginning to think, be a mistake.

Sixer’s Southampton Soapbox: JD spot on but Saints claw back a point

August 29, 2016August 29, 2016 by malcolm

Malcolm Dawson writes…..Pete Sixsmith is slipping. His trip to the south coast last week meant he missed yesterday’s Under 23 …

Pete Sixsmith’s alternative “Who’s who”

August 16, 2016August 16, 2016 by Colin Randall

Pete Sixsmith. Delivers more than just the papers

John McCormick writes. Our Web wizard has scheduled some site maintenance and you may find the site is down for a short while some time today, so please bear with us.

And while we’re on the subject of bearing we need to move beyond the Lynden and Graham Gooch situation. Luckily, we have Pete Sixsmith to help us. Pete doesn’t just appear on TV (who else saw him on MOTD?) He doesn’t just deliver erudite summaries to the papers (and nor does he just deliver the papers). He’s also a bit of a historian, as he demonstrates in this wander through the genealogical archives of the North East:

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Our best defenders: Part 1, individual comparisons

June 19, 2016June 18, 2016 by Colin Randall

When I did my analysis of our midfield I said it would probably be one of two posts but there was so much to collect and compare that I decided to split the second part into two.

To begin, I’m using stats from hosted stats.com, Squawka.com and my own sums to look at individual performances.

Who do you think is better – Coates, Kaboul or Koné? How do they compare to John O’Shea?

And would you rather have Billy Jones than DeAndré the Throw-in Slayer?

Read on, and all will be revealed.

Or maybe not.

One of our own. How good was Jordan Pickford at Arsenal?

January 11, 2016January 11, 2016 by Colin Randall

Goalkeeping is trade that packs the odd surprise.

When Arsenal beat us 3-1 in the Premier League on December 5, the man of the match was not Ozil or any of Wenger’s other stars but Petr Cech, testament to the importance of his saves in stopping Sunderland gaining a point from the game.

And despite conceding three goals in the FA Cup tie on Saturday, our own Jordan Pickford was the best player on the pitch, ahead of the excellent Hector Bellerin and, though he played only from the 67th minute, the game-changing Aaron Ramsey.

Luke’s World: in praise of another SAFC Jordan, England’s No 1

July 5, 2011 by Colin Randall

Never mind the Florida sun. our regular contributor Luke Harvey had some serious sporting spectacles – one with a Sunderland interest – to keep up with at either end of the day …

Everyone has their own thoughts about going on holiday.

Jetting off to a sunkissed part of the world to enjoy peace and relaxation and forget about any troubles at work. That would be one interpretation of a holiday. For me, once there, the trick was how to figure out how I could convince my family that watching Wimbledon for a fortnight while keeping up to date with the Fifa Under 17 World Cup should not be seen as antisocial.

As it turned out, it was relatively easy. Due to the time difference in Florida I could keep up with Wimbledon in the morning, though iI was often subjected to ESPN showing me whichever American they hoped wouldn’t lose that day, and I could watch the Mexico-based World Cup in the evening when the daytime pursuits were done. It all worked out rather well.

And I had an extra incentive to be interested in the Under 17 World Cup, and so should all of you: Jordan Pickford, of Washington, is on the books at Sunderland and the number one goalkeeper for England.