Pete Lynn, AKA Wrinkly Pete, has just popped us an e-mail. Brief and to the point, with a title that might be inspired bysomeone else’s season going down the pan, here it is in its entirity:
Incontinent? Not us
Leicester City
Bravo Leicester, keep faith with Sunderland and this season’s real champions, Shildon
We can take our hats off to Leicester City, fully deserving Premier champs. We can pray those of us with a God, that Sunderland somehow manage for the last three games what the Foxes did in nine a season ago. And, to lighten heavy spirits, we can share Pete Sixsmith (and Monsieur Salut)’s joy at a great achievement for a home town we both share by adoption …
Amid the feelings of doom that pervade the thoughts of Sunderland supporters, a ray, nay beam, nay blast of sunshine hits some Red and Whites. For those like Monsieur Salut and me who cut our footballing teeth at Dean Street, Shildon there is a title win to celebrate.
Shildon AFC: Northern League Champions 2015-16.
Carroll, Vardy, Wisdom: referees supported after Leicester, West Ham and Norwich rows
Every honest football fan knows he or she has occasionally howled at referees and linesmen only for the contentious decision to be proved to be flawless. Every honest footballer knows his entirely subjective view of an incident may not be accurate. And we all know footballers make many more costly mistakes than officials.
Yet weekend after weekend, there is the closest scrutiny of judgements seen as plain wrong, debatable or merely unpopular with one set of fans or the other.
As the season reaches the time when vital points are at stake, at both ends of all divisions and in decisive cup ties, controversy inevitably become more intense.
Sixer’s Sevens: SAFC 0-2 Leicester City. Couldn’t raise our game
Pete Sixsmith, back from groundhopping in North Wales, saw little in it a half time. But Sunderland pretty much collapsed in the second half, going behind and then trying to go further behind until Vardy’s second made a Leicester title more likely, which we applaud, and a Sunderland relegation a near-certainty unless we can play a lot better next Saturday and Rodwell and Borini don’t miss the sort of chances they had today . These are Sixer’s intiial thoughts, in seven words …
Let’s roar our support but banish those Leicester and Norwich clappers
Monsieur Salut writes: Pete Sixsmith is a proper football fan. Prawn sandwiches may be an odd thing to call posh (copyright Roy Keane) but you wouldn’t catch Sixer eating one at the game all the same. Nor should you look out for him in the East Stand on Sunday and expect to see him with a happy plastic clapper. Here’s his rather appealing, if reactionary, rant …
Sunderland v Leicester Who are You?: ‘our fantastic ride will get tougher’
For James read Roy. For the opening game of the season, our Leicester City interviewee was one James Bennett, one of Monsieur Salut’s former Abu Dhabi colleagues, and it is fair to say his comments on us – ‘I’ve always admired Sunderland’s fans and their passion but their style of play has always been on a level with the Stokes of this world and not something I would pay to watch… even if they were my team’ – did not go down too well. Roy Bennett*, no relation, offers a somewhat less contentious appraisal of his club and ours. He hopes his Foxes can sprint beyond the chasing pack’s reach, accepts that this season’s act will be hard to follow and realistically reckons fourth bottom safety is between us and Norwich …
The Leicester Guess the Score: anything they did, we should do better
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.
Staying up made easy: emulate Arsenal and Liverpool against Leicester, beat Norwich
All graphics courtesy of Jake
Pete Sixsmith says we will go down unless we win four games. Big Sam sets the same target. With only seven left, and looking at who we face in them, it takes a serious half-glass full believer to have much faith in that happening.
“Can we halt the Leicester juggernaut and drive the Foxes into a hole?” Sixer asked at the start of a splendid trawl through the nicknames of those opponents. ” Having done that, can we survive the plastic clappers at Carrow Road and knock the Canaries off their perch? Can we silence the Gunners, break the Potters and consign the Pensioners to their barracks. Will we come unstuck against the Toffees before drawing the sting from the Hornets?”
It looks beyond us. But it can be done, subject to rather a lot of Ifs.
Sixsmith Says: Eboué impresses but Leicester edge past the Under 21s
Staying in is for wimps, at least when there’s a competitive football match to see. Pete Sixmsith took in the Under 21s, hosting Leicester City with a debut for the experience but currently unattached trialist Emmanuel Eboué. the Ivoiran right-back did OK until subbed but Sixer witnessed just the kind of result we do not want repeated tonight …
Villa, Sunderland, Newcastle? Norwich, Swansea or Bournemouth? Not Watford, and ha’way Leicester
John McCormick writes: there’s no Premier League football this weekend, so it’s another chance to take stock and update my “relegation watch” series. If you’re new to the series and want to see how it began, or if you want to refresh your memory, you can try this link)
By now regulars should be familiar with the first graph. It dates from the close of the summer transfer window and shows our readers’ choices for the relegation spots. I’m putting it in once more so you can remind yourself how closely it resembles reality or, alternatively, so you can work out just what the clubs have to do to prove our readers right by the end of the season. If that’s too difficult you can jump to the end, where I’ve made it simple for you.