Alan Copps* is one of Monsieur Salut’s valued former colleagues and his fine writing – as opposed to M Salut’s basic reporting – graced the pages of The Daily Telegraph and later The Times. Late in his career, he moves significantly upmarket to offer various thoughts to the thinking man’s football site Salut! Sunderland ahead of Saturday’s game. Oh, and as I write, Salut! Sunderland is seven followers short of 2,000 at Twitter …
Rob Hutchison, master of the occasional one-word, one-mark matchday ratings, returns to devil advocacy, with some strident and, doubtless for some, controversial thoughts on our plodding progress in the transfer window …
Hola kiddies . . . .another week in the life of Sunderland’s little devil.
Middlesborough. Was it a derby? Of course it was. They’re our almost nearest if not dearest. To claim otherwise is merely pouting that we don’t really care about these perceived also-rans. Bragging rights are everything, and when we beat them at the Riverside, oh it will be glorious.
So we had two correct predictions for SAFC v Boro, both from Middlesbrough fans (Smoggie and the WAY interviewee Thomas Keen). There was no prize mug for this match – they may be a bit sparse this season – so they must be feeling a little like those who pick the same lottery numbers every week but forget to buy a ticket the Saturday they come up.
I leaned my back against an oak, Thinking it was the strongest tree, But first it bent, and then it …
Rob Hutchison – find him at Twitter on https://twitter.com/RobHSafc – is best known around here for his one-word ratings, always welcome and always arriving just as Monsieur Salut is about to go out, obliging little white lies to Mme Salut to cover the delay. He now launches an occasional new column, the idea for which appeared as a light bulb above his head as he returned from the opening game at City. He aims it to be weekly – I think occasional is more likely! – and also to devote it to the counter view to the norm on all things Mackem. Over to Jake to come up with a magical image …
All the way from professional exile in the Czech Republic, Thomas Keen*, of half-Guisborough, half-USA stock, tells Salut! Sunderland ahead …
Malcolm Dawson writes….I switched on MOTD last night, not to see Gary Lineker in his underpants, but to play spot …
Malcolm Dawson writes: I watched this in the pub where the pre match talk was all about team selection. Most …
As the days went by our “who’s doomed” poll slipped down the “Salut”front page until it dropped off the bottom like a relegated team.
By then over 3500 votes had been cast. Most came in flurries in the first couple of days and, although I suspect a strong contingent of Sunderland fans cast votes and tried to move us in the general direction of safety, the positions of the eight chosen clubs didn’t change, and nor did the percentages to any significant extent.
Anyone who was paying attention will have noticed that the winning title among those suggested by readers for David Moyes’s post-game e-mails, which Salut! Sunderland will get round every matchday or soon afterwards to posting, was “Moyes on the Boys”.
So the author the phrase qualifies for the promised mug …