Monsieur Salut says: when the new regime took hold, one of its early observations was that the SAFC matchday programme was, frankly, an embarrassment.
That may well have had something to do with the decision, taken as our not-much-missed but highly remunerated then CEO, Martin Bain, penny-pinched his way through the operation, to sideline Rob Mason, whose editorship of the programme had been a rare success story in the recent history of SAFC.
Rob remains club historian and has nothing to do with the perceived decline in the programme’s standards. That needs to be pointed out and I pass no comment on the way his award-winning publication went on to be handled when contracted out.
But now, there is a serious change of approach to report. Many readers will have seen the minor stir on social media about the revamped Red and White, with a strong emphasis on fan input. Salut! Sunderland was involved in the first example of this new approach as anyone buying a programme before the opening game against Charlton Athletic will see, but plaudits are due to the content editor Oscar Chamblerlain …