Sunderland

McCormick’s Craic: the half term report says Sunderland must do better

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John McCormick:
John McCormick: looking to the future

 

John McCormick writes: I’m beginning this on December 29, the day after we’ve drawn against Villa in our 19th game of the season. With match reports from Villa (er, whatever happened to Bob Chapman’s?), then a game on New Year’s Day, then a cup match, the site will be busy with posts for the next few days, so my reflections will take their chances and appear when there’s a gap (just identified! – Ed).

I don’t think it’ll need much updating. My forecast is that Jozy won’t score against Man City. I seriously doubt whether Fletcher or Wickham will, although I don’t think the result’s a foregone conclusion. In fact, I’d keep Fletch at home and save him for the Leeds game rather than have him battered and risking injury against City … let us see

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By God, the butler’s scarpered. Fond farewell, Newcastle’s Monsieur Par Dieu

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Pete Sixsmith was attached to Pardew his butler, and the butler seemed contended enough with life in Shildon’s posh bit, Busty Bank. But Palace gold talks loudly and the butler – he may seem ungoldly but his name derives from the French Par Dieu (by God) – is off back down south, gratefully detaching himself from the ruffians and vagabonds of the North East. Let Sixer sound the bugle ….

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Manchester City v SAFC Who are You?: ‘we have striker problems too!’

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Jake has ways of making them talk
Jake has ways of making them talk

Everyone is getting in on the Who are You? act. Football’s greatest ‘from the other side’ interview – yes, we would say that – has been conducted by deputy editor Malcolm Dawson and associate editor John McCormick in recent weeks. And now Sixer finds Tony Morehead*, lifelong Man City fan, to preview the New Year’s Day game at the Etihad. Any Salut! Sunderland reader with kith and kin who’d make great candidates should let us know. Meanwhile, let Tony explain the unexpected assertion that City have weaknesses up front …

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Manchester City vs SAFC Guess the Score: cricket score or awayday shocker?

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Jake: 'if Burnley can rattle them ...'
Jake: ‘if Burnley can rattle them …’

No one guessed SAFC 1-3 Hull. Plenty among us saw the potential for a traditional flop immediately following a derby win, but the common Guess the Score practice is to be, or appear, positive.

Drummer was chuffed to win the Aston Villa competition but would probably have gone happily without his prize mug in return for one of Connor Wickham’s shots being a little more, er, hard to save.

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Hutch’s Patch: the weak and tepid, strong and tigerish at Aston Villa

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Rob: sometimes a man of few words
Rob: sometimes a man of few words

First let M Salut, just back from a few days in France, salute deputy editor Malcolm Dawson and associate editor John McCormick, nobly assisted by Pete Sixsmith and Jake, for manfully keeping the ship of Salut! Sunderland afloat over Christmas. I wish I could now salute a couple of superb post-derby performances lifting us to heady mid-table heights. A glance at Rob Hutchison‘s one-word verdicts on the Sunderland players on duty at Villa Park rightly suggests a strong enough defensive display and very little else to shout about …

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Salut! Sunderland wishes all readers and contributors a glorious Christmas

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Colin Randall writes (OK, some would say that’s an exaggeration):

Salut! Sunderland had modest beginnings in the New Year of 2007, as an offshoot of Salut!, a post-redundo blog that continued – and maybe even improved – my online work as one of The Daily Telegraph‘s pioneering bloggers, in my case from Paris.

Salut! aimed then, as it does now, to talk about “France, current affairs, travel, the media – and more besides” and you can see how well or badly it fares in meeting that self-imposed challenge at http://francesalut.com.

Salut! Sunderland, like my folk music site Salut! Live, had narrower targets. It was intended as a whimsical site by and for lovers of Sunderland AFC. It had no pretensions about being the new ALS or Ready to Go and that is just as well as both are rightly established at the core of the club’s support.

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SAFC vs Hull City: last(ish) words on the match and best wishes to Raich Carter Junior

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Our Raich (senior), collects the FA Cup in 1937 from the King's lass. Sixer says it was a fine match
Our Raich (senior), collects the FA Cup in 1937 from the Kings lass. Sixer says it was a fine match


This is a Ha’way the Lads Christmas greeting to the Lads, winners in dramatic fashion at St James’ Park on Sunday, and a hearty “get well soon” to one of this site’s friends, Raich Carter Junior.

As most readers of Salut! Sunderland will know, the Who are You? series first-place award was won last season by one Raich, son of the genius of the same name who was born in Sunderland, brilliantly represented his town football club (city status was a long way off in those days) and went on to play for and manage Hull City.

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