Sunderland

Craig Gordon for Scotland? Maybe first decide: Gordon for Sunderland?

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Craig GordonImages: Addick-tedKevin

So according to the Telegraph, Craig Gordon is hoping to be involved at some stage of Scotland’s friendly with Brazil at the Emirates on Sunday. This appears to run counter to Steve Bruce’s insistence that he can play only in an emergency because SAFC are still trying to solve his tendinitis problems …

But more intriguing was this quote:

“I would not rule out playing for either club or country if needed. I don’t expect to play in the next few weeks for Sunderland, but if I am asked to I will.”

If you’re fit to play, you’re fit to play. Is Gordon saying it’s only a friendly. Or is he saying he thinks Simon Mignolet has edged ahead of him in the pecking order and would be Bruce’s first choice anyway, at least for now?

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Marco Gabbiadini, Joan Osborne and one question each

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Joan Osborne is of Irish stock so maybe casts an eye from time to time across the Atlantic at how an Irish-American owner and pure Irish chairman are getting on at Sunderland. She may be pleased to hear her whimsical hit One of Us served as a slightly tenuous inspiration for Jeremy Robson to set a rather interesting ball rolling …

That Joan Osborne song, Jeremy reports from his Ontario exile, was on the radio the other day, the one with the mention of “just one question” before the chorus line “What if God was one of us?”.

Some question. But what, he (not He) wondered, if we all had the right to put just one question of our own to any Sunderland player, past or present. To whom would you pose yours and what would it be?

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Soapbox: disillusioned with the Premier, enthralled by Curzon Ashton and Durham

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For most of us, international breaks and cup weekends (when we’re long gone from any cups) are a bore. For Pete Sixsmith, they just mean more chances to catch proper football at grass roots level, as well as taking a Rugby League man’s passing swipe at the Rugby Union so beloved of M Salut’s brother, a ref and former player …


There are some sports that I really don’t like. Rugby Union is the prime example: all those lantern jawed, public school types, banging and crashing around and sticking their heads up each other’s bottoms. Ugh. For me, an afternoon at a Rugby Union game would be almost as bad as a day at a Formula 1 Grand Prix.

I don’t see the point in machines chasing each other round a track. Men and women on the backs of animals, yes, but men and women sat in a machine, no. It’s a recipe for noisy boredom at Sixsmith Towers.

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The Mackem diaspora: get yourself on the map

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Old GlobeImage: Kenneth Lu

Stop worrying about our decline or gloating at Newcastle’s. As a worldly postscript to our Mackem diaspora articles, help yourself to a blue, Sunderland-flavoured lollipop …

The recent series on Sunderland supporters who find themselves in far-flung corners of the world presented some great anecdotes and personal stories of exile from the North East or, in some cases, not even coming from there but having family connections to be clung on to.

In the course of the series, which brought together reminiscences that had been posted at the Blackcats e-mail loop, I also mentioned a Google map on the same theme, created by Neil Chandler.

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Liverpool’s Friendly fire: wrong on the penalty, wrong on the red

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John MensahImage: Addick-edKevin

Throughout a lively, mostly healthy but at times acrimonious debate with Liverpool fans, we have made no attempt to disguise the shortcomings of Sunderland in Sunday’s match.

We have said firmly that we lost not because of bad decisions by match officials but because we could not muster a shot on target for 86 minutes.

And we are generally consistent in our acknowledgement that referees and their linesmen rarely cheat but are as prone as players, managers and fans to human error. Indeed, players make many more errors and these often lead to lost games or lost leads.

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When Liverpool rained heavily on the Ellis Short parade

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Oh dear. Safc.com was proud as punch to announce that Ellis Short was about to give one of his rare interviews.

And the day we lost 2-0 in utterly deflating fashion at home to Liverpool was the day he chose to deliver a message some Sunderland supporters would now regard as ridiculously upbeat.

“We will be doing everything we can to win those games,” he said of the four remaining home ties after Liverpool: WBA, Bolton, Wigan and Fulham, stressing the need for big crowds. “We are not looking behind us any more at what can happen at the end of the season. We are looking ahead at how far up the table we can climb.”

He also spoke of the match he was about to watch.

It was to be played in front of a near-full house but broadcast internationally {and legally) so that the world would see a packed stadium with passionate supporters. We know what happened next: a damp squib, our fans reduced to silence and early exit when a bright start evaporated, with a little help from abysmal match officials, into abject surrender.

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Liverpool Soapbox: Reds on the up but benefit from ref’s ineptitude

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Liverpool fans are fuming at the suggestion that blameless young Spearing had anything other than the Corinthian spirit in mind when he tumbled in the box some distance from where his path and Mensah’s crossed. They’ll take some comfort from Pete Sixsmith‘s even-handed analysis, balancing bitter disappointment at a worrying Sunderland performance with some admiration for the Reds’ progress under Dalglish …

Three things to say about yesterday’s game: Liverpool were the better side, the penalty decision was a disgrace and we are beginning to get a wee bit worried.

First things first, Liverpool deserved their win. They defended well with Skrtl and Agger outstanding and Suarez always looked a danger. His goal was very well taken and he caused problems for our defenders, Mensah in particular. In midfield they looked tight and well organized with Kuyt having his usual solid game. He’s a good player – reliable and sound.

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Forget Spearing’s dive for Liverpool: Lyon’s cheat in a different class

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James Forrest & Dejan LovrenImage: Ronnie Macdonald (Lovren, right, practises ballet skills in Lyon v Celtic, Emirates Cup)

No complaints about today’s result. Whatever justified grievances we have with the match officials, Liverpool deserved to win and we deserved nowt. And, in the latest from our French Fancies series about football on the other side of the Channel, we identify a much nastier example of the ugly face of football …

In one way Jay Spearing is not a cheat at all. But then nor, in one way, was Gary McAllister. Both were indeed fouled by Sunderland players, so falling over was not an impossible consequence.

Their status as cheats is judged on what happened next. The fouls occurred outside the penalty area and the fouled players proceeded to float though the air (McAllister) or run and plunge (Spearing) to land well inside the box.

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Steve Bruce on the surrender to Liverpool: we deserved nothing

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One or two visitors to Salut! Sunderland have spectacularly misunderstood a headline saying “don’t blame” the officials as meaning do blame them. They also think there was some suggestion here that a strong team was beaten by an ordinary one.

All we’ve said is that we looked to be fielding a strong starting 11. And they played well enough until the penalty but never threatened Liverpool’s goal. I heard one partisan (ie pro-SAFC) commentator say Pepe Reina could have settled down for a cup of tea and sandwich, so underemployed was he. Liverpool looked poor, too, but were the better side. All acknowledged in the reports so far. So what did Steve Bruce, who must bear some responsibility for the awful excuse for football we presented from penalty onwards, make of it? He’s been writing to Monsieur Salut again …

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