Sunderland

Down to earth with a thud at Wigan

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Somehow, when Steve Bruce said after the Arsenal game that he’d warned the team “play as like that at Wigan or else”, the longer serving pessimists among us knew what was about to happen.
And happen it does. We fail to score even one against a team that concedes shedloads, and lose 1-0. Before what I expect to be a severe rollicking for Sunderland when Pete Sixsmith expands on his seven-word verdict, here is an idea of today’s debacle from these comments at the Blackcats list. It starts with a dreadful first half and manages to get worse …

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That Wigan bounceback fear: another view

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Pete Sixsmith’s had his say. Another pal, Martin Emmerson, Sunderland through and through but working for BBC Radio N*wc****e, alerts me to his tuppence worth. Martin will be at Wigan, but fears it may be another case of a great result against top opposition followed by deep disappointment against lesser mortals. Up to the Lads to prove him wrong …

Is there life after a 9-1 drubbing?

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Another trophy for Arsenal

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Sunderland supporters are known for their complete objectivity and generosity of spirit.

So let’s offer congratulations to Arsène Wenger’s team for bouncing back from defeat at the Stadium of Light – how pleasing it is to write those words – to brush aside Standard Liège.

And there’s another trophy heading the Gunners’ way, or more accurately a Gooner’s way. This one takes the form of Salut! Sunderland‘s modest prize for what it considers the best Arsenal response to our criticism of Wenger’s post-match comments, which appeared (in context and out of it) haughtily dismissive of SAFC.

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Come on you Arsenal

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Salut! Sunderland presents a challenge to Arsenal supporters – the poster of the best comment received by 10am tomorrow WED NOV 24 will be offered a Nick Hornby book (regular, that is, not special edition) of his of her choice …


We’ve had our say. Sunderland fans, even those who have a lot of admiration for the players Arsène Wenger chooses and the way they play for him, think he went way beyond the limits of reason and fairness in his post-match comments. Notably this:


“Sunderland were aggressive but you expect that. I think that they tried to stop us from playing, sometimes on the fringes of the rule, but that’s part of the game.”

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Arsène, Thierry and Jean-Louis: a triumvirate of French arrogance?

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Colin Randall treads difficult domestic territory, braves the disapproval of a French wife and two half-French daughters and, setting himself up as judge, jury and La Cour de Cassation, finds two of the above guilty as charged …

Not every Englishman is a BNP thug who steams through French railway carriages singing: “If it wasn’t for the English, you’d be Krauts.”

We don’t all subscribe to the “lovely country, shame about the people” jibe – though I actually heard it recently on the lips of my French barber (a necessarily short encounter). Some of us even marry ’em, Frenchwomen that is not the barbers.

But what are we to make of the behaviour of three Frenchmen, clues to whose identities appear in the headline? Two are easy to guess; the third is largely unknown in England unless you support Sunderland and therefore feel that Jean-Louis Triaud, president of the Girondins de Bordeaux football club, is a cross between arrogant oaf and prize clown.

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Sorry Sir Alex, but this refereee is a class act

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Cana the lionheart yes. Bent for his tireless running and for his goal. Da Silva’s unbeatable defending. Henderson for the maturity he displayed in sticking to his task and to Fabregas. McCartney and Bardsley for their best performances in memory. And, says Colin Randall, don’t forget Alan Wiley …

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It is not hard to see what it is about Alan Wiley that so annoys Sir Alex Ferguson. Here is a referee who makes players take throw ins and free kicks from the right place, doesn’t point automatically to the penalty spot when a big four striker falls over, allows robust but fair challenges and applies common sense judgement in incidents involving both sets of players all over the pitch.

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Soapbox: outshooting the Gunners

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While most of the near 45,000 attendance at the Stadium of Light saw a match that Sunderland won, Radio 5 Live and MoTD  reported on a match that Arsenal lost.  Pete Sixsmith redresses the balance …

The highlights and the stats on Match of the Day did this superb game a disservice. The editing made it look a decent game with Sunderland winning with a well taken but slightly fortuitous goal. The stats suggested that Arsenal had most of the possession and more of the chances – which just goes to prove that there are lies, damn lies and statistics as Disraeli, Burke or Twain (Rochdale’s all conquering half back line of the early 50s) are alleged to have said.

This was no flukey 1-0 win à la 2000 when Arsène’s Arsenal battered us and Saint Niall nicked it at the end. It wasn’t down to a deflection off a piece of beach orientated play equipment. It was down to a hugely committed and thoughtful performance from 14 players who had spent the training sessions listening to Messrs Bruce and Black, then going out and putting into practice what they had learned.

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Soapbox: another week, another drama. But let’s hand it to Thierry Henry

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As Sunderland prepare to face Arsenal, the debate rages on. Should France v Republic of Ireland be replayed? If so, what about Reading 1 Sunderland 0 (goal given, not over line), Sunderland 1 Aston Villa 1 (legitimate, last second SAFC winner inexplicably denied by Steve Bentley), Sunderland 1 Liverpool 0 (beachball clinches the points).
One view of Thierry Henry’s public contrition is that it reaffirms his greatness; another is that it was a little belated and therefore that public reaction forced his hand (sorry).
No serious football controversy would be complete without Pete Sixsmith weighing in. And he says the Irish just have to get on with life …


Like the poor Swedish referee, I didn’t see the Henry Handball incident on Wednesday. I was driving home from Billingham, having got my midweek football fix by watching an entertaining game between Synthonia and West Allotment Celtic (2-1 to the visitors if you really want to know), but I did have the commentary on Radio 5 Live.

In between the whoops and soars and the intervention of Radio Moscow, I heard John Murray say absolutely clearly that Henry had handled it and the goal should not have stood. Mark Lawrenson came on at the end of the 90 minutes and said the same, only more forcefully. Both spoke about the need for technology to help the officials with their decisions.

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Who are you? We’re Arsenal (3)

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It’s been raining Gooners. Some weeks we struggle to find one fan from Sunderland’s next opponents to answer the Salut! Sunderland questionnaire. With Arsenal, it has been a doddle. From New York, Halifax, and Kent, they’ve practically been queueing to have their voices heard. Last up is Darren Wright*, who runs the very popular Gunners’ fansite Wrighty7. Arsenal have to make do these days without the feet – and deadly left hand – of Thierry Henry, but Darren predicts a dodgy Eduardo penalty in a hard-fought away win …

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Salut! Sunderland: So, Arsenal are seen as by some as “dark horses” for the title.That makes you sound almost mortal after so long in the top four. Insulting , or a status that takes the pressure off you?

Ha Ha I suppose we looked “immortal” during the unbeaten 2003/04 season but as proved we are mortal like everybody else! To be honest Colin I don’t find us being “dark horses” insulting in the slightest. Manchester United and Chelsea have raised the bar in recent seasons and its up to ourselves and the others to match that. With Liverpool struggling, Manchester City spending and everybody expecting it to be a two-horse race between United and Chelsea I’m happy for Arsenal to be quietly doing the business and nobody really noticing!

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