The Salut! Sunderland ‘Who are You?’: the unanswered questions for QPR fans

Jake has ways of making them talk
Jake thought he had ways of making them talk

STOP PRESS – Within an hour or so of this going live QPR fans were quick to step into the breach described in the introduction. Thanks to JC and Josh (and any others waiting in the wings) for promptly filling the gap.

All seemed in order when Monsieur Salut went off to Cuba. A QPR fan, who had long ago volunteered to do the Who are You? interview, had the questions and promised replies. Thinking only of the transfer window and intervening results, I told the interviewee, Gareth Parker, to take his time as ‘things – and therefore your answers – will change between now and Feb 10-ish’. I was not thinking of ‘Arry’s dodgy knees (M Salut knows all about those) and I certainly wasn’t implying that the answers could wait until after the game.

But despite returning from holiday to an email suggesting some revised post-Redknapp questions, which I duly sent last Friday, Gareth has remained silent.

If any QPR fans fancy answering in his place, just go to Comments, specify the question number and give your reply. If there is a good response – and that’s a big if, given how close we are to the game – we’ll come up with a prize.

And apologies to all readers who enjoy this series for this one lapse. I am sure Gareth either overlooked it of has a perfectly good reason for not being able to oblige. We should, however, have a cracker for the Bradford City cup game …

Read more

Fulham Who are You?: ‘SAFC fans deserve better than constant relegation scraps’

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

As a decent FA Cup run beckons for someone, we welcome back Russ Goldman*, a USA-based Fulham diehard adjusting to life without Premier League football and therefore without access to live televised games. Like SAFC, Fulham offer radio coverage – Barnes and Benno are a class act for us – but Russ admits it’s not the same (he should try wrestling with stop-start streams, which make Barnes and Benno an emphatically better option). He sees Sunderland advancing to the 5th round but not without a fight ….

Read more

Tottenham-SAFC Who are You?: ‘we could have done with Defoe back’

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

The headline was going to be ‘Gareth Bale is not diver, says Tottenham’s Spitting Image joker’, implying that this was a view only a writer of comedy could hold. Reports of Jermain Defoe’s rumoured, imminent signing – closely followed by other rumours that his pay demands will scupper it, and of course bearing in mind we are often used as bargaining chips by players/agents with other clubs in mind – inspired second thoughts, not least because our Spurs WAY volunteer, David Sapsted*, also mentions him.

As well as coming up with gags for Spitting Image, and about G Bale, Sappers is a veteran news hound – we worked together at The Daily Telegraph and he once, as news editor, ordered me to take an early cut so I could drive to Leicester in time for a midweek match (we lost) – and a supporter of Tottenham Hotspur (plus, for reasons we do not know, assorted other ‘second’ teams. Here is his irreverent look at all things White Hart Lane …

Read more

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

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 …

Read more

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

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.

Read more

Newcastle v SAFC Who are You?: ‘never met a Mackem I disliked’

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

Geordie and lifelong Toon fan, Nick Donaldson* was one of Monsieur Salut’s colleagues in London and is now following, long after M Salut’s departure, in his footsteps to Abu Dhabi. But while sorting out visas, medicals, accommodation and other formalities, he thought he’d squeeze one more derby before heading east, though he’s having to settle for a pub telly and mixed Mag/Mackem company. Rise above prejudice and stand by for another gem of a Who are You? I forgot to ask him whether 1-9 had a nice ring to it aa a Tyne-Wear score in December …

Read more

SAFC v West Ham Who are You?: ‘glad PDC was player, not manager, for us’

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

kumb


Graeme Howlett
* edits Knees Up Mother Brown, and is not the first representative of that esteemed West Ham fan site to grace the hallowed turf of Salut! Sunderland. He rated Big Sam even before it became OK to do so, worships Trevor Brooking and thinks a 6-0 drubbing at Roker Park (1977) made up for our deep sense of injustice over the first Geoff Hurst goal nine years earlier in one of the 8-0 defeats against us that wasn’t at St Mary’s. Oddly enough, we went down in 1977 but not in 1968. Graeme expects fewer goals on Saturday, a draw or a single goal win either way, so plumps for Hammers 2-1

Read more

Liverpool vs SAFC Who are you?: ‘Hendo good, unconvinced by Mignolet’

Jake wants answers ...
Jake wants answers …

John McCormick writes: Tony Fay and I were colleagues once but our paths diverged a good few years ago and I didn’t know whether I’d be able to contact him or if he’d want to take part in the Who are You? series.

I’m glad to be able to report that I was and he did as Tony, with apologies to Blackadder, is redder than a red squirrel which fell into a bucket of red paint at a Simply Red concert. Here’s his view on all things Liverpool, and some things Sunderland:

Read more

The Man City Who are You?: ‘history says 1-0 to Sunderland’

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

 

Colin Randall

writes: Alex Sargent* will have been a happy man after his beloved Manchester City went to St Mary’s and made the gap between our respective results at Southampton a whacking 11 goals. We could counter with Schalke (0-5 Chelsea) followed by Sunderland (0-0, Chelsea arguably riding their luck). But Wednesday brings a new game, a new challenge. Can we keep up the frankly astonishing sequence of 1-0, 1-0, 1-0 and 1-0? Can we carry on where we left off last April when Sunderland were desperately unlucky not to win the game that ended 2-2 – they’d already been fortunate at Wembley (no way back, I’d suggest, if Borini had buried that second chance)? We’ll see. Now let Alex – who has family links with Wearside – speak for himself …

Read more