Sunderland AFC (16 Viewers)

[ptr]

Regardless of form, they’ve had a better season than us.

A lot will depend on whether that Le Fee turns up. People thought he’d be the championship Ronaldo, I’d never even heard of him tbf. Seen bits where he does look a cut above and others where he looks like he’s not arsed.

 

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[Travs]

Harsh. Hes come on here and been polite

WestEndAgro is a hardman.

Look at his name.

 

[torchomatic]

WestEndAgro is a hardman.

Look at his name.

Shame he can't spell aggro.

 

[Rob Roy]

Thanks for the insight. We really wish you well and hope you stay up next season.

Funny or not Le Bris is doing exactly as he did at L'Orient - started off brilliant, ended the season crap and then the next season he took them down. This is shaping up to be the same.

What'll happen is that we will lose these play offs embarrassingly, he will start next season (unless the QPR rumour is true) and after 12 games we will be doing shite - and he will be sacked - leaving the new manager a mountain to climb.

But it will be typical of SAFC; one of the worst run clubs in the country - we've been relegated 9 times since 1977, lost 8 of our last 10 trips to Wembley; are one of only 4 clubs to drop straight through 2 divisions from the Premier, 2 spells in the third division since 1987 and have set all sorts of unwanted records. It's very poor and we are nowhere near the club we should be given the stadium, fan base etc.

 

[BackRoomRummermill]

Funny or not Le Bris is doing exactly as he did at L'Orient - started off brilliant, ended the season crap and then the next season he took them down. This is shaping up to be the same.

What'll happen is that we will lose these play offs embarrassingly, he will start next season (unless the QPR rumour is true) and after 12 games we will be doing shite - and he will be sacked - leaving the new manager a mountain to climb.

But it will be typical of SAFC; one of the worst run clubs in the country - we've been relegated 9 times since 1977, lost 8 of our last 10 trips to Wembley; are one of only 4 clubs to drop straight through 2 divisions from the Premier, 2 spells in the third division since 1987 and have set all sorts of unwanted records. It's very poor and we are nowhere near the club we should be given the stadium, fan base etc.

Cheer up - I can see you have already got in your head you are out of playoffs - well we as in Cov take nothing for granted - most of us believe that we will struggle - so nothing new there - anything can happen in the night . I just hope we have a decent ref and not a bell end who ruins the game

 

[Sky_Blue_Dreamer]

Funny or not Le Bris is doing exactly as he did at L'Orient - started off brilliant, ended the season crap and then the next season he took them down. This is shaping up to be the same.

What'll happen is that we will lose these play offs embarrassingly, he will start next season (unless the QPR rumour is true) and after 12 games we will be doing shite - and he will be sacked - leaving the new manager a mountain to climb.

But it will be typical of SAFC; one of the worst run clubs in the country - we've been relegated 9 times since 1977, lost 8 of our last 10 trips to Wembley; are one of only 4 clubs to drop straight through 2 divisions from the Premier, 2 spells in the third division since 1987 and have set all sorts of unwanted records. It's very poor and we are nowhere near the club we should be given the stadium, fan base etc.

Well that is a bit negative because you've said you've been relegated 9 times since 1977. How many times promoted though? Otherwise you'd currently be in some pub league somewhere.

 

[Otis]

Funny or not Le Bris is doing exactly as he did at L'Orient - started off brilliant, ended the season crap and then the next season he took them down. This is shaping up to be the same.

What'll happen is that we will lose these play offs embarrassingly, he will start next season (unless the QPR rumour is true) and after 12 games we will be doing shite - and he will be sacked - leaving the new manager a mountain to climb.

But it will be typical of SAFC; one of the worst run clubs in the country - we've been relegated 9 times since 1977, lost 8 of our last 10 trips to Wembley; are one of only 4 clubs to drop straight through 2 divisions from the Premier, 2 spells in the third division since 1987 and have set all sorts of unwanted records. It's very poor and we are nowhere near the club we should be given the stadium, fan base etc.

1977? That rings a bell. What happened then?

 

[RoboCCFC90]

Thought I'd come on and give you the gory details about your opponents on Friday and next Tuesday, because I don't think either your support or the wider footballing world has any inkling whatsoever how poor we are - and have been for months.

We go into this game on the back of 7 defeats out of the last 10 games with 5 consecutive losses but that is by no means the worst of it. You probably aren't aware but we have defeated just 1 team by more than 1 goal since last November and have scored just 33 goals in our last 34 league games. We've had something like 3 shots on target in the last 4 games.

We did have a canny home record but that fell apart weeks ago and we have now lost at home to the likes of Hull City, Blackburn Rovers, Swansea City and last Saturday lost to QPR - the team that not one week ago Burnley put to the sword 5 v 0 at Loftus Road. We are playing slow, ponderous football and the goals we concede are invariably shit and totally avoidable - eg the forward given time and space to pick his spot, unmarked inside the box.

There can be absolutely no doubt about this, irrespective of what the bookies say, that Coventry are the overwhelming favourites to go to Wembley - and I would have great difficulty making a case for Sunderland winning over 2 legs. The thing that's amazed me is how we have swanned about in 4rth place for the last 5 months with not one team putting any pressure on us whatsoever. Mystifying. What have you all been doing? Why did no one catch us?

I came on here after you beat us 3 v 0 and had to laugh at your reaction to beating us - as though you'd just beaten the 1970 Brazilians. We were absolute rubbish, you'd beaten a rank average team and our performance was utterly laughable.

I've also read things like - "we will have to take a lead to the SOL because it will be a tough game up there" etc. - are you joking? You are aware that even if by some miracle the game ends 0 v 0 on Friday you will still remain overwhelming favourites to win at the SOL - just as everyone else has. "we aren't very good away" - yes and you wont have to be - do you think that QPR last Saturday had Pele and Carlos Alberto playing for them? And of course if you win 2 v 0 on Friday then effectively that's the tie over; as we would be left to do what we have done just once since last November (see above).

There are no depths to which SAFC has not plummeted over the last 50 years and as a result I don't know one Sunderland fan who thinks that SAFC will win. Everyone I talk to about the game expects the worse and our team will likely have no shame about embarrassing our club once again.

Our manager is rumoured to be leaving for QPR once the season is done and TBH I don't think many will shed much tears as he was found out months ago.

Would it be any different if we had played Bristol City? The short answer is no it wouldn't. You wont be aware but we have a crap record against them as well and haven't beaten them at home - never mind away - since 1994 (we have never beaten them at the Stadium Of Light).

So what will it take for SAFC to win? Well we would have to play totally different to how we have played in the last 5 months and play as we did in the first few weeks - where we topped the table. We played really well, played with pace, hunted the opposition in packs and had a high energy, high tempo about us.

So in the end it doesn't look good for us and there are a load of SAFC fans waiting too see what happens on Friday before buying tickets for Tuesday. If it goes horribly wrong on Friday then the crowd on Wearside will not be the expected 46k - 48k.

I don't like being so negative about our chances but you don't have to be the 1970 Brazilians to beat us; all you need to be is patient, well organised and be prepared to put some effort in - and that seems to be enough ie its all QPR, Hull or Blackburn did.

Can't say I'm nervous at all about Friday, given that my expectation is zero.

Thanks for jumping on our forum to give us a bit of insight.

My view of your team is that when you played us at the Arena a month or so ago you were very poor and far from the team that played well during the first half of the season. My personal view of that game is that we didn't really come out of third gear, because your team were so poor on the day - I am expecting better on Friday + Tuesday. All of which ties in your with own post.

I am quietly confident about Friday for a lot of reasons and I'm sure you would've preferred being at home for the first leg, because if Cov hit stride quickly and Sunderland carry as you are the tie could get away from you before the second leg.

Any injury concerns from your end?

 

[Travs]

Shame he can't spell aggro.

To be fair he's a busy guy.....

You don't run the firm by being civil to people or typing coherently.

 

[WestEndAgro]

To be fair he's a busy guy.....

You don't run the firm by being civil to people or typing coherently.

Ffs, you lot need to get out more, it was tongue in cheek.
Get a life.

 

[torchomatic]

Ffs, you lot need to get out more, it was tongue in cheek.
Get a life.

Hey, calm down. We don't need any a̶g̶r̶o̶ aggro on here.

 

[Rob Roy]

penny for your thoughts on this supposed rivalry between cov and sunderland?

Sorry I never answered this question either.

Being in my mid 60's I remember the game well of course and at the time Sunderland fans were obviously disappointed to be relegated. However from memory this was largely forgotten about and it didn't rear its ugly head again until the third division.

It seemed to me at the time that this was resurrected at that time by young lads and lasses who knew little of the event but being in the time of social media it was used as a way of creating a problem that in reality had been long forgotten about.

similarly in the third division some sort of rivalry was had with Portsmouth - for a reason I could never really understand and that rivalry with Portsmouth, now we are out of division 3 has gone - it doesn't exist in division 2.

As far as I'm concerned there is no rivalry with Coventry a team that is 200 miles away. Our rivalry is with Newcastle United, a one that pre dates football, and goes back to the English Civil War.

However people are curious and for example some of our fans have a dislike of Alex Neil, the Millwall manager because he had the temerity to leave Sunderland for Stoke City, not long after he had led us to play off victory out of the third division. Every time he turns up at the stadium of light he is booed by a section of our support. Are we going to boo the lad forever more just because he wanted to better himself and earn more money?

Some people maybe need to stop taking everything so personally and my beef isn't so much with other clubs, but with our board who couldn't run a corner shop and haven't been able to since the 1960's; leading us down many garden paths.

If people wish to like or dislike coventry or Sunderland due to some issue or other then that's up to them but this is nearly 50 years ago now, I never saw the point in bearing a grudge like that and SAFC have far bigger problems nowadays than rustling up a rivalry with a club 200 miles away over something that happened 50 years ago; and given that we have been relegated 9 times since 1977 its just 1 relegation that blurs into the other. I dare say we could rustle up a false rivalry with another club who once relegated us

My only beef with coventry is the same beef I have with loads of other clubs we are shit against - it would be nice to beat Coventry, Bristol City (particularly at home), Liverpool (who we have an awful record against) and loads of others who we never beat and are monotonously beaten by game after game.

 

[napolimp]

Funny or not Le Bris is doing exactly as he did at L'Orient - started off brilliant, ended the season crap and then the next season he took them down. This is shaping up to be the same.

What'll happen is that we will lose these play offs embarrassingly, he will start next season (unless the QPR rumour is true) and after 12 games we will be doing shite - and he will be sacked - leaving the new manager a mountain to climb.

But it will be typical of SAFC; one of the worst run clubs in the country - we've been relegated 9 times since 1977, lost 8 of our last 10 trips to Wembley; are one of only 4 clubs to drop straight through 2 divisions from the Premier, 2 spells in the third division since 1987 and have set all sorts of unwanted records. It's very poor and we are nowhere near the club we should be given the stadium, fan base etc.

you're obviously not one of the worst run clubs in the country. The drama.

 

[AOM]

Sunderland fan in pieces

Look after him x

 

[Rob Roy]

Thanks for jumping on our forum to give us a bit of insight.

My view of your team is that when you played us at the Arena a month or so ago you were very poor and far from the team that played well during the first half of the season. My personal view of that game is that we didn't really come out of third gear, because your team were so poor on the day - I am expecting better on Friday + Tuesday. All of which ties in your with own post.

I am quietly confident about Friday for a lot of reasons and I'm sure you would've preferred being at home for the first leg, because if Cov hit stride quickly and Sunderland carry as you are the tie could get away from you before the second leg.

Any injury concerns from your end?

We are supposed to have a full side to choose from but we had the same bodies available against Oxford and QPR and lost - so I'm not sure that counts for much. Le Bris has made an arse of this whole season and it's imploded right when it shouldn't. As someone said on our message board we should have tried to chase down Sheffield United - not pack in for a few weeks - and all momentum has been lost.

Le Fee is back from injury but we are playing him out wide rather than centre mid and he has been a man off like the others.

 

[Paxman II]

Thought I'd come on and give you the gory details about your opponents on Friday and next Tuesday, because I don't think either your support or the wider footballing world has any inkling whatsoever how poor we are - and have been for months.

We go into this game on the back of 7 defeats out of the last 10 games with 5 consecutive losses but that is by no means the worst of it. You probably aren't aware but we have defeated just 1 team by more than 1 goal since last November and have scored just 33 goals in our last 34 league games. We've had something like 3 shots on target in the last 4 games.

We did have a canny home record but that fell apart weeks ago and we have now lost at home to the likes of Hull City, Blackburn Rovers, Swansea City and last Saturday lost to QPR - the team that not one week ago Burnley put to the sword 5 v 0 at Loftus Road. We are playing slow, ponderous football and the goals we concede are invariably shit and totally avoidable - eg the forward given time and space to pick his spot, unmarked inside the box.

There can be absolutely no doubt about this, irrespective of what the bookies say, that Coventry are the overwhelming favourites to go to Wembley - and I would have great difficulty making a case for Sunderland winning over 2 legs. The thing that's amazed me is how we have swanned about in 4rth place for the last 5 months with not one team putting any pressure on us whatsoever. Mystifying. What have you all been doing? Why did no one catch us?

I came on here after you beat us 3 v 0 and had to laugh at your reaction to beating us - as though you'd just beaten the 1970 Brazilians. We were absolute rubbish, you'd beaten a rank average team and our performance was utterly laughable.

I've also read things like - "we will have to take a lead to the SOL because it will be a tough game up there" etc. - are you joking? You are aware that even if by some miracle the game ends 0 v 0 on Friday you will still remain overwhelming favourites to win at the SOL - just as everyone else has. "we aren't very good away" - yes and you wont have to be - do you think that QPR last Saturday had Pele and Carlos Alberto playing for them? And of course if you win 2 v 0 on Friday then effectively that's the tie over; as we would be left to do what we have done just once since last November (see above).

There are no depths to which SAFC has not plummeted over the last 50 years and as a result I don't know one Sunderland fan who thinks that SAFC will win. Everyone I talk to about the game expects the worse and our team will likely have no shame about embarrassing our club once again.

Our manager is rumoured to be leaving for QPR once the season is done and TBH I don't think many will shed much tears as he was found out months ago.

Would it be any different if we had played Bristol City? The short answer is no it wouldn't. You wont be aware but we have a crap record against them as well and haven't beaten them at home - never mind away - since 1994 (we have never beaten them at the Stadium Of Light).

So what will it take for SAFC to win? Well we would have to play totally different to how we have played in the last 5 months and play as we did in the first few weeks - where we topped the table. We played really well, played with pace, hunted the opposition in packs and had a high energy, high tempo about us.

So in the end it doesn't look good for us and there are a load of SAFC fans waiting too see what happens on Friday before buying tickets for Tuesday. If it goes horribly wrong on Friday then the crowd on Wearside will not be the expected 46k - 48k.

I don't like being so negative about our chances but you don't have to be the 1970 Brazilians to beat us; all you need to be is patient, well organised and be prepared to put some effort in - and that seems to be enough ie its all QPR, Hull or Blackburn did.

Can't say I'm nervous at all about Friday, given that my expectation is zero.

Yikes!

 

[Brighton Sky Blue]

We are supposed to have a full side to choose from but we had the same bodies available against Oxford and QPR and lost - so I'm not sure that counts for much. Le Bris has made an arse of this whole season and it's imploded right when it shouldn't. As someone said on our message board we should have tried to chase down Sheffield United - not pack in for a few weeks - and all momentum has been lost.

Le Fee is back from injury but we are playing him out wide rather than centre mid and he has been a man off like the others.

How has Chris Mepham been doing? Thought he was a bit too good for Championship football tbh

 

[rob9872]

You're all assuming it means aggravation and not agriculture. And of course the chant:

A G A.G.R. A.G.R.O. agro

 

[Mcbean]

Sorry I never answered this question either.

Being in my mid 60's I remember the game well of course and at the time Sunderland fans were obviously disappointed to be relegated. However from memory this was largely forgotten about and it didn't rear its ugly head again until the third division.

It seemed to me at the time that this was resurrected at that time by young lads and lasses who knew little of the event but being in the time of social media it was used as a way of creating a problem that in reality had been long forgotten about.

similarly in the third division some sort of rivalry was had with Portsmouth - for a reason I could never really understand and that rivalry with Portsmouth, now we are out of division 3 has gone - it doesn't exist in division 2.

As far as I'm concerned there is no rivalry with Coventry a team that is 200 miles away. Our rivalry is with Newcastle United, a one that pre dates football, and goes back to the English Civil War.

However people are curious and for example some of our fans have a dislike of Alex Neil, the Millwall manager because he had the temerity to leave Sunderland for Stoke City, not long after he had led us to play off victory out of the third division. Every time he turns up at the stadium of light he is booed by a section of our support. Are we going to boo the lad forever more just because he wanted to better himself and earn more money?

Some people maybe need to stop taking everything so personally and my beef isn't so much with other clubs, but with our board who couldn't run a corner shop and haven't been able to since the 1960's; leading us down many garden paths.

If people wish to like or dislike coventry or Sunderland due to some issue or other then that's up to them but this is nearly 50 years ago now, I never saw the point in bearing a grudge like that and SAFC have far bigger problems nowadays than rustling up a rivalry with a club 200 miles away over something that happened 50 years ago; and given that we have been relegated 9 times since 1977 its just 1 relegation that blurs into the other. I dare say we could rustle up a false rivalry with another club who once relegated us

My only beef with coventry is the same beef I have with loads of other clubs we are shit against - it would be nice to beat Coventry, Bristol City (particularly at home), Liverpool (who we have an awful record against) and loads of others who we never beat and are monotonously beaten by game after game.

We’ve only just beaten Preston for what seems be be forever in the midsts of time so things must be looking up for us

 

[Ashdown]

This entire doom mongering and people making us hot favourites is unnerving for any City fans of an age. We have a record second to none for losing to underdogs and enduring so called shocks. I’ve seen us lose to lot worse teams than 4th placed Sunderland, they looked ok when they stormed into a 2-0 lead with a couple of worldies at the SOL.

 

[clint van damme]

This entire doom mongering and people making us hot favourites is unnerving for any City fans of an age. We have a record second to none for losing to underdogs and enduring so called shocks. I’ve seen us lose to lot worse teams than 4th placed Sunderland, they looked ok when they stormed into a 2-0 lead with a couple of worldies at the SOL.

This is true. But we do seem to respond much better to the big occasions and expectation these days.

 

[fernandopartridge]

This is true. But we do seem to respond much better to the big occasions and expectation these days.

In the past few years we've risen to the occasion on every big game, we've not always won but haven't lost those games. At home, the old belief that we can't play in front of a big crowd has been put to bed. The omens feel too good!

 

[AOM]

In the past few years we've risen to the occasion on every big game, we've not always won but haven't lost those games. At home, the old belief that we can't play in front of a big crowd has been put to bed. The omens feel too good!

Yeah, I'm feeling super confident going into the home game tomorrow night and we've performed in most of the big home games this season.
Even Burnley was a bit of an outlier, as it wasn't a particularly poor performance and more just two errors that gave them goals.

It's the away tie that is more of a worry as our recent away results have been all over the place. Need to get the business done in the first game ideally

 

[Sky Blue Dal]

Mmm....seems like mind games to me. We must not be complacent!!

Yep.. Many are thinking we going to do Sunderland over easily but I am not falling for it and it’s making me nervous that we will become complacent on the day and thinking it’s going to be a walk in the park.

We need to be focused and bring out our A game for both legs.

Need to show Sunderland some respect for its footballing ability. These next two games will be a new start for them now.

 

[Shannerz]

Yep.. Many are thinking we going to do Sunderland over easily but I am not falling for it and it’s making me nervous that we will become complacent on the day and thinking it’s going to be a walk in the park.

None of the team or management are thinking that.

 

[Sky Blue Dal]

None of the team or management are thinking that.

Let’s hope they not but easy to get carried away especially after finishing on a high.

 

[Diogenes]

Sorry mate I didnt give you a reply to your question.

We started off playing high pressing, quick football, where we hunted down the opposition in packs. It was really difficult to play against and we got something like 36 points out of the first 39 or something ridiculous like that. We were 5 points clear at the top and motoring. We have a young side so you would think that the fitness levels were good enough to keep on playing like that.

Then something changed and we started to play this slow ponderous, defensive football and it all fell apart.

then Le Bris basically tells the whole world that as we are guaranteed 4rth we are going on the beach for a few games and everyone just switches off. We went from losing 3 or 4 games to all of a sudden we've lost 12; I mean WTF? We just cant stop losing.

Then last week he decides that we are trying again, but as expected we played Oxford away and then QPR at home; promptly lost both games, didnt score a goal and had 1 shot on target. Proving as we all know that you cant just flick a switch and start playing like Liverpool.

People are bored stiff watching us - it takes us about 5 minutes to get up the other end of the pitch and we cant break any defence down. We cant score, cant keep a clean sheet etc. and Isidor has gone from looking like one of the best strikers in the league to being completely clueless and hasn't scored in about 13 games.

given that I'm now in my 60's and saw my first professional game in the mid 60's you can imagine I've seen some shit in my time but this takes the biscuit; and remember we are supposedly the 4rth best team in the division, that nobody, for some bizarre, mystifying reason could catch (what have you all been doing? how come no one could catch us?).

Unless I'm missing something here and I'm going to end up with egg on my face I just dont see where this ends and have no reason to predict, based on the evidence of the last 5 months, anything but 2 SAFC defeats - NO MATTER WHO WE ARE PLAYING. As it stands and if pressed I'd predict:

Coventry City 2 or 3 v 0 SAFC (tie over) and
SAFC 0 v 1 Coventry

At home we are the easiest team to play against. A little bit of effort, a bit of patience and we will gift the opposition a goal, no problem. Just hang about, dig in, do a bit of defending and wait and it'll happen.

Everyone outside of Wearside is blowing smoke up Le Bris arse yet the bloke has lost the plot and he will surely get sacked at the end of the season or a dozen games into next season if we start off playing this crappy anti-football and find ourselves 12th/similar. As I said above a rumour is that he is off to QPR.

I'd love to come on here and predict some great victory for SAFC but I'd simply be lying. I cant give you any scenario where that happens.

I can't get over just how well you fit in here. You should stick around.

 

[Lamps]

Yep.. Many are thinking we going to do Sunderland over easily but I am not falling for it and it’s making me nervous that we will become complacent on the day and thinking it’s going to be a walk in the park.

We need to be focused and bring out our A game for both legs.

Need to show Sunderland some respect for its footballing ability. These next two games will be a new start for them now.

We need to treat them the same way as we did recently. Straight at them. Their whole season depends on this result and things are not going well for them. We will have the most attempts but they will be dangerous on the break (if capable)

 

[Terry_dactyl]

We are supposed to have a full side to choose from but we had the same bodies available against Oxford and QPR and lost - so I'm not sure that counts for much. Le Bris has made an arse of this whole season and it's imploded right when it shouldn't. As someone said on our message board we should have tried to chase down Sheffield United - not pack in for a few weeks - and all momentum has been lost.

Le Fee is back from injury but we are playing him out wide rather than centre mid and he has been a man off like the others.

Has he made an “arse of this whole season”? Would you not have taken 4th at the start of the year?

Having said that it sounds like he’s got a touch of the Tony Mowbray's about him?