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24 days ago | 0 reads
The weather is changing, and for those who are homeless and struggling, services like Sunderland Community Soup Kitchen are critical. With that in mind, we caught up with Andrea Bell, the wonderful woman behind the most amazing charitable organisation, to hear about what is going on in our city, where things are at this year, […]
25 days ago | 1 read
How could we possibly have predicted this? If you had told me this time last year that Sunderland players would be making up 7% of the top 100 Fantasy Premier League performers, I simply wouldn’t have believed you. It’s easy to look at the table and see how well we’re doing as a team this […]
25 days ago | 2 reads
Without sounding like a broken record, it’s a hell of a time to be a Sunderland fan. A third international break of the season is annoying as it stops us from being able to watch the red and white wizards in action, which, considering we’re unbeaten in four and have just one loss in nine […]
25 days ago | 2 reads
Malc Dugdale says… The first priority has to be thinning out what may insensitively be termed “deadwood” across the squad for me. We have a lot of players who we know won’t make the grade for a team pushing for the UEFA Champions League slots (I can’t believe I’m writing that about us, and it’s […]
25 days ago | 2 reads
This campaign had not got off to the best of starts as the World Cup feel-good factor evaporated quickly for Sunderland fans. With just two wins and seven defeats in the first twelve games, we found ourselves in twentieth position in the top tier; it was looking like it was going to be another hard […]
25 days ago | 2 reads
January is right around the corner, so you know what that means – the transfer rumour mill has kicked back into gear! With that in mind, Gav, Andrew and Jonny got together to chat about the players we’ve been linked with in recent days, to look at how the international break has gone for our […]
26 days ago | 0 reads
1905/1906 was Bob Kyle’s first season as Sunderland secretary — although the directors still called most of the shots and were in charge of picking the side that took on Everton 120 years ago today. The selection process was drawn out as long as possible to see if Harold Buckle and Jimmy Watson could overcome […]
26 days ago | 1 read
In the modern, money-driven, high stakes, glitz-and-glamour world of the Premier League, it’s seldom enough for a head coach or a manager to just be a head coach or a manager, and as the nature of the game that we all love has evolved, so too have the demands placed those who are fortunate enough […]
26 days ago | 1 read
Want to have your say on all things Sunderland? Drop us a line and we’ll publish your views! [email protected] Dear Roker Report, Having followed Sunderland since the 1950s, it’s the first time in my memory that the whole management team have been so experienced in football club management. Look at the background of Kyril Louis-Dreyfus […]
26 days ago | 2 reads
Much of the praise for Sunderland’s dream start back to life in the Premier League has been rightfully directed towards defensive performance. From Robin Roefs’ impressive command of his area in just his second professional season, to Dan Ballard’s willingness to launch himself through a brick wall for a header, to the class that the […]
26 days ago | 1 read
Good morning and welcome to the start of another week at Sunderland AFC – and we’re kicking off as usual with another episode of On This Week, where we take a look at some of the things that have happened On This Week in the history of Sunderland AFC! There’s no Kelvin this week – he […]
27 days ago | 0 reads
Have you heard the joke about the so-called “Deserved Premier League Table” and how the team currently sitting proudly in fourth place should apparently be in the lower reaches of the league on the basis that we’re allegedly outperforming various metrics by a considerable distance? Well, pass me a needle and thread so I can […]
27 days ago | 0 reads
The fortunes of Sunderland and Newcastle United in the late-1980’s/early-1990’s were like a double-helix that constantly crossed paths. While Lawrie McMenemy did his thing and saw us slide into the third tier we had left our nearest and dearest in the top flight, but as we climbed out and consolidated our position, they came down […]
27 days ago | 0 reads
Something I’ve found myself repeating almost every time I speak about Sunderland at the minute is something that many of you reading this will probably smirk and laugh at, as I know I’m often accused of getting carried away too easily, but I genuinely believe it when I say it: I think this is probably […]
27 days ago | 0 reads
We hope you enjoyed part one – which was a little bit serious after we moved past pink custard – and here is part two with a few less serious pet hates that Andrew & Jonny would like to see banished to Room 101! All of this and much more – get subscribed to you […]
27 days ago | 0 reads
Daniel George Ballard signed for Sunderland ahead of our return to the Championship back in the summer of 2022. Coming from Arsenal for a couple of million pounds, he immediately looked like a proper centre back despite missing around half of the 2022/2023 season with injury. Last season, there were times when he couldn’t get […]
28 days ago | 1 read
When we signed Granit Xhaka in the summer, it’s fair to say a few eyebrows were raised and that many neutrals nodded subtly — as well as acknowledging that for a club just coming up via the playoffs, it was a bold but potentially strong and ambitious move. There was an undeniable “feelgood factor” from that […]
28 days ago | 1 read
Sunderland’s pursuit of a first ever promotion entered the final straight in 1963/1964 and on this day, they returned to top spot in Division Two courtesy of a comprehensive victory over Leyton Orient. The Lads had won five of their last seven and had already been at the summit for a brief period at the […]
28 days ago | 1 read
Dan Harrison says… Whilst it’s always a bonus to finally be in the limelight, I’m at a bit of a crossroads regarding the coverage we’ve received since our return to the Premier League. On one hand, I feel that despite the praise, it feels like a surface-level analysis and a lazy attempt to label our […]
28 days ago | 1 read
For those who remember the radio or TV series from back in the day, we have our very own Football Room 101 as we try and we try and help our beloved game by banishing our pet hates – and this is part 1! All of this and much more – get subscribed to you […]
29 days ago | 0 reads
In Phil Smith’s (of The Sunderland Echo) tremendous interview with Sunderland director of football Florent Ghisolfi, he states that his first objective was to preserve the quality that had got the team promoted last season and continue it throughout the nascent Premier League season. That quality is mentality, and the synonyms were bandied with gleeful […]
29 days ago | 0 reads
I guess it’s just human nature – not just in sport – but in all walks of life, to see just how far rules can be stretched. And stretched they will be, unless there are punishments or direct consequences to those rules being over-stretched. Time wasting is one of the scourges of modern football. Even […]
29 days ago | 0 reads
After the 3-3 draw on Halloween night with Bolton Wanderers, Sunderland manager Simon Grayson was the latest man to be given his marching orders after an insipid start to the season leaving the ex Leeds manager becoming the eighth manager to lose his job in six years at Sunderland. The club was on a downward […]
29 days ago | 1 read
Dan Ballard, Brian Brobbey, Granit Xhaka and the incredible atmosphere at the Stadium of Light may have monopolised the headlines after Saturday’s battling draw, but there was one key individual whose part in the proceedings appears to have been somewhat overlooked, and the quiet, studious and slightly enigmatic Frenchman who’s coached and moulded this group […]
29 days ago | 1 read