Sunderland’s second home loss of the season came against Fulham in what was a pretty terrible spectacle. However, the reaction to the loss – and not the poor performances on the pitch – are arguably the main talking point from a disappointing weekend.
The 3-1 loss to Fulham was a poor watch. Two dismal performances came from two teams who showed precious little quality for much of the game. Fulham eked out a win from being the more clinical of the two teams, but 4 goals flattered what was perhaps
the worst game of football we’ve seen at the SoL this season.
Yet despite the poorness of the performance, some perspective is necessary. Sunderland sit 12th in the table with 9 wins, 9 draws, and 9 losses – perfectly balanced, some might say. This is, by no means, an awful place to be, and whilst this predicament is less than ideal considering our excellent start to the season, we need to remain level-headed in our expectations.
Sunderland have exceeded expectations all season. We have played well and deserve every one of the 36 points we have won so far. Whilst there are doubts creeping in from the fanbase regarding our defensive acumen of late, it’s important to stick behind the team and trust that we will return to the form we showed at the start of the season.
It was saddening, therefore, to see people streaming out of the ground well before the whistle – especially considering how well we’ve played in every other game at home this season. For a club who have a penchant for scoring last-minute goals and whose slogan is literally ‘Til the End’, it was frustrating to see the stands almost empty by the time the final whistle eventually sounded.
As the club’s recent season ticket renewal drive has highlighted, the home crowd this season has been vital to our impressive season. This showed at times during the Fulham game: this crowd is loud and brutal and a genuine fear for teams visiting.
But it needs to be present for the entire game. These lads on the pitch are only human, and watching thousands of fans stream out after conceding a third goal doesn’t bode well for the confidence on the pitch.
Many fans will argue with this sentiment. I’m sure many will tell me that as loyal fans they felt let down by the performance and wanted their frustrations acknowledged. I can understand this, but I can’t agree with it. Whilst it is fair to feel let down and frustrated by a game where we were so off the pace from our normal form, it hardly feels fair on the team that the ground empties after one poor performance.
Interviews from Ballard and O’Nien support this notion. As a club, we knew we were in for a tough ride at times in our first season back. The players and playing staff have admitted as much themselves, but it is to their testament – and ours as a loyal fanbase – that these big losses have come few and far between this season.
Sunderland will bounce back. Xhaka’s return will make certain of that, but it is important to remain strong and as committed as ever. Once again, the lads are human. Form is temporary and will fluctuate; that’s natural, but it will be much easier for the lads to regain with the full voice and confidence of the 12th man behind them.
Continuing on the vein of humanity, it has been tough to see the horrendous abuse Mundle has received in the light of Sunday’s loss. It is tough to see a young player scapegoated, yet a worrying trend has begun – especially with a culture of outing specific players.
Unfortunately, it feels like the abuse Mundle has been getting has been the natural escalation of an unacceptable smear campaign. Criticism will always be a natural part of the game, but an unhealthy obsession with pointing out one player’s flaws should not be.
Fortunately, it will only ever be a minority of people who feel the need to react so poorly. Furthermore, it is still to be seen whether the abusers are genuinely Sunderland fans or chancers who don’t understand enough about our game to know or comprehend that football isn’t played by one man alone but a team of people of backgrounds and origins from far and wide.
Players like Mundle bring immense value to the team because they bring different styles and different abilities. He will always be a valued member of this team for two simple reasons: the first being the role he played in our success last season, the effort and passion he brought in the fallout of losing our best player at the time and what he did to make the position his. The second is that he has so much more yet to give.
Mundle was electric against Oxford and showed us what a talent he really is. What he needs now is the weight of the world’s best fanbase behind him – arms around him and lifting him up. With the wages these players are on, it is often easy to lose ourselves in the performance side of football, which too often makes us forget that lads like Mundle are only 22 – all young men doing their best to kick on and grow.
Romaine is also representative of a larger group of players in this Sunderland squad: a band of players with those diverse backgrounds I alluded to earlier. If Mundle is receiving abuse based on the colour of his skin, his ethnicity and his background, what impression does that give the other players on our side?
Sunderland AFC is wonderfully diverse. The city and its fans welcomed me as someone who had fallen in love with the place, despite being born outside the city’s boundaries. It is important that we look at this situation and realise our influence as the Red and White army. This piece does not serve as a rant, nor is it a demand for better. But it’s a reminder of actually quite how brilliant we are. Few newly promoted sides have managed what we have recently; there are even fewer fan bases that could ever be as passionate as we are, week in, week out. It is important that we remember as much, it is important that we now circle around our own, and it is imperative that we do what we can to push our lads onwards and upwards. Haway the lads.
