Dear Haway The Podcast,
I’m certain that I’m your most dedicated fan here in NYC* I’ve held back on all the things I would share, but I’ve got a compliment I have to share and a compelling question. Andrew’s description of being at Wembley with his family and friend and the niece’s “big, fat, hot tears of joy” at the end of the Wembley game is priceless. Thank you. It is an image I won’t soon lose from my mind’s eye. Please encourage as many of his family-sharing occasions as he will offer.
Living overseas, having become
a fan at age 49 and visited Sunderland for the first time at age 56, I don’t fit the standard profile. Plus o’course, it was our son falling for Asaoah Gyan and following him to Sunderland that led to this life-long devotion, not the traditional dad-to-daughter/son approach. Your podcast is a boon for those of us having a different situation of not knowing other fans (beside spouse and son).
I’m not sure what’s going to happen when your On This Week… episodes hit a second year – you’ve covered so many years’ events in each episode, will you have another round? Will you have a moment to talk about Di Canio’s departure now that Jack Colback has said how bad an atmosphere he created? I have always felt that Stephan Sessegnon considered it a favor to his former teammates to score against them so that PDC would look that much worse and he’d be gone. That’s my question – do you think Sessegnon was particularly determined to make Paolo look bad out of loyalty to his teammates?
Elizabeth (Zabby) Hovey
* Yes, that means not all people listening to the podcast couldn’t watch a 3 pm game on a Saturday – we got to see the Chelsea win live, could NOT believe it. Having Brobbey and Talbi mentioned together (I listen to Nick Barnes and Gary Bennett reliably) has become one of my favorite things.
Editor’s note [Martin]: Thanks for your kind words, Elizabeth – we love hearing stories like this and glad we can help strengthen that feeling of connection between you and the club! I do reckon Sess would have had a bit more motivation at the Hawthorns that day. Should never have sold him. We’re toying with a few ideas to replace On This Week when we hit the 12-month mark (which will be in 3 episodes’ time!). At the moment, we’re thinking of doing episodes on individuals and / or individual events but we’ll see – any suggestions welcome! Or we could do a new series called ‘The Smithsons’. Sure Andrew will be up for that!
Dear Roker Report,
Just when you think we have overcome the daft, irrational thought processes of the past, along comes one to top them all, and I am talking about the ridiculous whispers regarding replacing RLB. Where on Earth do these morons come from? I simply cannot understand the logic behind such thinking.
This guy has molded a team of players who did not know each other whatsoever (apart from perhaps one or two having played a short spell in the same squad in the past), and he has them playing their hearts out for each other and us fans. Then, all of a sudden along come the clowns from beneath their stones and they try to give an uncomfortable feel to something that should not even be given the slightest consideration.
However, the irony is that when an ordinary fan such as me writes about it, I am highlighting their gormless thinking and perhaps doing what they hope.
We need to get real here. There is not one SAFC fan out there who realistically believed we would be in this position with games still on the board to play. RLB is a master tactician, and we have had Managers in the past (like a certain unmentionable from not too long ago who actually believed Liverpool were going to come calling), who think they know football.
The difference is RLB not only knows football, he also knows how to connect completely with each player individually and then as a team. The only guy of such temperament I have known over the last 40 years to do as such was Arsene Wenger, and I cannot give the gaffer a higher compliment than that.
So please, let’s collectively ignore these buffoons who are trying to tear down the building when it is nowhere being fully built.
Peter Milton
Editor’s note [Martin]: Thanks for your email Peter, and I am in complete agreement – albeit with a caveat! First things first, any suggestion of Regis Le Bris’s position being under threat based on the evidence we’ve seen on the field, or anything to do with how he’s actually done his job, is just ridiculous. Thankfully the derby win has dampened the noise, but the same idiotic opinions were getting voiced before the playoffs last season. Social media’s the problem here, as some people post things constantly for the need of some form of validation, and the more controversial their opinion, the more interaction they get. I reckon there’s only Peter Reid and Sam Allardyce who come close to Regis Le Bris’s level as a manager in pretty much living memory. I’d love to hear a case for others, but in terms of temperament, tactical nous, connection and man management, he’s got it all. Yes, we’d like to score more goals, but our performance has been outstanding this season – he really should be in the running for manager of the year. Bigger teams will be sniffing around him, you can rest assured about that.
Now the caveat. This ownership group have shown they’re ruthless, on and off the field. If they think they can improve in the dugout, they’ll probably take a chance. It’s well reported we were on the verge of getting Francesco Fariloi in a few years ago before a change of heart after fans voiced their discomfort about getting rid of Tony Mowbray. I think making a change of head coach would be a huge error – but I don’t think they’d let outside noise impact that decision again.
Dear Roker Report
For a long time I have been of the opinion that a lot of the rules of soccer need a radical overhaul.
1. The offside rule is crazy. As a former hockey player the sport did away with the offside rule. Everyone argued that this would ruin the game. Far from it, the play became more open and lead to more goals which is what most fans want to see.
2. Do away with ‘added time’. Have a central timing system so that the game is played for the full 90 minutes. Rugby and hockey use this and it seems to work.
3. Have a referee in each half of the pitch and do away with assistant referees if the offside rule is scrapped. Half the time they can’t keep up with play!
4. Allow rolling subs so that the game isn’t stopped. This would stop the painstakingly slow walk some players take to waste time.
5. Have a green and yellow card system as in hockey. Green card is a 2 minute suspension and a yellow card is a 10 minute suspension. Rugby use this as well. Different offences can lead to two or more 10 minute suspensions. A repeated offence could lead to a red card. This means a team is immediately impacted by a player being suspended. A totting up system would still lead to a potential suspension for future games.
6. Scrap the rule where a player has to go off if the trainer comes on. Why should this impact a side? Often the perpetrator of the foul stays on and the player who the trainer has treated has to stay off until the referee allows him back on. If the clock is stopped then that player should stay on.
I’ve advocated these ideas for ages and have written to the FA but surprisingly I’ve not had any response.
Food for thought!
Phil Herdson
Editor’s note [Martin]: I think we should get you on our next Room 101 podcast Phil! There’s a load of things here, and I am surprised some haven’t been tried out before. I’d be interested to see how the game would change with no offsides – it would become so stretched it would alter the complexion of it completely – not sure about that one! I do agree about the rolling clock. Currently, the ball’s in play for just 55 minutes or so in the Premier League this season. Two halves of 40 minutes with the clock only running when the ball’s in play would be fun to see – think we could be there for hours though! We need to sort VAR out before changing the number of refs – we virtually have 2 refs per game anyway – and subs are supposed to exit the field at the nearest possible point, rather than coming over to the dugout. The rule in which a player has to go off if treated is meant to stop players asking for treatment unless they actually need it, but it’s a daft one really, as players who are legitimately injured are punished too. There’s loads you could change – I’d like to see yellow cards awarded when players move towards the ball after their team has conceded a free kick, for example.
