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Dear Roker Report,
I was just wondering. Now, I know these things are from different eras, but is this Man City thing going on over illegal payments, sponsorship and all that our generation’s version of what happened to Sunderland in the 50s? Only the leaked stolen emails are their version of our Mr Smith.
Rob Moran
Ed’s Note [Gav]: I think there are definitely some interesting parallels,
although the circumstances are obviously very different.
The big difference is that the allegations around Manchester City are on a completely different scale and concern a modern football landscape that barely resembles the one Sunderland operated in during the 1950s.
That said, your comparison with Mr Smith and the leaked emails is an interesting one. In both cases, you have questions around the way football clubs operate financially and the extent to which what happens behind the scenes can ultimately have huge consequences on the pitch.
Whether we’ll ever see a modern equivalent of what happened to Sunderland remains to be seen, but I suspect the Manchester City story will be talked about for years regardless of the eventual outcome.
Dear Roker Report,
I am a season ticket holder and, in a recent communication with the SAFC Ticketing Team, I was informed that you can reserve your seat for home European games but not for English cup games, which will ‘go straight to general sale’.
I always assumed it was a given that season ticket holders would have the option to purchase their seat prior to general sale. Is this something that has happened recently? Have I been living under a rock?
Ian Cooper
Ed’s Note [Gav]: No, I don’t think you’ve been living under a rock!
I’d have had the same assumption as you – that season ticket holders would get first refusal on their own seat for cup games before tickets went on general sale.
The European games obviously have their own arrangements, but the fact that domestic cup games would go straight to general sale is certainly something I’d want clarification on too.
We’ll have a look into this with the club and see whether this is a recent change, or whether it’s simply something that has always been the policy but hasn’t really been tested in this way.
Dear Roker Report,
I’ve built a free European away-day hub for supporters.
I’ve put together Mackems in Milan, an independent Sunderland fan site aimed at supporters following the Lads around Europe.
It has practical guides for Leiria, Poznań, Milan and Anderlecht, covering getting there, airports, accommodation, matchday travel, places to drink, maps, supporter information and useful links.
I’ve also added a free 20-question Sunderland quiz that can be played on your phone or downloaded for the journey.
The Milan guide also includes information I’ve gathered directly from Black Cats of Italy about the planned fan zone and supporter safety.
Thought it might be useful to your readers/listeners and social following.
Dale Robinson
Ed’s Note [Gav]: Thanks for getting in touch. This sounds like exactly the sort of thing that could be genuinely useful to Sunderland supporters, particularly with so many of us now looking at European away trips.
The practical information is always invaluable when you’re travelling somewhere you’ve never been before, and the quiz is a nice touch for the journey too!
We’ll have a look at the site and share it with our readers and listeners. Hopefully it helps get the word out.
Best of luck with it – and hopefully we’ll see plenty of Mackems making use of it over the coming weeks.
Dear Roker Report,
I’ve recently set up Anne Marie Martin Community CIC, named after my mam. It’s still very early days, but I wanted to do something positive in her name and something useful for the community I’m from.
A lot of what I’ve been doing so far is getting out, meeting people, listening and learning about where people are still struggling and where we might be able to help.
One thing that keeps coming up is how much of everyday life is online now. Booking an NHS appointment, using the NHS App, getting a digital ticket, finding a boarding pass or working out whether a text or email is a scam.
For plenty of us, those things are straightforward. For other people, they really aren’t.
That’s why I’m really pleased AMM is getting involved with Can’t Get Online Week at the Beacon of Light from 19-23 October. The Foundation of Light will have free support available throughout the week, and I’ll be there on the Wednesday and Thursday helping people with some of those everyday things.
For me, it’s exactly the sort of thing I hoped AMM could do. Not try to reinvent everything or duplicate what is already there. Just work alongside good organisations locally and help people who might otherwise get left behind.
And doing it at the Beacon makes it even better. I’m a Sunderland supporter, it’s a place people across the city know, and hopefully Roker Report can help us reach a few fellow supporters, parents, grandparents, neighbours or friends who could use a bit of help.
Sometimes it might just be sitting with somebody for ten minutes and helping them get something sorted. If we can do that for a few people during the week, it’ll be a really good start for us.
John Martin
Ed’s Note [Gav]: Thanks for getting in touch marra, and firstly, best of luck with Anne Marie Martin Community CIC. It sounds like you’re approaching it in exactly the right way – finding out what people actually need rather than trying to reinvent the wheel.
The digital exclusion point is a really important one, too. It’s easy to forget that things which take most of us 30 seconds on a phone can be a genuine barrier for somebody else.
We’ll happily help spread the word about the Can’t Get Online Week sessions at the Beacon. If it helps a few Sunderland supporters, family members or neighbours get something sorted that they were struggling with, it’ll be worthwhile.
Dear Roker Report,
Am I the only one who was perplexed to hear Régis Le Bris saying he was proud of the Man City performance?
When you score three goals in any game of football, you simply don’t lose, yet we concede five.
We may have played good football in attack. Brian Brobbey came to the party with a good hat-trick, but the defence all game was disjointed.
From Man City’s first goal, which the breakaway for the free-kick came from our corner, the wall turned its back. You’re in the wall to be hit by the ball. The keeper got his angles wrong.
Man City’s first four goals all could be avoided. The fifth was scored as we were chasing an equaliser.
We’ve had an extended break now, and I for one hope the emphasis is on defence.
We need to establish a settled back line, which in turn will help the goalkeeper.
Losing to both Arsenal and Man City shows we are still some way off the top six, but come October 10th, we must start to pick up wins or a long winter awaits.
Haway the lads,
Mark
Ed’s Note [Gav]: I can certainly understand your frustration. Conceding five goals is never going to leave you feeling particularly positive about a performance, regardless of how well you played at the other end.
I think Le Bris’ comments need to be viewed in the context of the performance as a whole. There were certainly plenty of positives going forward – scoring three against Manchester City is no mean feat – but defensively we were far too open and made life much easier for them than it needed to be.
The first goal in particular was frustrating, and you’re right that there were opportunities to prevent several of City’s goals.
The biggest challenge now is finding some consistency at the back. If we can establish a settled defensive unit and give the goalkeeper some protection, there’s no reason we can’t be competitive against plenty of teams in this league.
But you’re right about October. The performances have been encouraging at times, but eventually we need to turn those performances into points.
