Sunderland

Sunderland: All the latest Sunderland flavoured news, views, rumours and other assorted bits and bobs

• The Snapshot: West Ham 3-1 Sunderland October 22nd, 2007 Sunderland

  Nolberto Solano celebrates as his shot rebounds in off of distraught goalkeeper Craig Gordon for an own goal during the Premier League match between West Ham and Sunderland at Upton Park on October 21, 2007. Photo Phil Cole/Getty Images

• The Snapshot Special: Premier League weekend, 6-7 October October 8th, 2007 Arsenal

  Aston Villa 1-0 West Ham
  Craig Gardner won the match for Villa, but Dean Ashton is now a doubt for England after picking up a knee injury.
  

• The Snapshot Special: Premier League weekend, 29-30 September October 1st, 2007 Arsenal

  Birmingham 0-1 Manchester United
  Crissy Ronaldo (© Pies) pounced early in the second-half to give United victory and keep up with Arsenal.
  

• The Snapshot Special: Premier League weekend, 22-23 September September 24th, 2007 Arsenal

  Arsenal 5-0 Derby
  Emmanuel Adebayor scored a hat-trick and Cesc Fabregas stole the show as the Gunners hit top gear.
  

• What was Ian Porterfield’s greatest achievement? September 12th, 2007 Chelsea

  
  It was with much sadness that the yellow breaking news Sky Sports scrolly thing delivered us the news that Ian Porterfield had died last night. The double-hard Scotsman was probably best known for his time as a player at Sunderland, but he was also an international and Premier League manager.
  Here, then as a mini tribute to the chap, are his top 10 sporting achievements as we see it. If you have any memories of Porterfield’s reign at your particular club / country please let us know…

• Man Utd v Sunderland preview: how will Roy Keane cope with Sunderland’s mini crisis? August 31st, 2007 Man Utd

  Most football fans were more than happy to leap aboard the ‘Roy Keane is God’ bandwagon after he guided Sunderland from the depths of the Championship to the Premier League in one rocket-fuelled rise. But recent defeats to Wigan and Liverpool in the league, and then Luton in the Carling Cup, will test Keane’s resolve […]

• The Snapshot Special: Premier League weekend, 25-26 August August 28th, 2007 Arsenal

  Arsenal 1-0 Manchester City
  Cesc Fabregas finally found a breakthrough, despite an excellent performance from Manchester City goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel. The young Dane made a string of saves, including Robin van Persie’s 65th minute penalty.
  

• Sunderland sign Andy Cole – but is he going to play or preach? August 24th, 2007 Sunderland

  Apparently, Andy Cole is on the verge of signing for Sunderland after Harry Redknapp agreed to release the 35 year-old from the last two years (!?) of his Portsmouth contract.

• Premier League most expensive XI August 16th, 2007 Chelsea

  
  With a combined cost of around £250m, even Roman’s roubles would be stretched to afford this team consisting of the most expensive players (in their position) in the Premier League.

• The Snapshot Special: Midweek Premier League round-up August 16th, 2007 Bolton Wanderers

  Portsmouth 1-1 Manchester United
  Cristiano Ronaldo grimaces after being shown a red card for violent conduct.
  

• Roy Keane ‘D’ye like dogs?’ Brad Pitt / Snatch top from TShirts365 August 15th, 2007 Kits & fashion

  
  Fresh from his outspoken comments on WAGs, here is a Roy Keane t-shirt showing the Sunderland boss as Brad Pitt in the film Snatch. He becomes Pikey Mickey, the caravan-dwelling, dog-loving bareknuckle boxer, for this t-shirt from TShirts365.

• Roy Keane blasts ‘weak players’ for following their wives August 15th, 2007 Sunderland

  Our question asking whether footballers are under the thumb seems to have been answered by that eternal fountain of testosterone himself, Roy Keane.

• Kit Parade Special: New Premier League Home Kits, Part Two & Vote August 11th, 2007 Kits & fashion

  Following yesterday’s imaginatively titled Part One, today Pies profiles the home kits of the 10 Premiership teams who would have their names called at last on the school register.
  Manchester City
  There is a hint of baseball to Citeh’s new shirt, with its rather fetching white pinstripes. Reebok are out and French brand Le Coq Sportif (currently enjoying a Lazarus-style revival) are in. Last season’s white sleeves are also ditched, and on reflection it is probably a good call. Click here to buy it from Kitbag.

• The New Season: What the Bloggers Say – Sunderland August 10th, 2007 Sunderland

  As the season draws ever nearer (tomorrow! TOMORROW!), I’ll be throwing a few of these up before anyone can get depressed/begin dreams of winning the league after 90 minutes of football. So, the latest to offer their tuppence is a proud Mackem who wants nothing but bad for the Geordies and is keen to see […]

• Is Craig Gordon worth £9m? August 8th, 2007 Sunderland

  Roy Keane has broken the British transfer record for a goalkeeper by signing Craig Gordon from Hearts for an astonishing £9 million.

• Sunderland sign Mido for £6m August 2nd, 2007 Sunderland

  
  In one of the most surprising transfers yet this season, overweight Spurs striker Mido has joined underachieving (in the Prem at least) Sunderland for a fee of £6m.

• Shit lookalikes: Kieran Richardson and Micah from TV’s ‘Heroes’ July 31st, 2007 Lookalikes

  
  A big shout-out to Pies reader Mark Sharon for spotting that Kieran Richardson looks rather similar to Micah (played by Noah Gray-Cabey, a ten-year-old classically trained pianist), a character in new hit TV show ‘Heroes’. I haven’t yet seen Heroes, but friends tell me it’s rather good – unlike Kieran, who is rather shit.

• One to Watch: Roy O’Donovan (Cork City) July 30th, 2007 Fulham

  Meet Cork City striker Roy O’Donovan who is likely to link-up with his namesake Keane in the near future. Sunderland and Fulham are both interested in the 21-year-old striker who they believe could be the next Kevin Doyle. The Reading striker forged the route from Cork City to scoring regularly in the Premier League. O’Donovan scored 21 goals in the Eircom League last season, and both Keane and Lawrie Sanchez seem happy that he can make the step up to the Premiership.

• Top 5 controversial transfers July 20th, 2007 Arsenal

  With Fergie refusing Liverpool’s £6.8m bid for Gabriel Heinze and claiming United would ‘never’ sell to their bitterest rivals, we take a look at a few transfers that have taken place between clubs with a history of hatred.

• THE VOTE Is Kieran Richardson a good signing for Sunderland? July 17th, 2007 Man Utd

  Even the most ardent of Richardson supporters could never argue that he was an integral part of Man Utd’s squad. Alex Ferguson seemed to rate him more highly than the rest of us – whenever I saw him play for United he ran around like a headless chicken, giving the ball away for fun and generally looking not fit to wear the famous red shirt. In fact, if asked ‘Which player would you get rid of this summer?’ I’d imagine that a majority of Utd fans would name Richardson as their first choice.

• Why is £5 million the going rate for crap Championship players? July 13th, 2007 Sunderland

  If anyone knows Pies would really like to find out what the answer is. Michael Chopra is the latest player to move for a ridiculous fee. Cardiff have flogged the 23-year-old striker to Roy Keane’s Sunderland for £5 million, and who can blame them. That is an extra nought on the figure they paid Newcastle for him last summer. Yes, he had a decent season and scored 22 goals but does that really mean he is worth £5 million?

• Niall Quinn, man of the people, owner of magic carpet July 4th, 2006 Sunderland

  Niall Quinn, the new Sunderland chairman, has promised to take fans on a ‘magic carpet ride’. The Mackems will be desperate to return to the Premiership asap, and with the vibrant Quinn in charge, they have every chance. Quinn is also looking for a dynamic new manager. He said: ‘I need someone who wants the […]