Sunderland fan here

[superdimitri]

I thought when Coleman joined that it was a bit of a strange appointment but really if the board learns from their mistakes and keeps him on with the long term in mind then it should pay off. There's far more examples of teams being no better off sacking managers than there is sacking them.

I often travel to Burnley away games with a Sunderland supporter and he feared the worse very early on.

Sometimes people also underestimate luck in football though, sometimes one piece of bad luck leads to another and I certainly thought it was unfortunate when you lost Allerdyce to England. I remember thinking back then, they finally hold on to a manager and he signs for the national team.

There's lots of reasons and players you can think of but sometimes something like that is all it takes to get the ball rolling in the wrong direction.

No doubt at some point our good form will also come to an end, when we lose Dyche or maybe if we get in Europe but it really isn't that hard to be relegated and then again these days and it could happen to Burnley just the same as any bottom 14 Premier League club in a flash.

Unfortunately that's the nature of football now, to be honest I wouldn't care if it wasn't for the rich and famous top 6 being light years ahead of anyone else.

[ashtonlongsider]

Don't think it comes as too much of a surprise to see Sunderland slipping into the 3 tier. The writing certainly has been on the wall for a lot time. Sometimes you have to hit rock bottom to move forward and I'm sure that the next level will be the Black Cats nadir. The club needs to make radical changes from top to bottom and get back to the basics or else they will be in the football wilderness for a lot while. Here's wishing you all the best, Sunderland are a good club.

[Wirvine]

Nothing against Sunderland but:

I first met my future sister in law in 1978. Amongst her first words to me were "Why do you support a **** little club like Burnley. You could support a big club like Sunderland".

Forty years later I haven't forgotten or forgiven.

[Wirvine]

Nothing against Sunderland but:

I first met my future sister in law in 1978. Amongst her first words to me were "Why do you support a **** little club like Burnley. You could support a big club like Sunderland".

Forty years later I haven't forgotten or forgiven.

[Quicknick]

My mother used to have a boyfriend from Sunderland when she was in her early 20s. He even had a sports car. 'Nick, I just couldn't marry him,' she said. 'Sunderland was so dirty.' Bloody glad she didn't.

EDIT: this would have been just after the second war.

[Holmeclaret]

I always liked Sunderland and I worked in Houghton - le -Spring for four years during the 90's. There was terrible unemployment in those days but the people always kept their dignity and I'm pleased to see that the area is coming on strong again.
Don't worry, mate, like us, you're football mad and you'll be back in the end.

[Sausage]

I was working as a wine waiter in London's Reform Club...

...when I met you
I picked you out, I shook you up and turned you around
Turned you into someone new

[petethemackem]

There are lots of us that thought Coleman was a strange appointment, we couldn’t understand what would make him leave a good job with Wales (he claimed he’d taken them as far as he could) to join an admittedly big club albeit in a complete mess. Unfortunately he’s losing a lot of goodwill as the weeks go by and bad results pile up.

There is zero chance of the board learning any lessons though and we are stuck on a downward trajectory until the owner, who has lost all interest goes and takes his litany of mistakes, and CEO, with him.

Its correct about relegation from the PL being any three from fourteen pretty much. We circled the plug hole for a while until we dropped having tried to compete but it’s no fun making up the numbers and getting trounced most weeks.

If you get Europe it will undoubtedly put a strain on your squad, but I think I’d back you to cope and I think your manager would have you competitive. Your league form and position may come under threat, but you’d be living the dream for sure and like I say the Premier League gravy train and the Sky hype becomes very tedious after a while.

[Goddy]

I also have a soft spot for Sunlan, mainly because;

1. A good mate of mine from my Tetley/Peter Walker days is a big (literally) fan and still a season ticket holder even though he lives/works nowhere near and barely gets back for any games. He also owns/runs the Southwark Brewing Co based near Borough and Maltby Street markets should you ever be in the area and fancy dropping by. He'll (Peter) make you very welcome.
2. Linked to the above, after my chum left Peter Walker but I was still an area manager in Liverpool, when Everton played Sunderland in the early 90's, I arranged for a kil of ale to be delivered to the Abbey pub (just by Everton's ground) and asked the tenant to give them (Peter and his mates) as much beer as they could sup (about 10 of them got through about half of that kilderkin in a couple of hours). I still get mentioned in dispatches with a few of these Sunderland types just for providing a few beers!

Generally find them all a good bunch who deserve better times for their club. Hope if they do go down, they bounce back (up to the Prem) quickly.

PS Good (if not a little long) post, Petethemackem (not the Peter I mention above who is now well into his 50's!)

[ontario claret]

Great post, but you forgot Peter Noble from Sunderland. I live 25 miles from Sunderland. Sunderland, Ontario, that is.

[ontario claret]

Also, your Sunderland has one of the greatest concentrations of people with my surname (Vipond) of anywhere in the world.

[UpTheClaretsFCBK]

Sunderland’s decline is very very sad.

Such a huge football club with really passionate fans, yet plastics like Brighton, Bournemouth and Swansea remain in the Premier League due to their owners throwing money at it.

[Quicknick]

Sunderland’s decline is very very sad.

Such a huge football club with really passionate fans, yet plastics like Brighton, Bournemouth and Swansea remain in the Premier League due to their owners throwing money at it.

BHA and Swansea are not 'plastics'. A reminder: in 1972-73, BHA got relegated from Division 2 with a bigger average gate than we got as champions of that division. What do you think would have happened to Burnley's support if we'd have had to play at the northern equivalent of Withdean for a decade in the lower divisions?

[superdimitri]

Brighton are as plastic as they come imo. Gotta remember they are a large City compared to Burnley, there's no way it's plausible comparing attendance figures.

Every club has genuine fans of course but until the Amex was built you would more likely see a Chelsea or Arsenal shirt in the City and everyone loved to talk about how Brighton were a good second team. Doubt that would be the case in Burnley or Sunderland. At school finding a true Brighton fan was about as rare as a Whitehawk supporter.

Now all those "fans"are now Brighton supporters through and through and claim they have been through the hard times. They feel they have a divine right to be in the Premier League..a bit like Derby or Leeds but without the history. They get a swanky new stadium and training facilities paid for by a lucrative owner along with the council and if they didn't get promoted last year they would have been hit by ffp.

Not only that but you only need listen to their fans or read their forums to see how deluded they are or how little they actually know about football.

It doesn't get more plastic than Brighton, trust me. I live there. I still hope they go down.

[UpTheBeehole]

Birmingham's win last night has severely dented Sunderland's slim hopes of survival.

[petethemackem]

We're gone I'm afraid, the writing's been on the wall for a long time.

My main regret is not putting money on us at 16/1 at the start of the season!

I backed us to go down at the start of last season as I was very concerned with what Moyes was doing and saw relegation as a certainty.

Conversely I was certain you would stay up, when you were odds-on to go down, but didn't back my judgement then either.

[UpTheClaretsFCBK]

BHA and Swansea are not 'plastics'. A reminder: in 1972-73, BHA got relegated from Division 2 with a bigger average gate than we got as champions of that division. What do you think would have happened to Burnley's support if we'd have had to play at the northern equivalent of Withdean for a decade in the lower divisions?

Brighton has double our population and no other teams anywhere near them.

We have to contend with United, City, Everton and Liverpool, Blackburn, Bolton.

Totally irrelevant point.

[bob-the-scutter]

...when I met you
I picked you out, I shook you up and turned you around
Turned you into someone new

Not for 13 quid a week you didn't!

[karatekid]

I met a mackem on holiday in Fuerteventura. Good lad, had a few beers with him every day, talked about football and stuff in general. Got on really well.
Then he beat me in the hotels ping pong tournament. Never spoke to him again. Can't stand losing you see.
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