Kevin Ball has done a preview interview for tonight's game but certainly worth a listen to what he has to say about

1. His two years at Burnley
2. Coming back recently to do the half time draw
3. David Dunn and THAT tackle

Bally's always great value. Really is a top bloke.

LINK:
http://www.safc.com/news/team-news/2017 ... w-fa-cup-a

Good interview. Great to hear an ex-player who was only here a couple of years talk so fondly about the club.

Great clip, always a decent listen.

Great bloke too.

Sunderland is very much his club and always will be but he really does have an affection for Burnley.

I posted this last week I think but when I suggested to Stan Ternent that Paul Cook had been his best signing at Burnley it was a very definite no from him. He said it was Bally.

His wife said he should have been arrested for that tackle.

Bit of a shame he's mostly remembered for that daft tackle, in his first season here he was really good for us.

like his talk about "the tackle" !!! Had to rewatch that. It's a shocker by any means. Good job Jose wasn't managing the bastards then

Here comes the BOOM!

Speaks very well of the club. Good interview.

NottsClaret wrote:Bit of a shame he's mostly remembered for that daft tackle, in his first season here he was really good for us.

I thought he was really good in both seasons. He'd have stayed on too but for the ITV Digital collapse.

Ive always been embarrassed for Kevin for that tackle. To take out a fellow professional. To take out Dunn like that and not decapitate him. Embarrassing.

Excellent interview. Hope it's another disappointing night for him though.

It would have been far easier for him to say Nik the Greek, or our Greek goalkeeper ay the time rather than sounding like Merson.

Good listen

My Mother always said when you've got nothing good to say...

Years ago there was an interview, where the player interviewed admitting that facing Bally used to scare him. The era of the hard guy in midfield has been replaced by soft ponces with fat wallets and flash cars that would have no clue how to adapt to a game from 20yrs ago.
Ok, bad tackle, but having players afraid to run at you really is controlling the middle of the pitch.

Ternents best signing for us was Robbie Blake

Inchy wrote:Ternants best signing for us was Robbie Blake

But Ternent's was Kevin Ball - he said so.

My overriding memory of Bally will be when John Mullin scored our winner in a 0-1 away win at Loftus Road. Bally ran into the back of the net with his fist clenched in celebration.

For a very brief moment our eyes met in the euphoria of the goal. Just looking into his eyes felt like a full on punch in the face. Thank the Lord I was never on the receiving end of one of his challenges.

He was outstanding for us. Got all the time in the world for Bally.

I loved that "tackle", and the way he walked off.

Seems like that the kind of bloke that every team would love to have around.

He was a very decent player for Portsmouth and Sunderland - and still good when he came to us at the back end of his career.

I`m guessing Stan`s view that he was his most important signing was around what he brought overall to the club on and off the pitch. I can`t remember whether he was our captain or not - but even if he wasn't then I am sure he was - if you know what I mean !!

In terms of playing ability then Blake and Cooke were both better signings - but there is more to it than that when building a team.

Got told a story about him by the bloke who used to be the media manager at Sunderland about the time he left.

Bally was no longer getting a game and so they let him go to Fulham. Almost immediately the results deteriorated and it was suggested this was because Bally wasn't there, was no longer part of the dressing room. He was that key to them.

Ouch!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He's been Dunn!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGBSiVOZ5Lw

Bin Ont Turf wrote:His wife said he should have been arrested for that tackle.

I thought something similar at the time !

Made me wince !

boatshed bill wrote:I loved that "tackle", and the way he walked off.

I didn't. Cost us any chance of getting anything from that game; thought it was a silly thing to do.

JohnDearyMe wrote:I didn't. Cost us any chance of getting anything from that game; thought it was a silly thing to do.

I know what you mean, but especially the walk always makes me chuckle.

JohnDearyMe wrote:I didn't. Cost us any chance of getting anything from that game; thought it was a silly thing to do.

We were down 2-0 and already well beaten. We were pretty awful that day and Blackburn were much better team than us that season.

Kevin Ball did in that game what many of us have dreamed of doing to Dunn for many a year.

Having just watched it again I`m not sure its a foul to tell you the truth

TVC15 wrote:We were down 2-0 and already well beaten. We were pretty awful that day and Blackburn were much better team than us that season.

Kevin Ball did in that game what many of us have dreamed of doing to Dunn for many a year.

Having just watched it again I`m not sure its a foul to tell you the truth

It was only 1-0 at the time but I don't think for one minute we'd have got back into it even if we'd brought an extra couple of players on. Their side at the time was head and shoulders better than ours.

Tom Cowan and Paul Cooke coming in transformed us

Gordon Armstrong wasn't bad but can't recall if he was deffo stans

boatshed bill wrote:I loved that "tackle", and the way he walked off.

With that tackle went any hope of us salvaging a point. In an instant, any hope of us getting s point vanished. Over the 2 years he was with us, he was great. But not imo that day.

Top lad indeed is Bally.

Vokesy is a good lad too, as is Barnesy Wardy and Heats. I know them all well and i want to intimate to you all that i know them personally so i'm using their nicknames to avoid any doubt.

ClaretTony wrote:It was only 1-0 at the time but I don't think for one minute we'd have got back into it even if we'd brought an extra couple of players on. Their side at the time was head and shoulders better than ours.

Indeed how times change

ClaretTony wrote:It was only 1-0 at the time but I don't think for one minute we'd have got back into it even if we'd brought an extra couple of players on. Their side at the time was head and shoulders better than ours.

It was 1-0 was it when Ball was sent off ? Was there 2nd goal terrible burnley defending from a throw in ? I just remember that like you say we were never in it and they were a far better side than us - though to be fair their wage bill at the time was a Premier League one and probably 5 times ours.

At least Bally gave us a great memory from those 2 games as wasn't the away game the 5-0 mauling ? That 5-0 away defeat was one of the most one sided games I have ever seen - as cultured as we thought Paul Cook was David Dunn in that game made him look like a Sunday league player. We could easily have lost that game 10-0.....

Sat there that sunny day in Blackburn watching that horror show I never thought we would see what has happened to the 2 clubs in last few years.

Anyway just watched the Ball tackle on Dunn again and 100% a dive - they are talking about bringing in the retrospective punishment for divers - how far do you think they'll go back ?!!!!

ClaretTony wrote:It was only 1-0 at the time but I don't think for one minute we'd have got back into it even if we'd brought an extra couple of players on. Their side at the time was head and shoulders better than ours.

Was Joe Hart at Rovers back then?

Listening to the phone in on the radio, on the way home on Saturday night, and a Sunderland fan was praying they'd sack Moyes and get KB in.
I don't know what affect he would have, but you can't imagine any players taking liberties.

ShabbaRanks wrote:Top lad indeed is Bally.

Vokesy is a good lad too, as is Barnesy Wardy and Heats. I know them all well and i want to intimate to you all that i know them personally so i'm using their nicknames to avoid any doubt.

I'm pals with Defoury

I'm bessie with gray

That's Graysie to you.

Garnerssoap wrote:I'm bessie with gray

Andre's neighbour posts on here you know.

Everywhere Andre goes people say "look that's the neighbour of that UTC bloke"

RocketLawnChair wrote:I'm pals with Defoury

Aye forgot to mention him, and Arfieldy ofc

Bally used to walk up and down the corridors in just his briefs and Tshirt before games just psyching himself up and freaking away players out.

"I meant to get him and the ball"
Thats the spirit Bally

Hmmmm... would make a great username

ClaretTony wrote:Sunderland is very much his club and always will be but he really does have an affection for Burnley.

I posted this last week I think but when I suggested to Stan Ternent that Paul Cook had been his best signing at Burnley it was a very definite no from him. He said it was Bally.

Them top three lines remind me of me now!!

Ohh Bally Bally is an absolute LEGEND. One of Sunderlands biggest LEGENDS in my lifetime.

rejected wrote:Them top three lines remind me of me now!!

Ohh Bally Bally is an absolute LEGEND. One of Sunderlands biggest LEGENDS in my lifetime.

It's just Bally here but in Sunderland it is always Ohh Bally Bally.

It does seem strange seeing him called just Bally!!

rejected wrote:It does seem strange seeing him called just Bally!!

Was always Bally here with the "Bally's going to get you," chant to encourage the odd tackle.

I'll never forget in a 2-1 win at the landfill when he slide talked a mag so hard from 40 yards out he nearly scored an own goal!!!

I had the privilege of playing against Bally at the Stadium of Light in May 2003. Had a good chat with him in the bar after the game and he reckoned his legs had gone by the end of his last season with us. He only had great things to say about Burnley.

Covclaret wrote:I had the privilege of playing against Bally at the Stadium of Light in May 2003.

Have you fully recovered from the injuries now?

Stan was old skool (sic) he always liked a minder in there who looked after his boys.

Biggest disappointment with Bally was that he was about 35/36 when he joined us, similar with Andy Cole. I can remember thinking that, if only we could sign these players when they're 31/32 just think how'd they really dominate games, but that was then.

A natural leader with a great presence. He was just what we needed at that time back in the Championship.