Wigan Preview

Steve Bruce takes Sunderland back to his former club Wigan Athletic and I am sure he will want to get one over his previous team and in particular their chairman Dave Whelan.

Wigan were humiliated 9-1 by Tottenham Hotspur last week and soon afterwards Wigan supremo Whelan pointed the blame at Bruce, stating he had made some dodgy signings when he was boss.

Excuse me but Mr Whelan is talking complete rubbish and is just looking for a way to protect his own manager Roberto Martinez. Bruce acknowledged this and said that there were no hard feelings, but I believe that it was a terrible statement, it shows no gratitude or respect. Steve Bruce kept Wigan in the Premier League, before he took over they were heading straight for the fizzy pop league, but he managed to finish in a respectable position. Plus some of his signings were incredible for a club like Wigan; he brought in quality players like Wilson Palacios, Antonio Valencia, Hugo Rodallega, Charles N'Zogbia, Maynor Figueroa and even transformed former Toon defender Titus Bramble in to a solid defender. So how is he to blame?

The Black Cats should be full of confidence for the trip to the DW Stadium, after recently beating Arsenal 1-0 at the SoL. But beware as Wigan will be looking to bounce back from that Spurs thrashing, repaying (in more sense than one) the fans who witnessed it. Also think back a few weeks ago, the mackems had secured all three points against Liverpool and many thought they would travel to Birmingham, (another or Bruce's old clubs) and turn them over. Well it didn't finish like that with Sunderland putting in a lack lustre performance; let's hope it is not the same against the Latics.

It looks like top scorer Darren Bent could actually make the trip to Wigan and play an important part with his injury not as serious as first thought. Kenwyne Jones is still suspended, however Michael Turner is available, so Bruce must decide whether to bring Turner back in or stick with the same defence that kept a clean sheet against Arsenal. Lee Cattermole and Craig Gordon are both long-term absentees.

Wigan only have a doubt over left back Figueroa, but Martinez may make changes to freshen his team up.

Haway the Lads, do this one for Bruce.

Swansea Preview

It is time to welcome the Welsh up North and across the Tyne. As Newcastle United return home to host Swansea City.

Many fans might think that with being at home and sitting top of the league, this will be an easy game. Well that sort of attitude can quickly undo all of the hard work that has gone on so far, which is why manager Chris Hughton is giving no such impression.

CH has constantly praised his team this season and quite rightly as they have battled away in each match, when behind the scenes the club has been through turmoil. He has kept their focus and drive to try to gain promotion at the first attempt.

I think that Newcastle will take another step in that direction tomorrow, but it won't be all plain sailing. Swansea sit fourth in the league, not far behind the black and white leaders, and this is for good reason. The Swans are unbeaten in 11 games and currently the in-form team of the Championship. So far in this campaign they have kept 10 clean sheets, with half of those games finishing 0-0.

These sort of stats are why I predict a frustrating afternoon at St. James' Park, both teams will probably cancel each other out and both goalkeepers may get a little bored. Unless Newcastle strike early on and force the opposition to chase the game, that is when players like Jonas Gutierrez and perhaps Fabrice Pancrate can really exploit the space available and seal a comfortable victory.

Andy Carroll and Danny Simpson are both minor doubts after coming off on Monday night’s game against Preston, with illness and a thigh problem respectively. Zurab Khizanishvili is available after serving a three game ban whilst Pancrate may be given his chance to impress.

City captain Garry Monk could be missing with a leg injury, along with Mark Gower and Stephen Dobbie. Loan signing David Cotterill will be hoping to make an immediate impact in order to turn his move into a permanent one come January.
Back to the traditional time of 3pm kick off. Enjoy

It's Results that Matter

Newcastle grinded out another three points against a testing Preston team, with a performance which I would best describe as functional.

Kevin Nolan popped up with another goal late in the game to regain Newcastle's place at the top of the Championship. Kev is indeed proving to be a valuable member of the United squad, scoring vital goals in tight games which are part of the reasons why Newcastle are leading the way for promotion.

Nolan and his central midfield partner Alan Smith epitomised the black and white work ethic, providing a strong shield to the united defence. They hardly allowed Preston's midfield to gain space and try to create anything, which is why they resorted to firing long balls up to the physical forwards Chris Brown, Neil Mellor and later Jon "the beast" Parkin.

United were similar in style, with Andy Carroll again a good target in which they could build upon, however they took their chance that made all the difference. Each player is doing his job and doing what is necessary in a professional manner.

This approach may not be too appealing to the Toon faithful who crave to see the same flair as years gone by, but at least they are winning games and still on course to go straight back in to the Premier League.

Newcastle are lacking pace and creativity, someone who can put their foot on the ball, dictate games and carve the opposition open, a complete and talented midfielder. New signing Fabrice Pancrate may play some part in filling that role and he may get the opportunity rather soon as Peter Lovenkrands has failed to show the same form as last season and Danny Guthrie looked nervous against North End, as if he wasn’t up to the challenge of competing for a place.

It may not have been an overly exciting and entertaining game, with limited chances and very little attacking quality, but Newcastle United carry on winning and are top of the table with two points to spare.

You won't get past this Defence

Darren Bent kept up his impressive record of having scored against the supposed top four this season. Bent's goals against Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and most recently Arsenal are part of the reason why he was recalled back into the England squad and has already hit nine goals this season.

He may have been the match winner versus the Gunners, but it is the whole team which should be congratulated for putting in a tremendous performance. Every player involved will still probably be aching now after that game, having worked so hard against an Arsenal team who have some amazing players that move around with such pace and zip.

The central midfield trio of captain Lorik Cana, Kieran Richardson and Jordan Henderson battled so strongly in the middle of the park, which is where manager Steve Bruce said afterwards is where the game was won. He was spot on, they challenged for everything and gave their opposition no time on the ball, in particular the Spanish maestro Cesc Fabregas was very quiet by his standards.

Don't think though that Arsenal just had an off day, they had the majority of possession and showed their quality with their touch and passing. But they lacked a killer ball and struggled to get past a formidable Sunderland defence.

Paulo Da Silva was incredible, he was so composed and read the game magnificently, always blocking the attempted through ball or shrugging the forwards out of the way. Whilst his partner John Mensah was strong, quick and athletic, proving why Lyon paid a reported £9million for him only few seasons ago and I am extremely interested to see how he fares over the next few months when fully fit after a run in the team.

The Black Cats were effective in the counter attack, Andy Reid was intelligent with his distribution and the pace of Richardson and Bent kept the Arsenal back line on their toes. From this approach two fantastic chances were created for Steed Malbranque, twice the ex-Spurs and Fulham player failed to hit the target.

The Gunners did have their moments but only Tomas Rosicky really tested keeper Marton Fulop and so they were made to pay when Bent reacted quickest to the rebound off Frazier Campbell from a left wing corner.

Sunderland are the first team this season that Arsenal have failed to score against, it was fully deserved and when you consider the teams Arsenal have played so far, it is a tremendous achievement.

Preston Preview

At the moment, matters are fairly quiet at Newcastle United, but I think that may be due to the international break, rather than Mike Ashley and Co making any more bizarre decisions on the future of the club.

United travel to Preston North End for a Monday night clash live on Sky looking to regain their lead at the top of the Championship (West Brom are 1st after beating Bristol City 4-1).

Deepdale is a difficult place to go, as Preston led by manager Alan Irvine have been there or there abouts in challenging near the top of the table for the past few seasons, and I expect them to be doing so again this year.

The Lancashire club have a strong ex-Sunderland contingent within their ranks including Stephen Elliot, Ross Wallace, Neill Collins, Darren Carter and Chris Brown, all of which who will be looking to impress against their old rivals.

Preston have recently signed midfielder Michael Tonge from Stoke City and he is expected to go straight into the squad alongside Richard Chaplow who has recovered from a minor injury. However Barry Nicholson is expected to miss out.

Newcastle look set to welcome back Argentine winger Jonas Gutierrez who came off two weeks ago against Peterborough with an injury. But this fixture comes too soon for Joey Barton and Shola Ameobi whilst Zurab Khizanishvili serves the last of his three-game suspension.

It is still unknown whether new signing Fabrice Pancrate has gained clearance in time to line up against North End, but Andy Carroll who featured for England u21's through the week will return to the club where he spent time on loan and made his league debut.

Griggsy's score prediction.....2-1 to Newcastle.

Arsenal Preview

After the recent break in fixtures due to the international games, it is back to business on Saturday when Sunderland welcome Arsenal to the Stadium Of Light.

I have recently noticed how many players and staff at the SoL grew up as Arsenal fans or are very fond of the club. First off Niall Quinn our beloved chairman has a soft spot for the Londoners after he spent a number of years there learning his trade(Quinn actually scored on his first team debut against Liverpool, who had a central defensive pairing of Mark Lawrenson and Alan Hansen, lets hope the two of them are praising disco pants again after witnessing us gain three points from the couch of motd!).

Next up is manager Steve Bruce who has constantly stated his admiration for Arsenal's style of play and in particular Arsene Wenger. Brucie owes his French counterpart, after Wenger granted him three loan signings of Fabrice Muamba, Nicklas Bendtner and Sebastian Larsson when he was in charge of Birmingham City and they played a huge part in gaining promotion to the Premier League(behind ourselves of course).

Striker Darren Bent who returns from his run out for England last week, was a boyhood Arsenal fan along with defender Nyron 'Nuggsy' Nosworthy, but I am sure that will not stop them in trying to gain all three points for the people who pay their wages.

The Black Cats welcome back captain Lorik Cana, who missed the last game through suspension, he was the first PL player to be booked five times....shock. However defender Michael Turner misses out because he is another player who's style encouraged the referee to brandish yellow cards (although one was given as a Hull player). Lee Cattermole is still missing through injury and Craig Gordon is not available since breaking his arm in a collision with Spurs striker Jermain Defoe.

Good news though, is that Bolo Zenden and John Mensah are ready to return after missing the past few weeks through injury and left back George McCartney should shake off a minor knock.

So it is up to Bruce, who he decides to play as Sunderland look to get their first victory since the beach ball blast over Liverpool around a month ago.

Arsenal sit comfortably in second place, level with Manchester United and five points behind leaders Chelsea, but with a game in hand. The Gunners have been in impressive form again this season, free flowing and scoring plenty of goals. They have only lost twice in the league. Yet their is hope for the red and white faithful as the mackems held them to a draw last time they visited, whilst Arsenal also have a Champions League game on Tuesday with an ever extending injury list.

Kieran Gibbs and Robin Van Persie were injured recently playing for their countries. Defenders Gael Clichy and Johan Djourou are already missing as well as Theo Walcott, Abou Diaby and Jack Wilshere, whereas Andrey Arshavin is a doubt.

Denilson, Lukasz Fabianski, Carlos Vela and Armand Traore should all make the squad to travel up north together with striker Eduardo who has just signed a long term contract to remain at the Emirates stadium.

Courtesy of your friendly neighbourhood Spiderman

Spiderman finally opened his account in a black and white shirt, but failed to live up to his superhero status and soon departed on another adventure.

I'm talking about Newcastle winger Jonas Gutierrez who scored his first goal for the club against Peterborough. However instead of pleasing the crowd and revealing his famous celebration of wearing a Spiderman mask, he had to leave the pitch after picking up a knock. The injury ruled Gutierrez out of Argentina's friendly with Spain, but he was given permission by boss Chris Hugton to jet off and support his international colleagues, one of which was United defender Fabricio Coloccini.

Back to his club, Gutierrez set the ball rolling against the Posh with a silky and smooth run from the half way line, beating several defenders before curling in with a right foot shot.

Local lad Andy Carroll doubled the lead with a powerful header from a left wing corner. Before right back Danny Simpson, on loan from Manchester United, grabbed his first for the North East club when he cut inside and drove a left footed shot into the top corner.

Peterborough gained a consolation when Dean Keates knocked the ball past Steve Harper from close range, but Newcastle were never really in trouble and won their third game in a row to stay top of the Championship.

Newcastle boss Chris Hughton:
"We have got a totally-focused group of players who, from minute one, saw an opportunity for us to stay on top of the division, and very much took that opportunity.

"We have got used to getting on with the job. There are things we can't affect, but I am very lucky that I have got a group of players who are focused on one thing, and that's on staying where we are at the right end of the table with the ultimate aim of getting promotion.

"We are focused enough and it certainly hasn't taken anything away from the victory."

(quotes taken from bbc sport)

Newcastle United squad

Sunderland AFC squad

No Friend of Bruce's

Steve Bruce feels that his team need to be more ruthless in front of goal and make the most of their chances. But he also believes that Saturday's referee Kevin Friend should have been more ruthless and sent off Tottenham keeper Heurelho Gomes when he gave away a penalty after sending Darren Bent tumbling to the ground.

Video replays may suggest that Bent was already going over before Gomes touched him, however I do feel that it was a penalty as there was contact. Plus the referee failed to give an even more blatant penalty when a similar occurrence had happened earlier in the game, so perhaps had this in mind.

I don't agree with Bruce though about the sending off. Forgive me as I am not 100% clear on the laws of the game, as many people are, but I think a red card for Gomes would have been harsh, it was not a malicious challenge and their was another defender close-by. I feel that the yellow card shown and the penalty were sufficient enough. Unfortunately Gomes saved from Bent and we missed the opportunity to draw level at 1-1. With Spurs midfielder Tom Huddlestone then doubling the lead at the Lane with a tremendous drive from just outside the area.

Huddlestone has been called up to the England side to play Brazil next week, along with our very own Darren Bent, finally. Isn't it funny that at the start of the season Bent was banging them in left, right and centre but was never re-called, he then goes and misses a pen and hasn't scored in the previous three games but is included.

Note to Michael Owen, miss an important penalty at the next opportunity and you will qualify for Mr Capello's squad.

Sunderland were said to be the more dominant side over Spurs, but just did not make it count. Ever since the beach ball, nothing seems to really be going for us, but with the international break, Bruce now has two weeks to put things right and prepare his side for our next game, at home to Arsenal.

Peterborough preview

Sitting top of the league, Newcastle welcome Peterborough United to the newly-named, sportsdirect@ St James' Park, hoping they can gain another three points to firmly establish a lead in the Championship table.

Toon manager Chris Hughton looks set to welcome back defender Steven Taylor who has been out injured for a number of weeks with a hamstring injury. It proves a timely boost with Zurab Khizanishvili unavailable due to suspension.

Although after Newcastle's solid display in Sheffield on Monday night, they may not need Taylor so urgently. Young defender Tamas Kadar looked very comfortable alongside Argentine centre-back Fabricio Coloccini, the pair put in a strong performance against a physical Sheff Utd team. And I can't see Peterborough casing their black and white opposition too many problems, especially as they have only scored five goals away from home so far this season.

Shola Ameobi and Joey Barton are still long term absentee's for the magpies, whilst the Posh are missing striker Craig Mackail-Smith.

These two teams have already played each other once before this season, Darren Ferguson's Peterborough side were victorious with a 2-0 scoreline in the Carling Cup, but with Newcastle looking settled in the league with a steady line-up they will be favourites to win.

Toon fans get to the ground early, (no not in protest to the re branding of the stadium) it is to see Newcastle midfielder Kevin Nolan be presented with the Player of the Month award for October.

Spurs Preview

Sunderland travel to White Hart Lane today looking for their first away victory since the opening day win over Bolton. Manager Steve Bruce has admitted that his team need to address their form away from home, if they are to progress to that 'next level'.

One man who will be determined to put that right for the Black Cats is striker Darren Bent, who has hit eight league goals this season and is the top scoring Englishman in the Premier League. Bent signed for Sunderland from Tottenham Hotspur over the summer, after his infamous post on Twitter criticising Spurs chairman Daniel Levy forced the transfer.

But it will be the North London boss Harry Redknapp who Bent will really want to get one over. The Sunderland number 11 was never given a fair chance at Tottenham and played a bit part role behind other strikers, Dimitar Berbatov, Robbie Keane and Jermain Defoe amongst others. Though it was comments made by Redknapp which were the final blow and that really dinted Bent's confidence, after their game against Portsmouth when Bent missed a very good chance, Redknapp turned to his coaching staff and said, "How the f***ing hell did he miss that?" then later stated, "My missus could have scored that."

According to recent reports, Bent claimed that he does not see this game about him, which many could understand if you watch him week in, week out, where he always works hard for the team, the goals just come because of his fantastic ability.

There are also a number of other players involved today who have past Spurs connections. Frazier Campbell was on loan their last season, whilst Andy Reid, Marton Fulop and Steed Malbranque have all played their trade at some point in the Capital.

Sunderland will be missing a number of key players this afternoon. Kenwyne Jones is suspended after his push on Herita Ilunga last week against West Ham, as is captain Lorik Cana who has a one match suspension since collecting five yellow cards. Lee Cattermole is still out for a couple more weeks. Bolo Zenden and John Mensah are carrying minor knocks and are likely to miss out.

Keep a look out for Tottenham's David Bentley who has been linked with a move North for as long as I can remember, he is set to play if winger Aaron Lennon does not recover in time.

Finally on another note, can I say well done and good luck to ex-safc striker Kevin Kyle who has gained another call up to the Scotland squad, he always worked very hard as a Sunderland striker and deserves his chance, hopefully he gets it this time.

sportsdirect.com@St James' Park Stadium

Can owner Mike Ashley make any more of a mockery of Newcastle United?

Just as things are starting to settle on the pitch, with the appointment of Chris Hughton on a full-time basis bringing some stability to the team. As the players look focused and steady at the top of the Championship. Mr Ashley makes another decision which destroys another part of this fallen giant.

After recently taking the club off the market, again. Mike Ashley's latest announcement has angered the Toon Army further when he decided to change the name of St. James' Park. Many fans believe that the name of the stadium is a historic part of the club, a name which people from all over the world recognise and associate with Newcastle United. Yet Ashley has used this as a marketing opportunity by simply adding his other companies name to the stadium, just for an extra bit of publicity.

This may actually work in the club's favour, if Ashley's other business 'Sports Direct', the cheap sportswear retailer, increases their revenue, then he may decide on investing that money back into the club. Any extra cash should surely be given to Hughton to spend on players who could help push United to promotion.

But this is Mike Ashley we are talking about. Does he really have the club's future in his best interests? Or is he really just that greedy and want to make more money?

Whoever has future naming rights for the club should seriously consider naming a stand in tribute to the late, great Sir Bobby Robson.

Steve Bruce similar in character to Sir Bobby Robson?

I recently read an article on the Daily Mirror's website wrote by North East reporter Simon bird, which compared current Sunderland manager Steve Bruce to ex-Newcastle legend, Sir Bobby Robson with the same style of management.

The article acknowledges the similar personalities the two North East managers share. Bruce like Sir Bobby has a warmth to his persona, two very polite men with fantastic leadership qualities, the ability to act as a comforting father, or the tough drill master. Perhaps it is their North East roots which makes them stand out from other managers and what has helped develop their shared passion for football.

When I worked on a placement at the Newcastle Evening Chronicle earlier this summer, many other journalists that I spoke to were delighted that Bruce had been given the managers job, firstly as he achieved considerable success in recent years and was an excellent choice. But also because Bruce is known to be media friendly, he is an honest man who states things as he sees them, not frightened to praise or criticise in public, which is why many people feel as though they can trust and believe in his plans.

This honesty and charm is what made the footballing world fall in love and be deeply saddened with the death of Sir Bobby Robson. Sir Bobby worked hard and expected the same of his players and if he felt you weren't doing so, you would soon find out!

Have a read and let me know your thoughts.
Thanks Mark

Blowing Bubbles or Causing Trouble

Are West Ham now bitter towards Sunderland?

After the Black Cats put in a tremendous second half performance against the Hammers over the past weekend to gain a point, recent events would suggest that West Ham, in particular Steve Clarke are trying to disguise that disappointment, as really they should have held on to win that game.

I say this after Clarke has replied to Steve Bruce's post match interview with a load of rubbish. After the match the Sunderland manager questioned the West Ham defender Herita Ilunga, when he fell to the ground dramatically following a push by Kenwyne Jones. Bruce said "'why does he need to roll around like that?"

He then referred to some players as pansies and play acting in order to influence the referee. I agree with this, too many times, too many players go over easily and look to get the opposition into trouble. Diving and rolling around after a challenge is not acceptable. A lot of players (and I include past and present Sunderland players) need to learn what sportsmanship is.

However these sort of problems will carry on to occur if players think that they can get away with it and gain their team an advantage, as officials, fans, players and managers need to stand up and address the situation.

Steve Clarke has done the complete opposite by protecting Ilunga insisting that there was no over reaction, whilst questioning Bruce's comments.

Clarke said "I find it incredible that the player who was the victim is the person that everybody is talking about. You have to correct me, tell me what Ilunga did wrong? Someone pushed him in the face, he's just recently recovered from a triple fracture to the jaw, maybe he thought there was a punch coming."

"I find it incredible that we're sitting here speaking about our player who was the victim, this is wrong. It's completely wrong. He's a big boy Kenwyne Jones, he's a very big boy. He had to look after himself."

"I find it incredible that he (Bruce) gets so much time, so much airtime if he wants to speak about people from the opposition."

I agree that Jones should have been sent off and I agree with Bruce. But perhaps Steve Clarke and West Ham are just bitter towards the mackems, after it was revealed today that former Hammers boss Alan Curbishley won his case against the former club for constructive dismissal, remember that occurred when the club sold defenders Anton Ferdinand and George McCartney without his permission to of course Sunderland AFC.


Quotes taken from www.skysports.com

Key Clash

Newcastle United claimed all three points at Bramall Lane thanks to a bit of luck, when Ryan Taylor's shot took a wicked deflection of Sheffield United defender Chris Morgan to find its way to the back of the net.

But it is young striker Andy Carroll who is getting most of the praise after the game for his strong and determined performance against Morgan, one of the hard men of the beautiful game.

The Blades captain has a mixed response from football fans all over the country, some refer to Morgan as an old school centre-back who plays to his strengths, he is strong, committed and tough in the tackle as he doesn't mind getting dirty. Which is what majority of people see him as, a dirty defender who is physical in an extreme way, many think that he basically just kicks people. Which is why he holds the record for being sent off the most times as a Shef Utd player!

However last night Carroll stood up to him and treated the defender to some of his own medicine, as he hassled and hurried him, mixing it up with his own physical presence. The lad from Gateshead almost scored a deserved goal, when he out jumped and muscled his way between three Sheffield defenders, only for his header to hit the post.

Late in the game that miss could have proved costly as the Yorkshire club pushed for an equaliser. Steve Harper was having none of that, he produced three fantastic saves to keep his clean sheet. He was adamant that he would not concede, perhaps he wanted to impress his mate Shay Given who was in the stands watching after years of being in the opposite position with Harps watching on.

Blades Preview

Newcastle have a tough fixture against Sheffield United tonight, an away game at Bramall Lane is always physical and Newcastle will have to match their oppositions efforts if they are to gain anything from the game.

The Toon could return to the top of the Championship tonight with a victory, whilst a draw would put them level on points with West Brom, who have a higher goal difference after the Albion demolished Watford 5-0 over the weekend.

Tonight's game is also the first for Chris Hughton as full-time manager, after owner Mike Ashley gave him the permanent position because he failed to sell the club. Hughton has done remarkably well so far this season as caretaker, he has been able to unite his players and get them performing as a team.

Many people would have loved for Alan Shearer to take over as manager at the start of the season, however after months of speculation it never occurred and so Hughton went on quietly to do a dignified job. Whether the ex-Spurs coach has the ability to lead Newcastle to promotion is on most people's minds, but he is now responsible for results, starting with tonight.

The Blades are faltering at the bottom half of the table but with Newcastle's recent poor away form, they will fancy their chances, so it is shaping up to be an interesting encounter on Sky.
What do you think the result will be?

Character

To be a successful football team, one attribute which is needed is character!

Most professional players have fantastic technical ability, they can pass, shoot, dribble and tackle. But it is their character which determines how great a player or team they are. How they react to a setback or defeat.

Sunderland simply did not perform well against Birmingham over a week ago, then they were knocked out of the cup as they were unable to take their chances against Villa and it looked as though it would be a disappointing end when West Ham took a surprising 2-0 lead at the Stadium of Light. Even though Sunderland pulled a goal back in quick response with an exquisite Andy Reid free kick, many people would have questioned whether the Black Cats could gain anything from the game as they were reduced to 10 men, Kenwyne Jones being sent off for pushing Herita Ilunga.

However under Steve Bruce, Sunderland have a bit more character within their team, squad and club, professionals who won't stop driving forward and are willing to take risks to achieve success. It was a different sort of character under Roy Keane a few seasons ago, players would run as they were fearful of Keane, whilst under Ricky Sbragia, the players were individuals and once things went slightly wrong they could not cope with the pressure,simply giving up. Bruce has unified his squad by reducing the numbers and bringing in the right sort of characters. He expects a lot from his players, he drives them on to produce their best, both for themselves and for each other as a team and this is exemplified on the pitch by the captain Lorik Cana. He gave the West Ham midfield very little time on the ball, chasing them all over the pitch and snapping in to tackles to make up for being a man short, (this whilst having been booked early in the first half).

Sunderland showed their character and produced a brilliant second half performance, playing with a really high tempo with lots of movement meant plenty of chances were created. The equaliser came through Kieran Richardson tapping to earn his side a point. Many people felt as though three points were deserved, but it wasn't to be and West Ham did have a number of opportunities to win the game, so Sunderland fans should be pleased with a point in the circumstances and the knowledge that Steve Bruce's red and white army have character.