April 2009 Archives
DAVID HEALY is ready to prove he has a future on Wearside - by helping Sunderland stay in the Premier Lague.
The Northern Ireland international frontman has been a bit-part player in his first season with the Black Cats.
However, he is desperate for a chance to shine in the final four games of the season as the club battle against the drop.
Healy has recovered from a groin problem which sidelined him two weeks ago and made his return to action in the 3-0 defeat at West Brom last weekend - albeit only as a late sub at The Hawthorns.
RICKY Sbragia has told his team to follow Danny Collins' tenacious example as they go in search of Premier League redemption against Everton this weekend.
Sunderland's defeat against West Brom plunged the team back into the thick of a relegation battle alongside North East rivals Newcastle United and Middlesbrough.
But it was the manner of the performance as much as the result which caused anger and anxiety in the Black Cats' ranks.
CARLOS EDWARDS knows Sunderland have a lot of making up to do this weekend after letting down the fans and boss Ricky Sbragia at West Brom.
The Black Cats turned in arguably their worst performance of the season as they crashed 3-0 against the bottom-of-the-table Baggies on Saturday, which saw them booed off by the 3,000 fans who made the trip to The Hawthorns.
Sbragia was also furious with his players for flopping so badly just a week after they had given their survival hopes a major boost by beating fellow-strugglers Hull City.
WHEN Sunderland's players trooped off the Hawthorns pitch on Saturday, having failed to acknowledge a sizeable travelling support, the accusation arose that they did not care about having lost to West Brom.
Even in humiliating defeat, it suggested they think themselves already safe from relegation from the Premier League, and immune to the pain and vulnerability currently being shared by their fans. Not so, says Andy Reid.
Numb to it maybe, such was the devastation he and his team-mates felt come 5pm, but not immune.
RICKY SBRAGIA will make his players sit through a video nasty in a bid to get Sunderland's dismal defeat at West Brom out of their system.
The Black Cats crashed 3-0 against the Premier League's basement side at the weekend - missing a golden chance to move another step away from the relegation zone and towards safety.
And boss Sbragia will make his team watch the lowlights of the game to try to avoid a repeat of the same mistakes in the final four games of the season, with Everton next up at the Stadium of Light on Sunday.
NIALL Quinn says Sunderland's players and management face a week of "soul searching" as he warned them they must improve - or face the wrath of the Wearside public once again.
Despite being left at the "low ebb" of his Sunderland tenure after the West Brom defeat, Black Cats chairman Quinn has again thrown his support behind Ricky Sbragia, and backed the players to extricate themselves from relegation trouble.
But he has warned that effort and commitment are the minimum requirement of the Sunderland fans, and anything less will draw criticism from them.
MARTON FULOP admits he was baffled by Sunderland's no-show at West Brom - but insists the Black Cats will still win their battle against the drop.
Sunderland suffered their fifth defeat in sixth games as they went down 3-0 against bottom-of-the-table West Brom at The Hawthorns.
Even more worrying for Sunderland supporters was the fact their side turned in such a poor performance after two good displays against Manchester United and Hull in their previous two games.
ROY Keane's relationship with former employers Sunderland has hit a new low after it emerged that he is involved in a row over a bonus he believes should be paid to him if the club stay in the Premier League this season.
It was reported in Ireland over the weekend that Keane is suing Sunderland over an unpaid bonus relating to his time at the club. The Journal understands that Keane's advisors believe he is entitled to payment if Sunderland stay in the Premier League - a claim that the Black Cats will vigorously contest.
Keane resigned in early December, just four months into the season and with his expensively assembled squad 18th after a run of five defeats in six games.
TEEMU TAINIO is hoping his injury frustrations are finally behind him and he can help Sunderland climb out of danger.
The Finnish midfielder has missed large chunks of his first season on Wearside to injuries, with a knee problem keeping him out for the last couple of months.
ROY Keane has claimed that he quit Sunderland because a promise not to meddle in team affairs was broken.
Keane took his first job since leaving the Black Cats yesterday, accepting the challenge of leading Championship side Ipswich Town into the Premier League. He has signed a two-year contract at Portman Road, where he will be joined by former Black Cats number two Tony Loughlin.
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