Roker Rapport

Our Gav and Chris got together as usual to look over all the action from the game at the weekend, just they weren't quite over that late equaliser that denied us all three points against a pretty decent Bristol City side...What's the crack? Bit of a kick to the bollocks that wasn't it? We may have come away slightly disappointed, but was that a fair result? HE SCORES WHEN HE WANTS; Despite not having the best of games Jack 'Maverick' Clarke scored another absolute beauty, and for that reason alone he's become quite impossible to drop. What did we make of the performance overall? More positives to take away from that result than negatives? Some fair (but not overly harsh) criticism of young Trai Hume's decision making that resulted in the last minute penalty; You just don't give the ref that decision to make lad.Managing the minutes; Mowbray seems to be doing a decent job of it so far, but are we actually resting anyone really? Should the likes of O'Nien start against Rotherham tomorrow? Is Mogga expecting a m

Our Gav Henderson and Martin Wanless sat down this morning to drool over the Sunlun performance against QPR last night, and generally get all worked up over just how f***ing mint we are! What's the crack? Poor Will Ferrell. Heard he's gone the way of the ancient samurai, who when dishonoured, would hang themselves from a fluorescent light. How class are we man? So are the lads still buzzing from last night? Yes they are… Seriously how good are we? LUKE 'MR SUNDERLAND' O'NIEN - You know what lads and lasses, he might just be a midfielder after all. We are f***ing mint man. JACK THE LAD - You can write him off, you can dismiss him, and you can take him on loan and do f*** all with him (like our opponents) but he showed his class yet again with a glorious brace against his former side. Ah man we're just too good. Tony Mowbray is a tactical genius - Aye we're serious he is. ON OUR WAYYYY ON OUR WAY PATTO LAD - What a penalty save that was, the lads heap praise on our y

Our Chris and Phil sat down to react to taking yet another three points off Reading this season, after Paddy Roberts and the Lads finally broke through against what many have described as one of the worst footballing sides to have visited the Stadium of Light in years, as well as quickly looking ahead to our visit to QPR on Tuesday night! What's the crack? Well that was certainly something from our opponents wasn't it...Can Ince be blamed for setting them up like that? Was it more on us to break them down?The best form of defence is a tash; the rise (and rise) of Trai Hume! Some good old Patrick Roberts magic; what did the lads make of that goal and his performance overall? Just how good is Dan Ballard? Are the Reading forwards a great example of why getting someone in for the sake of it isn't always a great idea? Uncle Tony's Supersubs; following that slog of a first half the lads needed a bit more bite and so the gaffer once again deployed his 'hoy the kitchen sink at them' tac

Our Gav and Chris got together far, far too late yesterday to react to our exit from the FA Cup at the hands of Fulham, forget what they're saying (much to one another's amusement) and look ahead to Sunderland's return to league action against Reading at the Stadium of Light tomorrow! What's the crack? What did the lads make of our performance on Wednesday night? How much can we learn from this game? Do we think the younger Lads benefit more from this sort of experience? Could we have done better for their goals - and more importantly - can the lads actually remember them? A less complicated Clarke; a wonderful goal from Jack the lad, but can we see more of that from him from now on? VAMOS JEWI; Our Costa Rican wonderkid struck against our PL opponents for another goal he should remember fondly, so can he kick on from here or will we remain patient and use him sparingly? Luke O'Nien will find a way back on the pitch at all costs, so where do the lads think he'll be slotted i

Though it isn't mentioned on the podcast, we are aware of the shocking news regarding Chris Collier over the weekend. Our sincere condolences go out to his family and friends, and our thoughts go out especially to those who loved him most. Rest easy lad. - Our Gav and Phil got together earlier today to react to Sunderland's draw with Millwall on Saturday, give their thoughts on Speakman's recent appearance on the club podcast about the January transfer business, and look ahead to the Lads facing Fulham midweek in the FA Cup fourth round replay at the Stadium of Light! What's the crack? What did Gav and Phil make of the performance against Millwall? Do the younger lads learn more against physical and aggressive sides like Millwall than some others? Is our January business overall a show of faith in the process and the players themselves? Are we too light up top to compete or do the lads see us still in with a shot of the top six this season? Is it really possible to replace R

Our Gav sat down with our old friend Tom White - just before he started his Soccer Sunday presenting duties yesterday - to react to Sunderland's draw against Fulham in the FA Cup and look over SAFC's transfer business this window ahead of deadline day! What's the crack? So what did the lads make of Saturday's performance - and the praise heaped upon the club, its manager and players following the game? The Ross Stewart situation - Looks like he's out for the season but no confirmation as yet, so should we be looking to immediately replace him? Getting Riggy with it - That was something else wasn't it? What a player he looks to be…What does Tom make of the work the Sunlun recruitment team have done so far? What areas does he think need strengthening more than others? What do we make of the signings of Gelhardt, Lihadji, and the possibility of Joe Anderson from Everton? Are we looking at a busy transfer deadline day? Just how impressive and talented is this squad of players?&n

Gav and Chris sat down to attempt to preview our upcoming FA Cup fixture with Fulham at Craven Cottage, but halfway through they went off on a bit of a tangent about how much they love the club, the arrival of Pierre Ekwah, the highly likely (may be confirmed by the time you listen) SAFC signing of Leeds youngster Joe Gelhardt, our links with Isaac Lihadji, a new link with Nottingham Forest youngster Ateef Konaté and then spend a good half hour answering/debating listener questions! What's the crack?Gav is looking forward to Fulham, Chris is not looking forward to Fulham. Aye.Do we think this is a free hit for both sides or is it actually far more important to both than they would perhaps admit?What sort of side is Tony Mowbray likely to put out, and will its strength be a sign of how seriously he's taking the competition?Is this one of the most exciting transfer windows in recent Sunderland memory? Is Kyril shipping French lads in by the dozen? Do we care if we know who any of these lads are?Welcome Pierre E

Phil, Gav and Chris sat down late Sunday night to look back over a lovely ‘not a derby’ day as we took all three points from Boro at the Stadium of Light! What’s the crack? Did Boro bother turning up? Did we notice them at all? Is this the best style of football the lads have witnessed at Sunderland in their lifetime? THE ROSSCO REBOUND - The Loch Ness Drogba is making a habit of that… AMAD LAD STRIKES AGAIN - We know we can’t keep him but we really would love to keep him, so can we keep him a little bit longer? The curious case of Trai Hume’s moustache; why does it exist? If he shaves it off will he lose his footballing ability? Should we just all continue to politely ignore it? Dan Neil has been absolutely brilliant for us lately, is he getting enough credit for the job he’s doing? Michut la magie - though he’s divided opinion a bit with his performance the young lad is looking better each time he steps onto the pitch; so what did the lads make of him stepping in for

Gav and Chris recorded just now (19/01/23) talking about everything SAFC related; almost reviewing the Swansea defeat, attempting to preview the almost a derby fixture against Boro this coming Sunday, and almost declaring transfer rumours and news recently emerged as legitimate and/or probable! Just not exclusive. What’s the crack? The Swansea game was a bit shite after the red card wasn’t it; how do the lads feel about it all now, and what did they make of the Luke O’Nien apology posted on his social media following the match? ARGH TRANSFERS; No not yet, there’s a referee to insult...It’s not a derby is it? The debate people definitely don’t care about resurfaces as Sunderland prepares to face that other side in the North East that isn’t Newcastle to decide once and for all who cares more about it being a derby or not in the first place.The lads discuss “just another game” and how former Boro lad Mogga will approach it all, despite it being just another game.TRANSFER TALK? Aye there’s been murmurs

Sorry about the delay lads and lasses, bit of a situation developed, but Pod was kept intact for the mag craic and more!Gav and Chris got together shortly after the match to get all hot and sweaty lusting over replays of Luke O'Nien's late winner over Shrewsbury in the cup, as well as Sunderland finally scoring from a corner! What's the crack? Gav and Chris spend a good while debating the finer details of that performance; who stood out, what went wrong in the first half, was that Roberts penalty shout a penalty or not? Young Master Rigg; Breaking the record for the youngest ever outfield player to play for Sunderland isn't for everyone… Trai Hume gets yet more love; he's just class isn't he? Rossco comes on to save our blushes; The comeback; If you want to come from a goal down away at Shrewsbury who of all people do you want to drive the winner home? LUKE O'NIEN WE LOVE YOU - The lads go on (and on and on) about how much Mr Sunderland means to both them and the side. Enjoy. Do we think t

Our Gav was joined by our Chris Wynn last night after Sunderland’s draw with Blackpool on New Years Day 2023; chatting about our performance, the Ross Stewart saga, the departure of Ellis Simms - the wonders of Abdoullah Ba, Amad Diallo and Trai Hume - and the task facing Kristjaan Speakman, Stuart Harvey and Tony Mowbray as the January transfer window opens! What’s the crack?Welcome to 2023 lads and lasses; what did our Gav and Chris make of Sunderland’s draw away to Blackpool, and taking seven point out of a possible nine this festive period? After a sluggish first half performance - and the introduction of a certain Abdoullah Ba in the second half - the Lads really started to turn it on. How close were we to taking maximum points from the game? How fuming is Chris about their goal?Ross Stewart; another goal from the big yin to get us the draw - after a quite brilliant bit of play from Trai Hume - which takes him to 9 goals in just 11 appearances this season... what are the lad’s thoughts on the ongoing con

Our Gavin Henderson and Martin Wanless sat down last night to react to an emphatic Sunderland win over an extremely shite Wigan side - as well as to touch on our win over Blackburn on Boxing Day - and to try work out if we can somehow convince Man Utd that young Amad isn't all that great anyway…What's the crack? Why are the lads ignoring the fact their producer has a banging headache? Let's all laugh at Wigan and our wonderful old friend James McClean; Is Amad better than Peter Beagrie? That's a reference for your parents if you're under a certain age..How did the lads rate our performance overall? How good is this side? Some brilliant displays from lads like Michut, Ba and Trai Hume to give Mogga something to consider; How do we get Paddy Roberts and Amad on the pitch together more often? Was that Dan Neil's best game for us this season? Your three word reviews, an update on the SCSK fundraiser which ends tomorrow night as the clock strikes 12 (but don't let that stop you d

Not too many sleeps until Blackburn at home/Christmas so our Gavin Henderson and Craig Chapman got together to chat all things Sunderland AFC - from our 1-1 draw away at Hull on Saturday to the Ross Stewart contract situation, as well as looking at where we are and where we might want to go in the Championship this season! What’s the crack? It’s really nice to have the Loch Ness Drogba back in time for Christmas isn’t it? Only took a few minutes for him to remind us what we’ve been missing without him. How did the lads rate the performances against Hull on Saturday? Could Mowbray do with being a little more ruthless with his team selections and a touch more timely with his subs? Two in, two out - The lads discuss the impact of losing a Danny Batth for a Dan Ballard and the loss of Embleton to what seems to be a very bad injury that could sideline him for some time; Where do we stand as a club heading into the few fixtures before the January window opens - do we expect/want a coup

You may have seen Martin around of late chatting to people about his brilliant new book - On Days Like These - so our Chris Wynn managed to wrangle an interview with a man who has had his heart both broken and buoyed in pretty equal measure by Sunderland AFC; talking about his love of the club, his time as a player under Cloughie, his many achievements in the game - and his failures as he sees them - as well as a fair few thoughts on his time in charge of his boyhood club! What's the crack?Where do we begin? A ridiculous number of trophies and cups across decades in the game as a player and a manager - how did Martin come to support the Lads, and how much did Charlie Hurley have to do with it all? What are his earliest and fondest memories of following the Lads, and when Sunderland were knocked out of the Cup in '64, who was in more pain? A young Martin O'Neill or a gutted Sunlun captain?His first memories of visiting Roker Park as a player for Nottingham Forest; Martin's relationship with the

Our Phil West and Craig Chapman sat down - following the England win over Senegal of course aye - late Sunday night to quickly go over the events of Saturday afternoon, and to celebrate a pretty decent weekend overall! What's the crack? So Josh Kelly won the British light-middleweight belt - the Lads put three past Millwall at the Stadium of Light - our bairns battered Liverpool's bairns - the Lasses battered Coventry - Hendo and Pickers helped England to another World Cup victory… Aye it's not been a bad weekend for Sunlun overall.What did Phil and Craig make of the vital victory over the Lions on Saturday - a fairly ineffective first half performance was overshadowed by a thoroughly dominant second half from the Lads; AMAD LAD WE LOVE YOU - Ah man he's too good isn't he. Pritch got to stick the boot in for his beloved West Ham and made it absolutely clear that he does indeed hate Millwall, just lucky they don't care...Simms strikes again - a few people seem to be questioning his commitme

We're back - and it's all getting very busy at podcast HQ - as our Chris Wynn chats to the BBC's Karl Bates about Millwall's trip north to face the Lads in what will be a temporary reprieve from the World Cup for a few hours this Saturday!  What's the crack?  How long has Karl been covering Millwall for the BBC, and where do his football allegiances lie?In a Roker Rapport first we have a countdown champion on the pod - does Karl still have the teapot to prove it? How has Gary Rowett been getting on down at the Den, and did he welcome the World Cup break as much as Tony Mowbray did? RR are of course pleased to hear George Honeyman is rated 7/10 by Millwall journalists and fans…Who are the Lions best performers this season and are the fans slightly nervous about keeping hold of players like Zian Flemming? How should Mowbray expect Rowett to set up against us this Saturday - Karl gives us his likely lineup for the match; Are Millwall expecting to come away with three points, and are

Thought we’d have a bit of a look at how we got to this point in the season - so our Chris Wynn, Martin Wanless and Phil West jumped on at some insane hour over the weekend to give their thoughts on that Amad assist, that Amad goal, the return of Simms to full active duties, some more talk about Ross Stewart’s contract and looking beyond the World Cup break. What’s the crack?As the lads decided to record this immediately after the game to take full advantage of all that adrenaline - How does everyone feel after that result - especially the chest clutching finish that nearly killed half the fanbase?  AMAD LAD STRIKES AGAIN - Some talent isn’t he - with an assist for Ellis Simms first goal since returning from injury, to his magnificent strike in the second half… well it was his pitch on the night.PATTO - 22 years old and getting better all the time.A couple lads returned from injury and we’re all very pleased to see it; A nice long break; with the World Cup coming up and the Lads off for a nice

We went a bit quiet after the weekend and you would've had a match review but *a lot has happened since off the field* so our Chris Wynn and Craig 'The Artist formerly known as the Angryman' Chapman reconvened very late last night to have a chat about everything from the loss to Cardiff, some crowd trouble, the talk given by KLD to fans alongside Speakman and Jones, and looking ahead to Birmingham away! Aye.What's the crack? EVERYTHING MAN - The lads had no real instruction beyond 'cover everything' and that's exactly what they've done. That performance against Cardiff City at the weekend; wasn't great was it…The crowd performance against Cardiff City at the weekend; wasn't great was it…The talk at Pop Recs as Kyril Louis-Dreyfus, Kristjaan Speakman, Dave Jones and the rest had a chat with fans about their plans for the future, and the state of play as things stand; The Rossco Panic - Could the club avoid mayhem by maybe broadcasting these fan meetings to the wider base? Also… are we all ready to let go of t

Our Gav and Chris got together for the second time this week late last night to react to a vital SAFC away win against the Terriers down at a wet and windy John Smith's Stadium and to look ahead to our return home against Cardiff City this Saturday! What's the crack?  We won and we're all pretty happy about it, but conditions weren't great throughout the first half; what did the lads make of the first 45?  ALEX F***ING PRITCHARD; A great goal against his former side and an even better celebration

Our dynamic duo of Gav Henderson and Chris Wynn got together to discuss the amazing last minute 'hand of cod' equaliser from Alex Bass against the scu… nah only joking - this was recorded prior to that hilarious moment - instead we're covering the Lads trip to Luton at the weekend in the Championship, Embo's equaliser, and looking ahead to Huddersfield on Wednesday night! What's the crack? Luton is a terrible place, congratulations to the travelling support for making it back home.  So what did the lads make of Sunderland's performance against the might of Luton Town?  Was that a deserved equaliser after falling behind late in the first half?  BREAKING; The ref was a bit shite again… EMBOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO etcWith quite a few decent individual performances, the lads discuss the talent of the side and try work out who stood out above the rest; We have strikers again! Well.. we have one striker back at least - so what did we make of the return of Ellis Simms?