The day after Rotherham : SAFC Blog - following Sunderland AFC

The most positive of positive evenings….

Whilst we played well for 70 minutes vs Norwich, ultimately it was a negative outcome. The swift appointment of Mowbray was really encouraging, that said we still really needed a boost last night in the shape of 3 points?

So many positives…..

3 points, 3 good goals and a clean sheet
Everyone played well, Cirkin gets better each game, Bathh immense, Simms looks like he needs a goal, but I would really struggle to take any negatives from the game.
O’Nien and Gooch have been criticised plenty over recent seasons, both are playing great
Let’s remember Rotherham are no mugs, they have a decent manager, they were the best team in L1 last season, they went into last night unbeaten this season.

THE NORTH RIDING MESSI ⚽️

At the time I felt £3 million was top dollar for Clarke, I fancied Roberts more than I did Clarke. I was wrong, he is absolutely class, defenders are terrified by him, his goal was sublime.

The HIGHLAND HAALAND 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿⚽️🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

He is just fantastic, the complete striker, hopefully it’s with us, but this lad is *Premiership quality 100%*

Tony Mowbray….

Normally incoming managers, (especially early season), are entering a situation where the wheels are off, this is not the case with us. His record is decent, without going all Souness, **he’s just a really good mans man**. It was the feel that he is *exactly what we need,* and in equal measure we are *exactly what he needs.*

Night matches at this time of year can be tricky wardrobe wise, it was probably 9° colder in the 90th minute than it was the 1st minute. Solid start for the big man, played it safe with navy knitwear and pale blue shirt combo, socks a good midpoint between the 2 shades of blue on offer.

But…..

Words fail me, realistically this needs addressing ASAP

Transfer Window…..

Ideally need 3 more in if possible? I’m not a fan of going back, but Mannone would be great, not to play particularly, more so to have about the place. Patterson is a great keeper who should have a great career, last season his youthful, fearless exuberance saw him right, since that late QPR goal he looks a bit hesitant to me and his previously faultless distribution is a bit off? Keepers work in small, almost insular groups at clubs, Mannone coming in could be perfect for Patterson? Anyway, let’s see what happens tonight with transfers and I’ll write something tomorrow if there’s anything worth writing about.

Last Night….

We all invest a lot in SAFC, whether it be time, emotions, money, last night was brilliant
We were very, very good on the pitch
Away from the 90 minutes, just great times with great people, (I love you Matthew❤️)
On Saturday morning I woke up dreaming of finishing 14th, but things feel a lot better now.
No idea where this season will take us, but it’s been mostly shite for 12 years, this could be very, very good – there’s more on the pitch to excite than there’s been for years
If you think I write shite, you should hear the shite my travel companions spout
Does anyone have an ice cream van I can borrow?