Great game of football by both sides and great atmosphere, hopefully the dawn of a new era where Bowyer can build on what he's started. Lyle Taylor is a proper centre forward, can't say enough good things about him. Morgan played really well and very lively. Felt sorry for Djiksteel thought he got badly isolated and I doubt he's played against anyone as good as McGeady before, a great experience for him and he had a good 2nd half. Was encouraged by Williams you can see the quality and the speed with which he gets the ball under control is from a level up from where we are. Thought we were going to nick it to be honest.
Get a few back from injuries and it could be a very exciting run in. Don't make anything from Bowyer saying he doesn't know what's going on, he's not going to announce the takeover is he? No one from the club is going to say anything on the record.
Il call you out but if you are the bloke in the west upper who called Lyle Taylor a “Primadonna” in the first half and pushed me when I whispered that word in his ear after we scored....have a lovely evening!
Some of our lot continue to baffle me! One of the most old school centre forwards we have had since Kermogant and he gets called a primadonna??!!
Sarr and Dijksteel were the two who stood out for me today! Dijksteel who is forever isolated is so so underrated! Sarr was the only player who attempted to go forward in a shocking first half!
Apologies for repeating most of the above but that sideway passing crap, negative possession, at home, when losing is totally frustrating and pointless. When we upped the anti from the end of the first half in to 2nd, Sunderland looked VERY WORRIED ! Second half was incredible, Taylor unplayable, plenty promising signs from JW. It is no surprise that Phillips lacks confidence having been overlooked when Steer was with us. We need another keeper. The marking for their goal was schoolboyesque.
Need to make the most of our opportunities.
Please now Roland, give us the best news ever....
Don't think Phillips was lacking confidence, his kicking isn't best but his throwing was top drawer.
He looked very uncomfortable and certainly didn't seem to be on the same wavelength of the defenders....
Good to see the usual positive feedback about Phillips.
I think a lot of players was taken in my the crowd and was a bit nervous to start with, I noticed a good 6 of our players when walking out looking around properly surprised.
Surprisingly only 4 points better than last season as it feels better than that. Parkinson can definitely feel hard done by for being sacked in 2010/11 with 47 points!
Higher expectations back then. Now we're used to this shit.
They ganged up on Dijksteel and that led to their early goal. We were lucky not to be at least two goals down at half-time. Second half, just wow! But we missed our chances: Kyle one on one, Pratley a free header and Grant missed several half chances. A draw was probably right but we did well for an injury wracked team. Nice atmosphere with the much bigger crowd. You know what to do Roland!
PWR. Entertaining game. Bit slow out of the blocks first half. Not the greatest of games from Fosu or Dijksteel. Bielik solid as ever and both Taylor and Grant (should’ve passed in front of goal at least twice) ran their legs off. Improved towards end of first half and much improved in second half. Nice cameo from Williams but not surprised he gets injured a lot if he runs at defenders full pelt! Big crowd - felt a bit like the old days. Thought we should’ve won it...
Can’t really add much more than has been said. Very frustrating 1st half. I was genuinely worried we’d fail to create a chance all afternoon based on the first 40 mins. I think the little late flurry in the first half was small but important. Whatever Bowyer did or said at HT definitely worked, and I was actually buzzing with that 2nd half performance. That’s what we’re all about and they really did well.
Taylor, yet again a stand out performance. I love this guy. He’s a proper forward. Gets so stuck in and holds the ball up so well. He and Grant are a great partnership. Grant was also lively and unlucky with his 2 chances in the 2nd half. He maybe should’ve buried his one on one at the end, but that one that bounced up in front of him across the goal was a little harder to bury. Think it took a touch from their defender as it came across the goal.
Morgan played very well. Was positive in terms of his passing and having a decent pop at the end of the first half. A word for Sarr as well. Thought he was superb today. There was a great tackle he did as they were breaking down the left in the second half, as well some really decent balls to Taylor. I sometimes wonder why we don’t go longer with Taylor in the team. He can handle long balls so well and with KAG playing off him, we’ve got a chance of anything loose.
Williams looked lively when he came on. He picked the ball up and ran with it. No disrespect to Reeves but he picks the ball up, circles back and then tries to play some clever ball with the outside of his boot. I think I’ve already seen more in Williams in those 20 minutes than I have with Reeves in the whole time he’s been here to know which one will do a better job, especially if he stays fit.
Also hats off to Solly. Another tough afternoon out of position, he grew into the game as it went on.
Dijksteel needs a rest. He’s not fully matured yet, has been looking leggy in the last few games and does get caught on the ball. It doesn’t help that our narrow diamond in front doesn’t afford him much cover. Onto that cover, Pratley. He’s a good pro and tries his best, but he was way off the pace in the first half. Sunderland we’re getting a lot of joy down the right and he was a big factor in that. I also felt he was also occupying the same space as Bielik too often in the first half. He naturally gravitates to the centre and deep. We were exposed because of it. As for Bielik, he is a good player but, I was a bit annoyed at him today. He holds onto the ball for too long sometimes and against lesser teams at this level he’s good enough to play that way, but he also gets caught in possession. He’s got that Arsenal ott in him where they over complicate things. He almost got taught a lesson with that disastrous back pass of a header in the first half. He is a top player and above this level, but he can’t get complacent.
Fosu was okay but we’re still not seeing the same player from last season. Something’s missing. Bauer okay but Maja kept him on his toes. That clearance at the end was almost fatal but he made up for it by putting it out for a corner moments later
Unlike a few others, I would’ve taken a point before the game with the team we named and the injuries we have. Sunderland are a good team and although we bossed the 2nd half, they could very well have broke and won it toward the end
A draw a very fair result.
Great to see so many fans back today and if this takeover goes through and we can add one or two in the window, we will be right up there.
Come on you reds. I’m very happy tonight after that 2nd half and the prospect of Roland going home
For 30 minutes Sunderland looked very good - we came into it more towards the end of the half. They escaped defeat in the second thanks to a ref that allowed them to foul when we got past them which was pretty often. Was chatting to my son in the first half about how good Sunderland looked but I did say, they are in league one for a reason and we have to find that reason, I think we did in the second half. They will be grateful for the point. Considering our injuries, Bowyer deserves a lot of credit.
Awful first half, we were being torn a new one down our right and Djksteel was terrible (admittedly with no help)
Totally different side in the 2nd half and we should’ve gone on to win it.
Taylor quality bit Belik is an absolute beast, what a player at only 21
Just about a fair result when I reflect and watch the highlights later on.
Crowd were superb and the ground was noticeably much busier than normal, NU felt pretty full and Lower a lot busier....good day all round
I’m sorry, I appreciate everyone is entitled to their opinion but I couldn’t disagree more!..Dijksteel suffered from Bowyers stubbornness in sticking to a diamond formation in the first half although over the whole game his tactics came off! Dijksteel was undone down his side within the first 2 minutes for the goal yet for the rest of the first half was doubled up on so many times!
Apologies for repeating most of the above but that sideway passing crap, negative possession, at home, when losing is totally frustrating and pointless. When we upped the anti from the end of the first half in to 2nd, Sunderland looked VERY WORRIED ! Second half was incredible, Taylor unplayable, plenty promising signs from JW. It is no surprise that Phillips lacks confidence having been overlooked when Steer was with us. We need another keeper. The marking for their goal was schoolboyesque.
Need to make the most of our opportunities.
Please now Roland, give us the best news ever....
Don't think Phillips was lacking confidence, his kicking isn't best but his throwing was top drawer.
He looked very uncomfortable and certainly didn't seem to be on the same wavelength of the defenders....
2 games since Sept and against a top 6 side he has every right to be pal.
Morgan; thought he was excellent for last 10 minutes of first half and in second half. Thought it was him who took the game by the scruff of the neck and got us going
Djiksteel; awful. Drifted out of position for their goal, almost gifted them a second 2 mins later. Totally off the pace. Slight improvement in second half but still a big weakness. Call for Toby at LB and Solly back to his natural position
Nice to see Williams and pleased he got a good reception. Not sure why it was Morgan rather Pratley who came off though.
Have to give another mention to big Naby. Most of us would dread seeing his name on the sheet but now I have no issues and think he is a pretty assured player. The odd mistaked but I would rather that and allow him to grow than do the easy job of hoofing the ball at every opportunity.
I think Nabys improvement this season has to be down to Lyle, Lyle said he wanted to make Naby more nasty and imagine in training everyday you are up against Taylor for practice rather than the likes of Magennis or Ajose.
Have to give another mention to big Naby. Most of us would dread seeing his name on the sheet but now I have no issues and think he is a pretty assured player. The odd mistaked but I would rather that and allow him to grow than do the easy job of hoofing the ball at every opportunity.
I think Nabys improvement this season has to be down to Lyle, Lyle said he wanted to make Naby more nasty and imagine in training everyday you are up against Taylor for practice rather than the likes of Magennis or Ajose.
Echo most of what’s been said but add a couple of points:
- I missed his dodgy header but I say it every game, Bielik is a class above this league. Astounded to discover today he’s only just turned 21, he looks the senior pro out there and was everywhere today
- Sunderland were the most organised side we’d played this season and worked bloody hard. Obviously done their homework with the high press, but noticeable just how little space there was when we had the ball.
- Taylor is the fan boy and I wouldn’t be surprised if he is doing an amateur dramatics course as he is getting more animated game by game. He is great and gets all the plaudits, but Grant has really stepped up this season. Not only does he look a threat, he is working much harder.
- Today was a prime example of being a football fan where ‘winning isn’t everything’. How enjoyable was it just to watch a good, even competitive game played with tempo in a good spirit, and to see our team show really character in rising to the challenge and lifting their levels of performance during the game?
Apologies for repeating most of the above but that sideway passing crap, negative possession, at home, when losing is totally frustrating and pointless. When we upped the anti from the end of the first half in to 2nd, Sunderland looked VERY WORRIED ! Second half was incredible, Taylor unplayable, plenty promising signs from JW. It is no surprise that Phillips lacks confidence having been overlooked when Steer was with us. We need another keeper. The marking for their goal was schoolboyesque.
Need to make the most of our opportunities.
Please now Roland, give us the best news ever....
Don't think Phillips was lacking confidence, his kicking isn't best but his throwing was top drawer.
He looked very uncomfortable and certainly didn't seem to be on the same wavelength of the defenders....
TBF he's got a RB at LB, a RB who wouldn't be in the team, a slow CB in front of him and Nabby Sarr who played well again but is prone to the odd error. Considering Phillips has been a number 2 for 2 years he's doing fine. I do think we have been spoilt with Amos and Steer. We will be lucky to find another keeper of their class to play in League 1.
I remember Pope and Etheridge being criticized. Yet last I heard they were both playing in the Premier ( I know Pope is crooked at mo)
Though how Grant missed that chance at the back post I’ll never know
At least Grant gets in those positions to miss, and if he stays fit will have 20 goals by end of season. The Pratley header was worse as he had more time to pick his spot. Both Karlan and Lyle have missed sitters this season but they are still the best pair we''ve had for a decade.
Echo what @AFKABartram says at the end of his post. Had the luxury of watching on iFollow with the sound up loud, and was on the edge of the sofa the whole second half. Hardly dared rush to the kitchen to get some water to ease my sore throat ( from shouting) . Great noise from both sets of fans. Portsmouth away was good fun too, but that was a war zone, today Sunderland played their part in making it a cracking game.
There's a bit of magic now about playing Sunderland. That felt like a Big Game from before the kick off. It's possible we could repeat 1998 at Wembley, but I reckon they will go up Autos with Portsmouth. And good luck to them. A fan base like that deserves nothing less.
Comments
Get a few back from injuries and it could be a very exciting run in. Don't make anything from Bowyer saying he doesn't know what's going on, he's not going to announce the takeover is he? No one from the club is going to say anything on the record.
Il call you out but if you are the bloke in the west upper who called Lyle Taylor a “Primadonna” in the first half and pushed me when I whispered that word in his ear after we scored....have a lovely evening!
Some of our lot continue to baffle me! One of the most old school centre forwards we have had since Kermogant and he gets called a primadonna??!!
Sarr and Dijksteel were the two who stood out for me today! Dijksteel who is forever isolated is so so underrated! Sarr was the only player who attempted to go forward in a shocking first half!
Taylor, yet again a stand out performance. I love this guy. He’s a proper forward. Gets so stuck in and holds the ball up so well. He and Grant are a great partnership. Grant was also lively and unlucky with his 2 chances in the 2nd half. He maybe should’ve buried his one on one at the end, but that one that bounced up in front of him across the goal was a little harder to bury. Think it took a touch from their defender as it came across the goal.
Morgan played very well. Was positive in terms of his passing and having a decent pop at the end of the first half. A word for Sarr as well. Thought he was superb today. There was a great tackle he did as they were breaking down the left in the second half, as well some really decent balls to Taylor. I sometimes wonder why we don’t go longer with Taylor in the team. He can handle long balls so well and with KAG playing off him, we’ve got a chance of anything loose.
Williams looked lively when he came on. He picked the ball up and ran with it. No disrespect to Reeves but he picks the ball up, circles back and then tries to play some clever ball with the outside of his boot. I think I’ve already seen more in Williams in those 20 minutes than I have with Reeves in the whole time he’s been here to know which one will do a better job, especially if he stays fit.
Also hats off to Solly. Another tough afternoon out of position, he grew into the game as it went on.
Dijksteel needs a rest. He’s not fully matured yet, has been looking leggy in the last few games and does get caught on the ball. It doesn’t help that our narrow diamond in front doesn’t afford him much cover. Onto that cover, Pratley. He’s a good pro and tries his best, but he was way off the pace in the first half. Sunderland we’re getting a lot of joy down the right and he was a big factor in that. I also felt he was also occupying the same space as Bielik too often in the first half. He naturally gravitates to the centre and deep. We were exposed because of it. As for Bielik, he is a good player but, I was a bit annoyed at him today. He holds onto the ball for too long sometimes and against lesser teams at this level he’s good enough to play that way, but he also gets caught in possession. He’s got that Arsenal ott in him where they over complicate things. He almost got taught a lesson with that disastrous back pass of a header in the first half. He is a top player and above this level, but he can’t get complacent.
Fosu was okay but we’re still not seeing the same player from last season. Something’s missing. Bauer okay but Maja kept him on his toes. That clearance at the end was almost fatal but he made up for it by putting it out for a corner moments later
Unlike a few others, I would’ve taken a point before the game with the team we named and the injuries we have. Sunderland are a good team and although we bossed the 2nd half, they could very well have broke and won it toward the end
A draw a very fair result.
Great to see so many fans back today and if this takeover goes through and we can add one or two in the window, we will be right up there.
Come on you reds. I’m very happy tonight after that 2nd half and the prospect of Roland going home
Taylor was immense, closely followed by Sarr.
Done everything needing doing on the day.
Morgan; thought he was excellent for last 10 minutes of first half and in second half. Thought it was him who took the game by the scruff of the neck and got us going
Djiksteel; awful. Drifted out of position for their goal, almost gifted them a second 2 mins later. Totally off the pace. Slight improvement in second half but still a big weakness. Call for Toby at LB and Solly back to his natural position
Nice to see Williams and pleased he got a good reception. Not sure why it was Morgan rather Pratley who came off though.
I think Nabys improvement this season has to be down to Lyle, Lyle said he wanted to make Naby more nasty and imagine in training everyday you are up against Taylor for practice rather than the likes of Magennis or Ajose.
- I missed his dodgy header but I say it every game, Bielik is a class above this league. Astounded to discover today he’s only just turned 21, he looks the senior pro out there and was everywhere today
- Sunderland were the most organised side we’d played this season and worked bloody hard. Obviously done their homework with the high press, but noticeable just how little space there was when we had the ball.
- Taylor is the fan boy and I wouldn’t be surprised if he is doing an amateur dramatics course as he is getting more animated game by game. He is great and gets all the plaudits, but Grant has really stepped up this season. Not only does he look a threat, he is working much harder.
- Today was a prime example of being a football fan where ‘winning isn’t everything’. How enjoyable was it just to watch a good, even competitive game played with tempo in a good spirit, and to see our team show really character in rising to the challenge and lifting their levels of performance during the game?
Considering Phillips has been a number 2 for 2 years he's doing fine. I do think we have been spoilt with Amos and Steer.
We will be lucky to find another keeper of their class to play in League 1.
I remember Pope and Etheridge being criticized. Yet last I heard they were both playing in the Premier ( I know Pope is crooked at mo)
I love this team.
The Pratley header was worse as he had more time to pick his spot.
Both Karlan and Lyle have missed sitters this season but they are still the best pair we''ve had for a decade.
If so I thought the Goalkeeper saved it?
There's a bit of magic now about playing Sunderland. That felt like a Big Game from before the kick off. It's possible we could repeat 1998 at Wembley, but I reckon they will go up Autos with Portsmouth. And good luck to them. A fan base like that deserves nothing less.
Draw a fair result. Shame with all the injuries we'll realistically not be able to challenge for top 2