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Post by Les on May 4, 2019 22:34:00 GMT
7:30 Saturday 11th May
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Post by Les on May 4, 2019 22:35:08 GMT
A win is the only acceptable result anything else would be a disaster
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Post by macmackem on May 5, 2019 9:11:44 GMT
A win is the only acceptable result anything else would be a disaster Prepare for a disaster Les, Pompey will come and do what they did last time, as did Luton, Charlton etc.slow the game down, time waste, quiten the crowd and bully us. Not unless Mr Ross grows a pair of knackers |
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Post by eathummous on May 5, 2019 23:30:25 GMT
It will be cagey from both teams. 1-1 draw - why not?
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Post by macmackem on May 6, 2019 6:50:20 GMT
Put your money on that one Hummy š
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Post by Les on May 6, 2019 10:37:24 GMT
It will be cagey from both teams. 1-1 draw - why not? it's what we do best š |
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Post by Les on May 9, 2019 20:55:05 GMT
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Post by Les on May 9, 2019 20:57:04 GMT
www.safc.com/news/team-news/2019/may/team-news-v-portsmouth-po-homeMcGeady ready to return for Play-Off showdownJack Ross has revealed Aiden McGeady will return to training tomorrow ahead of Sunderlandās first-leg Play-Off semi-final against Portsmouth. The Black Cats kick-off their Play-Off campaign this Saturday at the Stadium of Light at 7:30pm, looking to put to bed a barren run of form. Having recorded just one win in their last seven games, Ross knows the importance of freshening things up and to do that he could look to Republic of Ireland star McGeady to provide a much-needed spark. The 33-year-old, who has missed trips to Fleetwood Town and Southend United, is set to train on Friday at the Academy of Light after struggling with a foot injury sustained at Accrington Stanley in early April., Speaking to the media at Thursdayās press conference, Ross provided the latest team news in full, with Lee Cattermole and George Honeyman also set to return. āHe will train tomorrow, but that has been a conscious decision,ā he said. āHe possibly could have trained today, but the long break heās been able to have has been of real benefit to him. āIdeally, weāve have another two/three week rest and he would be completely healed, but heās certainly benefited from the week, he feels good and is looking forward to the game.ā āWeāre pretty much at full strength now. āAiden [McGeady] has benefited from this extended break that weāve managed to give him. āPeople will always point to his natural ability and the level of the game that heās played at, but what heās done this season is marry that with a real hunger about his play, and a desire to try and take the club back up. āThatās been reflected in his performances and when you marry those two things together itās always going to be talismanic for you time-after-time. To have him back available is a huge boost for us. āWe recognise the quality he brings and the more match-winners you can have in your team the bigger chance you have.ā He continued: āLee [Cattermole] and George [Honeyman] had some minor issues that made them miss the Southend game but theyāll be fine."
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Post by Les on May 9, 2019 20:58:51 GMT
www.safc.com/news/team-news/2019/may/ross-on-play-off-rollercoasterRoss has his say on having the home leg firstJack Ross is ready to throw himself into the emotional rollercoaster of the Play-Offs as Sunderland prepare to do battle with Portsmouth. The Black Cats have been preparing hard for their two-legged tie at the Academy of Light, and Ross knows if whatās happened in the Champions League is anything to go by this week then weāre in for one hell of a ride. On Tuesday, Liverpool came back from 3-0 down to stun Barcelona and world football with a brilliant display to eclipse them 4-0 before Tottenham Hotspurās Lucas Moura rolled home a 96th-minute winner 24 hours later to complete a remarkable comeback. Spurs trailed 2-0 at half-time and 3-0 on aggregate going into the second 45, but an inspired late showing saw Moura saw him bag a hat-trick in the most dramatic of fashions to reiterate for the second night running just how beautiful the game of football is. āTiming-wise itās probably a brilliant time for me to say it doesnāt matter,ā Ross said when asked at his press conference about if heād have preferred playing at home in the second leg. āIn the last two nights Iāve just watched two brilliant games which shows it makes not a jot of difference. āTraditionally it was always seen as better to be at home in the second leg and at one point it shifted, but the truth is, is doesnāt make a difference, as the past two nights show. āI hope we donāt find ourselves in a position over the two games where we donāt have to claw our way back from two or three goals behind, that would certainly be the ideal scenario," he continued. āI think Spurs and Liverpool are a nice example again for people, and Iām not just saying this to deflect away from the responsibility of a manager or a coach, but itās a nice reminder that we work in a sport thatās incredible unpredictable and thatās why we watch it and thatās why so many have commented in the last 48 hours saying they love football. āSome of the best players in the world make decisions in high-pressure situations that they wouldnāt normally, but they get caught up in the emotion. āAnd any communication from a team-mate or a manager on the sideline becomes nigh on impossible because of the noise inside a stadium during these games. āItās a nice reminder. Some people believe the game is played by numbers but itās far from that. The truth is it comes down to fine margins all the time and I think that will be the case over the next two or three weeks as well.ā
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Post by Les on May 9, 2019 21:00:56 GMT
www.safc.com/news/team-news/2019/may/watmore-nearing-returnWatmore nearing returnJack Ross has revealed that Duncan Watmoreās season might not be over just yet. The winger, who suffered ankle ligament damage in Sunderlandās draw at Wycombe Wanderers in March, is back in training and working towards playing some part in the Lads' Play-Off campaign. While it was first thought Watmore would miss the remainder of the season, with the Black Cats missing out on automatic promotion it has meant their season has now been extended by at least a fortnight. With a two-legged semi-final against Portsmouth this Saturday and then next Thursday before a potential Wembley final, thatās opened the door for Watmore to potentially return. "Duncan returned to training with the whole group today, although it is too early for him to be involved on Saturday," Ross said. "He could possibly come into contention next week depending on how we need to approach the game, what we might need from the game, and how he is feeling. "We will balance that up. "He was determined to get back out in full training today - he could have maybe left it a little bit longer - and he looked as though he came through the session fine, so we will now see how he reacts overnight. "He'll train again tomorrow, and we'll make a decision from there." He continued: āHe's a different type of player for us. He has the ability to stretch a game for us in a way that no-one else we have got can - we saw that in some of his appearances before his ankle injury. "We don't really have a like-for-like player to replace him. "It's an unexpected boost to have him returning to fitness because we did think we would be without him for the rest of the season."
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Post by Les on May 11, 2019 12:33:27 GMT
Nerves getting the better of everyone?
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Post by Les on May 11, 2019 17:38:05 GMT
1 f'ing striker - he is going for a draw!
McLaughlin, OāNien, Ozturk, Flanagan, Oviedo, Cattermole, Power, Honeyman, Morgan, McGeady, Wyke.
Subs not used: Ruiter, Matthews, Maguire, Gooch, Grigg, Leadbitter, Dunne.
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Post by Les on May 11, 2019 17:39:55 GMT
Catts, Power Honeyman . . . Has to be the most negative midfield ever.
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Post by Les on May 11, 2019 18:27:56 GMT
Oh, ffs it just keeps getting better and better. Why the feck Gooch has replaced McGeady is beyond me!
McGeady pulled up in warmups - Gooch replaces him. š”
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Post by Les on May 11, 2019 19:11:58 GMT
Plenty of effort but absolutely no quality anywhere on the pitch.
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