Fan Letters: More thoughts on Sunderland’s ownership issues & ideas for a potential fan protest

Dear Roker Report,

A couple of close friends are longtime Sunderland fans and it grieves me to see how saddened they are by the club’s current predicament. However, as a West Ham fan myself, I have to say that at least your supporters are showing both dignity and decorum at what is a difficult time.

I was one of the many who did not support our move to the awful London Stadium, nor the change of our club badge to something an eight year old would be ashamed to draw. I also don’t have much love for the current owners, nor the attitude of some of our players. However, none of these things justify the recent appalling behaviour at the Burnley home game. Running on the pitch, fighting, shouting abuse at the Directors’ Box during the game (and throwing missiles) - and at a game dedicated to the memory of the late Bobby Moore - is more than unacceptable and I am now too ashamed to wear my claret and blue scarf with the crossed hammers out on the street.

The rot set in to higher league football the minute that clubs stopped being owned by local businessmen with knowledge of and respect for history to one where a club either became part of a “sporting portfolio” for a rich foreigner or indeed a hobby (like a living Subbuteo team).

Sadly this is what has happened to your club and I really hope that, irrespective of colours or allegiances, all of us who love the game of football can band together on this and somehow say enough is enough.

Sunderland have a proud history and I hope that they find some light at the end of the tunnel soon.

Kate Howard

Ed’s note: Firstly - that’s a Bolton fan and then a West Ham fan in the last two days that have gotten in touch with us via Fan Letters. The outreach of Roker Report apparently knows no bounds!

It must be noted that bad club owners can also be local businessmen, but I digress - the money in football has meant that only the mega-rich can feasibly afford to run a football club, and as such finding people that are wealthy enough to be properly invested in a club is tough.

We published an open letter directed at the Fulwell73 group today - you should check that out. The lads behind that company are die-hard Sunderland fans that had previously enquired into a purchase of the club last summer.

PA Images via Getty Images

Dear Roker Report,

I feel that at the last game of the season - even though relegation will likely have been confirmed weeks prior - we need to get the Stadium of Light bouncing, showing players that haven’t been performing and in particular the young boys who will be playing next season what this great club is capable of.

Maybe also prospective investors could be in attendance in some capacity, and hopefully by this point the team will be filled by our own prospects for the following term.

What do my fellow readers think?

Remember - this is our club, and no matter how bad it has been we were here before this mess started and will still be here once we get ourselves out of our current predicament.

Andrew Pinkney

Ed’s note: It’s an interesting thought, one that was apparently discussed yesterday evening at the Red and White Army open meeting in a brainstorming session about protest ideas.

Whilst filling the place out to show off who we are sounds a brilliant concept, in truth you probably couldn’t give away the tickets, and if our situation continues to worsen I don’t see how that’d work.