Fan Letters: “If Niall Quinn doesn’t come I’m ditching Sunderland for South Shields instead!”

Dear Roker Report,

I’m still a season ticket holder and have been since the 70s, but I think that I can safely say that this is the worst team I’ve ever seen at Sunderland, both at Roker Park and the Stadium of Light.

I’ve got to admit to crossing over to watch South Shields FC with a couple of thousand others, and I’ve been totally reinvigorated and have gone back to enjoying football, watching these lads bust a gut for a few quid each game.

The standard is tremendous - I’ve been going a couple of seasons now and I get really excited when going to a match again.

Try watching a game at Mariners Park and it’ll bring back your love for football.

P.S. I’ll only keep my ticket on at the Stadium of Light if Quinny takes over, otherwise like many others next season I’m gone.

Chris McGuinness

Ed’s note: Bye! Just go and support South Shields mate. Though I do wonder if you’ll feel the same when they aren’t winning every week, but that’s your prerogative. I understand that watching a team that wins all the time is nice, I’ve certainly seen my fair share of non-league football in recent years, and I can’t argue that watching Sunderland has been terrible for a few years now, but how you could even consider dropping your support of one team for another is beyond me.

PA Images via Getty Images

Dear Roker Report,

It’s time to rally the singers!

Songs like ‘Always look on bright side of life’ need to be heard - there’s too much doom and gloom!

Let’s lighten the mood with positivity not negativity and see what happens - we are Sunderland and should not be going down with a whimper.

Rouse them up Roker Report - there are plenty of uplifting tunes out there. The same goes for the music around the Stadium of Light on a matchday!

James Airey

Ed’s note: I’m in, James. I’ve been told before that I’m a canny singer, maybe this is my chance - my calling in life. Let’s start a choir!

Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images

Dear Roker Report,

I just wanted to drop by and say thanks.

I’m a Sunderland die-hard supporter - born in Castletown - that lives in South Africa and have done now for ten years. Even with the team as bad as they are nowadays it kills me not being able to go to games and for a pint with the lads beforehand, so the outlet which you give people like myself is genuinely inspiring.

How you guys keep up the enthusiasm to write and talk about us is beyond me!

The Podcasts you produce each week are top notch and get my through my dull commutes to work, whilst your site is always the first I head to for news and opinion and matchday reaction. I used to rely heavily on the local rags like the Echo and Chronicle but you guys do a far better job of covering every angle and staying on the pulse when it comes to how fans are feeling.

So again, thanks. You don’t understand how much what you guys does means to people like me that are thousands of miles away from home.

Brian Joyce

Ed’s note: Thanks Brian. In all honesty knowing how much people appreciate RR is what keeps me motivated to ensure we try and give people a platform for their voice, whether it be through Fan Letters, writing articles, coming on the Podcast or whatever else.

Your kind words really are appreciated.