Fan Letters: Sunderland’s owner, manager & players are deservedly under fire - not good enough!

Dear Roker Report,

Yet another abysmal performance - some of these players do not deserve to wear the shirt. Hard-working fans deserve better than this.

The change of manager so far is looking the wrong choice. In the last few weeks the team has gone backwards, the so-called spark a new manager is supposed to bring to the team has not materialised.

The players need a kick up the arse - Leadbitter summed it up when he mentioned little groups; sounds to me like Parkinson has lost the changing room already. Yet again player power is ruling Sunderland, not the manager - this makes the Coventry game massive.

Lose, and Mr Donald has a big decision to make. At the start of the season a 100 point target was mentioned - what planet are the owners on? The signings have been woeful, they have not improved the squad. They have to take responsibility for this.

Jack Ross said that the players he wanted were affected by Donald trying to get new owners in which proves that this club is no Eastleigh - he is way out of his depth. The job they did to get the club stable, no one can argue with that, but the way American deal was handled has been woeful from start to finish.

I truly hope we have something to smile and shout about at the end of the season but the season could be decided over the Christmas period. The manager and the players need to improve now, get the confidence back and push on or it’s another season in League One, and no one wants that because the fans will not turn up next season.

Mark Wild

Ed’s Note [Gav]: I couldn’t possibly comment on things like ‘player power’ as that’s an awful lot of guesswork, but matters on the pitch are obviously massively concerning. I feel weird about the results we’ve had in cup games though because deep-down I know and feel that we must focus fully on the league. Despite managing us on nine occasions, only four of Phil Parkinson’s games have been in the league. How seriously - both consciously and subconsciously - have the manager and players took these fixtures?

Results and performances suggest not very.

Ultimately though it’s not good. Parkinson hasn’t given the players the lift they needed when the manager was changed and we face two of the league’s better sides in the next seven days - two games that will undoubtedly determine the path we take going into December and the rest of the season. Winning both would be huge for our confidence, but can anyone confidently say they believe we’ll take anything off Coventry, who have lost just once all season away from home?

We’re up against it. I dread to think what the feeling inside the ground will be like on Saturday if the players don’t give the type of performance we’ve been screaming out for.

Photo by Ian Horrocks/Sunderland AFC via Getty Images

Dear Roker Report,

Lowest ever position ever. I think I am right in saying this but it’s first time Sunderland have ever been knocked out of FA Cup in the first round - if we pursue and persevere with these two clowns of owners, who are well out of their depth, I can see us being knocked out of the FA Cup in a qualifying round when we are in the Conference.

Before you fans who are seeing our beloved club through red and white tinted glasses start shouting “shut up and get behind the owners and manager and players” - as this shower are on a cliff edge I will gladly get behind them and push them ower the cliff.

47 years of heartache and still hurting.

Get real and take on board the date - 20 11 2019 is the lowest of the low in our history.

It’s time for these parasites to be shamed, for their big posh houses and cars to be taken off them and get them as far away from our club as far as possible.

To think King Kev Phillips was ignored by the jokers now running SAFC and instead they put a buffoon in charge like this serial loser Prattkinson.

William and Jarvis (Someone please save our club)

Ed’s Note [Gav]: I certainly won’t try to change your mind. It’s up to the owners, manager and players to prove their doubters wrong. The fans have been patient enough and are right to be annoyed after losing six from nine games - all it does is make us panic about the future. We have to focus on the league, though, and I suppose we aren’t too far away from where we need to be come January, where real change can be enacted.

As I said in the reply above, this next week is huge. We HAVE to win both games.

Photo by Ian Horrocks/Sunderland AFC via Getty Images

Dear Roker Report,

Jack Ross didn’t have a plan B and got sacked. Phil Parkinson hasn’t got a plan A and is still in a job - WHY? He is in same mould as David Moyes - utter sh*te.

Instead of promotion we will do well not to be relegated yet again.

From top to bottom the club is a f*cking shambles.

Stewart Donald - do something positive or get out of our club.

I thought it was bad under Ellis Short, but this is torture.

Get some pride back and get a decent manager in who knows what he’s doing, the one we have at the moment is woeful and will get us relegated.

Decent OWNER and MANAGER needed urgently.

Rob Brown

Ed’s Note [Gav]: I’m reluctant to say “he must go” when he’s only had four league games since arriving, and no transfer window to change the squad. I guess the problem isn’t with Parkinson. It’s not his fault he was chosen to take the job. If we don’t win the next two games - both in the league, both at home - then this will look like a very bad appointment that hasn’t improved us, but has instead regressed us. I’m honestly dreading this next week.