Roker Report
Sunderland AFC's foremost blog and Podcast!
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Fan Letters: Two Up Top For Arsenal? Can Sunderland Sort Their Club Communications?
Dear Roker Report, Driving back from Brentford had a feeling of mixed emotions. I thought Sunderland played really well in the first half and were unlucky not to go in at half-time a couple of goals to the good. Once they scored, changes had to be made by RLB and it was good to see […]
Sunderland’s Transfer Window: Panic, Gluttony and Malick Fofana
Amid all of the madness of last Tuesday’s deadline day scramble, involving three new signings, private jets allegedly bound for Sunderland and South London, some last-minute involvement from Kyril Louis-Dreyfus and a mysterious, guru-like figure known only as Uncle Bouba, it would’ve been easy to wed yourself to the view that “Sunderland have panicked! We’ve […]
On This Day (7th Sep 1987): Smith Confirms Interest In Bristol Striker & A Load Of Bull
There have been plenty of rebuilding jobs promised by new Sunderland managers down the years. Some were needed more than most, but it’s difficult to argue that many were bigger than the one Denis Smith faced in the summer of 1987. Following the Lawrie McMenemy era and Bob Stokoe’s last-ditch effort to perform another miracle, […]
Inverted Wingers: Why Can’t Right-Footers Play on the Right?
Some of us will remember flared jeans in the 1970s. They then became straight jeans and then my wife persuaded me to start wearing skinny jeans… only for flared jeans to make a comeback. There have always been changing fashions from generation to generation. Even when it comes to football strips, there have been changes […]
Haway The Podcast | SUNDAY SUPPLEMENT | Transfer Chaos & Sunderland’s Draw At Brentford!
We gave our initial reaction after the final whistle but now we’ve had a chance to sleep on it we go through all the action from the Gtech Stadium, where today’s guest James Copley from the Echo witnessed Sunderland collect a useful point against an in-form Brentford! Join Chris, James and Andrew as they look […]
On This Day (6th Sept 1970): Palmer Spills The Beans On Brown
A versatile and highley rated performer, on paper it seemed to some as if Calvin Palmer’s big money move in February 1968 was exactly what Sunderland’s struggling squad needed, and yet when he departed two years the later his release felt inevitable – and the man that had brought him was certainly happy to see […]
Talking Points: Sunderland Shape Up Well Against A Top Ten Rival
Enzo Le Fée: The man for the big occasion Le Fée is a Sunderland superhero, pure and simple. Disciplined off the ball and magical on it, this was shaping up to be another top class performance from the Frenchman, and that was before his goal. Presented with the ultimate chance of redemption, he seemed to […]
Matchday Musings: Le Fée’s Emphatic Penalty Delivers A Draw At Brentford
No Panenka this time as Enzo Le Fée converted an 81st-minute penalty to earn Sunderland a 1-1 draw at Brentford. It was only what the Black Cats deserved after a dominant but scoreless first half — with a goal disallowed — was followed by a largely Brentford-ascendant second half. The Black Cats started with a […]
2 Up, 2 Down: Enzo Makes His Point As Sunderland Draw With Brentford
Calum Mills says… Red and white relentlessness One thing we saw last season was how this team would not give up. In that second half, we didn’t look like half the team that turned up in the opening forty five but the game never looked beyond us and that’s down to the mantra instilled within […]
Haway The Podcast | MATCH REACTION | Sunderland Draw At Brentford!
After a cracking first half where VAR made sure we didn’t get the opener, Brentford rang the changes at the break and take the lead, but the Lads fought back! Join Chris, Andrew, James and Bomber as they give their reaction straight after the final whistle! Coming up: All this and much more on another […]
Andy’s Player Ratings: Brentford 1-1 Sunderland – Black Cats Earn Point Thanks To Le Fee
Robin Roefs: 6/10 Made a good reflex save after Reinildo got beaten in the air but that was about it as far as saves were concerned. Typically calm with the ball at his feet. Thomas Meunier: 5/10 Played in the “Hume role” today but thought he was very quiet, helped us out defensively but rarely […]
Haway The Podcast | MATCH PREVIEW | Will Sunderland BEAT Brentford?
Sunderland are back on the road this weekend as the Black Cats travel to Brentford in the Premier League — but can the Lads finally pick up their first away win of the season and DEFEAT the Bees?! Join Gav, James and Neil as they look ahead to what promises to be a fascinating test […]
Score Predictions: Can Sunderland Better Brentford?
Stats at a glance: Brentford (A): 05/09/2026 Average home goals predicted: 1.4 Average away goals predicted: 1.6 Confidence of Roker Report’s writers: 5/10 Predicting a win for the Lads: 50% Martin Wanless (Cautious Optimist) says… Score prediction: Brentford 1 Sunderland 2 Brentford have started the season on fire, and this is a really tough away […]
On This Day (5th Sept 1991): Sunderland Title Winner Alex Hall Passes Away
When I was researching events that took place on this day in history, I saw that Alex Hall died in 1991, yet the sad part on my behalf is that my first thoughts were, “Alex Who?” Such is the changing face of media and attempts by many clubs (especially Sunderland AFC) to start to recognise […]
Starting XI: Will Our New Signings Start At Brentford?
It was an important three points last week – albeit the performance wasn’t necessarily something to write home about. With three new additions this week the team announcement at 1.45pm is going to be eagerly awaited. Will any of the new signings come in? This is how I think we could line up at the […]
Match Preview: Brentford v Sunderland — Tough Test For The Lads In The Capital
Saturday 5th September 2026 Brentford v Sunderland – Premier League Gtech Community Stadium – Kick-Off: 15:00 Tickets & Match Coverage Tickets: Tickets are sold out. TV/Stream: Full live match coverage is unavailable. Radio: Full live match commentary available via BBC Radio Newcastle (not online) Don’t forget to follow the blow-by-blow account of the game on […]
Haway The Podcast | WHY THESE PLAYERS?! | Sunderland’s Europa League Squad Explained
Sunderland’s Europa League squad has been announced… but some of the decisions have left plenty of fans scratching their heads! Why were certain players left out? Why were others included? And, perhaps most importantly, what are the actual rules Sunderland had to work within? To make sense of it all, Gav and Andrew are joined […]
Haway The Podcast | OPPO PREVIEW | Are Brentford Sunderland’s Toughest Test Yet?!
We got off the mark against Fulham last weekend but we’re facing a tough challenge this time around as the Lads travel to the capital to take on Brentford! They have four points on the board so far but could it have been more?! We speak to Sam Tabutaeu from The Standard to find out […]
Sunderland’s Six New Signings – Where Will They Fit In?
With the summer window Slamming Shut™ at 11pm on Tuesday 1 September, it allowed supporters and the members of staff at Sunderland to breathe a sigh of relief. The Black Cats introduced five new permanent signings and one loan signing over the 79-day window, and I will now break down where our six new boys […]
How Many Points Will Sunderland Need to Progress in the Europa League?
It’s not long until Sunderland kick off our Europa League campaign with a home tie against AZ Alkmaar on the 16th of September. With that in mind, and given that the new format of UEFA’s club competitions might be unfamiliar to some, I will assess how many points should be enough to see Sunderland progress […]
Can’t Help Falling In Love (With Sunderland)
This season, my wife bought her first Sunderland shirt. That probably does not sound remarkable. Thousands of supporters buy one every summer. Shirts come and go. New designs arrive. Credit cards take a battering. We tell ourselves we do not need another one and inevitably buy it anyway. But this one felt different. When I […]
On This Day (4th Sept 2002): The Season Sørensen’s Optimism Went Horribly Wrong
The 2001-02 season was a pretty hopeless one for Sunderland fans after a couple of years flirting with European places. Two seventh-place finishes had inspired supporters to dream of dizzier heights in the Premiership, but with a lack of investment in the squad, things swiftly became stale rather than spectacular. On paper, the spine of […]
Sunderland’s Ambition Is Clear – And It Starts at the Very Top
As transfer deadline day unfolded its last hours’ sagas, one of the main stories was the drama of the transfer of Malick Fofana from French club Lyon. Despite apparently agreeing a deal with both the player and club earlier in the day, it emerged that, in a move we have been on the wrong end […]
Haway The Podcast | MALICK FOFANA | Just How Good Is Sunderland’s £30m Man?
Baptiste Reynaud is a podcaster and French football expert, and he once again joins us to give his insight on yet another new Sunderland player – this time, Malick Fofana! All this and more! Get subscribed to Haway The Podcast so you never miss another episode of our free daily show. Ready to have an […]
Locked In: Analysing Sunderland’s Europa League Squad
So we finally have it, the first Sunderland squad to play in Europe for 53 years and the first to play in the new format of a true UEFA league phase campaign. Due to the restrictions UEFA squad rules have in place, Sunderland were always going to struggle getting a full 25-man squad named and […]
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