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There’s a particular kind of pride that runs through Sunderland — the pride of a city shaped by industry, resilience and community; of people who know what it means to graft, to stand together and to believe in something bigger than themselves. That same pride is woven into the story of Sunderland Women, and on […]
Melker Ellborg: 5/10 Made a brilliant, improvised save after O’Nien’s crazy back pass and got his finger tips to the goal but couldn’t get enough on it to keep it out. Did have a couple of uncomfortable moments, one with a dodgy touch in the first half and then bringing down a striker after the […]
It’s not often we’re talking about the chance for Sunderland to go through to the quarter-final of the FA Cup – it’s been over a decade since we were last in this position! So, we gather to preview Sunderland’s trip to Port Vale in the fifth round of the cup! On today’s show… All this […]
Port Vale are currently bottom of League One, 10 points from safety – what would you say are the key factors behind this? Darren Moore being tactically poor and he didn’t know how to change things when needed. At one point, we had four wing-backs injured and he still didn’t change our shape. To add […]
For so long, the FA Cup has felt like a hindrance for Sunderland; a chance to play a weakened team at a half-empty Stadium of Light or to get knocked out at the first attempt. However, we now find ourselves in the last sixteen of the world’s oldest cup competition for the first time in […]
Martin Wanless predicts… Score prediction: Port Vale 0 Sunderland 3 Sunderland’s first goalscorer: Isidor This is a great opportunity for us, and one we need to take seriously – and I think we will. While we have plenty of injuries and suspensions, we can still name a strong team and with a quarter final place […]
Sunderland’s 1979/1980 promotion campaign was built largely on the back of some excellent home form, with the visit of Jock Wallace’s high-flying Leicester City proving to be another positive on the Roker record. Both teams were battling it out near the top of Division Two and would eventually go up at the end of the […]
After a brilliant win at Elland Road on Tuesday all but guaranteed safety, we can focus on the FA Cup – and this is a game I hope we take as seriously as possible. Despite Vale’s lowly league position they’ve picked up under their new manager, and this game absolutely falls into the ‘nothing to […]
Sunday 8th March 2026 Port Vale v Sunderland FA Cup Fifth Round Vale Park – Kick-Off: 13:30 Tickets & Match Coverage Tickets: Tickets are sold out. TV/Stream: Full live match coverage is available via TNT Sports. Radio: Full live match commentary available via BBC Radio Newcastle (not online) Don’t forget to follow the blow-by-blow account […]
We’re back in FA Cup action this weekend and Sunderland head to take on Port Vale, who are currently sat bottom of League One. Joining us to tell us all about our opponents in the fifth round is Phil Bowers, who is the BBC Stoke match commentator for all Valiants games! All this and more! […]
Sunderland beat Leeds 1–0 midweek with what many called a depleted team. The trip to Elland Road was not without its dramas: a Leeds disallowed goal jangled the nerves somewhat before Habib Diarra struck from the spot to take Sunderland to the much-coveted 40-point mark. Yet the highlight of the story has to be Luke […]
The 1984/85 season was a very strange affair indeed. One where we reached our first Wembley final since that glorious day in 1973, but we also suffered relegation down to the ‘Canon Division 2’. The history books will show that despite beating our Milk Marketing Board League Cup rivals Norwich City 3–1 only a week […]
Vic Halom is one of those players from our 1973 FA Cup winning team that fans of the time still get misty-eyed about. Born in Swadlincote and raised in Burton-upon-Trent, he actually began and spent the first years of his professional career in London, starting as an apprentice at Charlton and making his league debut […]
As I detailed in a previous article, I am unusual in being an adopted Mackem who grew up in the Potteries and caught the Sunderland bug watching the Lads in a Fifth Round FA Cup tie at Stoke in 1976. Now, fifty years later, Sunderland are contesting their first Fifth Round tie in a decade […]
When rumours of an injury to Robin Roefs began to gather pace, ahead of Tuesday’s match against Leeds, I could almost hear the cries of disappointment from Wearside in my adopted home in Yorkshire. The calm, phlegmatic young Dutchman is arguably competing with Granit Xhaka, Nordi Mukiele and Omar Alderete as the most influential of […]
Joe Cowan: 7/10 Made one good save from a near post effort that he did well to tip over the bar but well protected tonight and most of his work was punching away corners, which he was very proactive with. No chance with the late consolation for Watford. Finlay Holcroft: 7/10 A solid display at […]
Following a productive trip down to Bournemouth, we scarcely had time to catch our breath before it was time for another away trip, this time in the opposite direction from the capital to Leeds. Last season’s late defeat at Elland Road was definitely one of the more scarring in recent times; I can’t listen to […]
Roll up, roll up – it’s time for your weekly dose of Sunderland news reaction! Join Gav, Martin, Andrew and Ant as they debate all the latest mackem news stories, including: All this and more! Get subscribed to Haway The Podcast so you never miss another episode of our free daily show. Want to get […]
Sunderland travelled south for their final away double-header of the season, with trips to Bournemouth and Leeds in the space of seventy two hours. On paper it felt like an enormous task for Régis Le Bris to galvanise his players having not taken maximum points on the road since October, but the welcome return of […]
When the teams were announced on Tuesday night and after reading the comments from some fans online, you would think Régis Le Bris had named a team made up of builders, plumbers and postmen. There was almost a definitive conclusion that Sunderland were going to lose comfortably and that the mighty Leeds — with their […]
Gav says… Frankly, I’d be annoyed if we don’t go as strong as we can. I know we’ve got loads of injuries right now but we’re well safe in the Premier League and should be thinking about the rest of the season as a giant opportunity. I’ve not seen Sunderland take the FA Cup seriously […]
To witness Dan Ballard’s performance against Leeds United on Tuesday was to watch a defender who was fully in control, entirely aware of the scale of the task at hand, and utterly hellbent on guiding his team to victory. With a rookie goalkeeper to protect in Melker Ellborg and memories of last season’s late, heartbreaking […]
With the Sunderland team on course for promotion to Division One in the league, FA Cup fever was building amongst fans as memories of 1973 were flooding back to them on the eve of reaching the quarter-final stage against Crystal Palace. Stokoe’s team had been somewhat fortunate with the draws they got up until this […]
SWe’re between a great win “UNDER THE LIGHTS!!” at Elland Road and a glamour FA Cup fifth round tie at Port Vale so a perfect time for a Q&A with the questions sent in by you lovely people! On today’s show: All this and more! Get subscribed to Haway The Podcast so you never miss […]
Want to have your say on all things Sunderland? Drop us a line and we’ll publish your views! [email protected] Dear Roker Report, I can’t believe the pathetic, over-the-top reactions coming from Leeds because we did a number on them. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever heard such nonsense and amount of excuses in the entire […]