Fan Letters: "Sunderland need to make better use of throw ins!"

Yesterday at 01:00 AM

RR reader Dave feels that the Lads could be more accurate from the sidelines in order to retain possession. Got something to say? Email us: RokerReport@yahoo.co.uk

Dear Roker Report,

Has anybody else noticed how many times Sunderland give the ball away at throw ins?

I thought that in the modern era, retaining possession of the ball as much as possible was something to strive for. After all, isn't the old adage 'if you have the ball, they cant hurt you'?

Time after time, we throw the ball long down the touchline and hope to find a Sunderland head, but more often not turn over possession.

We hardly ever take a quick throw and the ball is handed to the full back, who it would seem is the only one allowed to take a throw. Our midfielders (who are by now marked and make very little effort to find space), are seemingly content to stand beside their marker, hence the long throw down the line for Patrick Roberts to jump for.

The coaches, who are sometimes only a yard from the action, allow it to happen week in and week out. In the modern game, where every advantage is key, turning possession over from 50% of our throw ins needs to be rectified.

Fingers crossed for 2025.

Old Dave

Dear Roker Report,

Have we got a 'throw in coach'?

If not, we need one; if we do, we need a different one, as we're useless at capitalising on any advantage gained from this set piece.

We never even look forward, let alone throw forward. The best we have is a square ball into a crowd or more usually backwards, often from well inside the opponent's half. which ends up back at the goalkeeper or with an opposition corner.

Kev Ramsay

Ed's Note [Phil]: Hi, Dave and Kev. Thank you for your letters.

When it comes to throw ins, I can't say I've noticed us being particularly wasteful this season.

Although I'm sure there are statistics out there which show just how efficient we are from such situations, I do agree that when executed properly, they can be an effective weapon in building attacks (as 'Mr Long Throw' himself, Rory Delap, would attest to!) so perhaps it's something for the Lads to keep working on for the remainder of the season- and certainly to make use of the taller players in the team.

Dear Roker Report,

A rather longer than normal response from you about the issues relating to missed opportunities of late!

Going back to the crowds and how accurate (truthful?) the club's announcements are, I was only expressing the opinions and interest of many supporters who've for two or three seasons been surprised by similar announcements by the club, match-by-match, when it's obvious to anyone sitting in the stadium that a 39,000 attendance one week is nowhere near a 39,000 crowd the following week.

I'm not sure where you sit in the stadium but where I sat for more than twenty years, in the past couple of seasons, many of the announcements were treated with a mixture of good humour, disbelief and derision.

Not really a big deal but an issue which in my opinion deserves a question.

From my 'armchair view' on Sunday, there was a shot of the Premier Concourse which was far from full. My own 'armchair opinion' is that the club has sold a definite number of season tickets, which are always included in the final figure, along with match tickets sold per game.

Returning to your comment referring to armchair support, I take umbrage at the fact that perhaps you are inferring that because I've chosen, for this season, to miss out on the 40+ mile return journey, often arriving home after 11:00 pm, that I have no genuine right to express an opinion.

I attended my first game at Roker Park in March 1961 and have attended many more games in that old ground and the Stadium of Light than I have missed. I was there when we had crowds of between 7,000 and 11,000 on a regular basis.

When you can boast sixty four years of continued support and interest, perhaps it might allow you to have a pop at someone you suggest might be an armchair supporter.

I'm disappointed in RR!

Alan Jackson

Ed's Note [Phil]: Hi, Alan. Thank you for your letter.

From my vantage point in the North West Corner, my view takes in the entire lower seating bowl as well as the upper tier of the North Stand, so I have a pretty decent view of the stadium on matchdays.

I do feel that some of the attendance figures read out at the ends of games are, shall we say, somewhat inflated, and there are often laughs shared among my fellow NW corner match goers when the number is announced, as it's sometimes glaringly obvious from the gaps in the seating bowl that many supporters have chosen to skip certain games, albeit doubtless for reasons personal to them, which is fair enough.

No club wants to give off the impression of lesser support, so I suppose factoring in season ticket sales as well as individual tickets sold is a canny (or peculiar, depending on your perspective) way for the club to keep their numbers pointing in the right direction and for social media outlets to give Sunderland fans their due, even if the empty seats on the TV during certain matches sometimes tell a different story.

Every supporter has a right to back the club in their own way, and as I wrote in an article post-Leeds United, it's a shame when people opt to leave early or to miss games altogether, but everyone's circumstances are different and that should be respected.