Our new manager is well right to complain to the powers at be about our fixture pile-up.Why should we suffer by travelling some 2000 miles in no time at all?The league should be played on a level playing field!
We talking about teams in England? The absolutely tiny nation you can cross get from end to end of in a couple of hours? ****ing horse ****. Boo ****ing hoo.
You're sounding more like an Ausie every day mate. When do you go? Any news yet? If I was a younger man, I'd be doing the same, y'know. Good luck.
Thats daft Di5co. Its 3 games in just over a week, a few full tanks of petrol, many hours of travelling time and expense, for many lads not on particulary high salaries. Good luck to anyone getting over to Swansea in a couple of hours. And back.
Driving from Sunderland SOL 542 miles return to Arsenal 702 miles return to Swansea 556 miles to Spurs So 1800 miles in a week for supporters to travel from the SOL. I know lads that can afford it - I used to when I was a student as we always got cheap travel and tickets but 1800 miles is 4 full tanks of diesel in my car with around 200 miles left at the end - I know 2 lads that are doing it but have taken the whole week off work and are staying in London near Arsenal/Spurs so they travel down there on the Friday, stay in digs for the week and a bit and drive over to swansea for the midweek game! 1800 miles in my car is around £180 for fuel (costs me around 10p a mile to run), plus the cost of tickets (around £150 in total I reckon) plus everything else you'll end up paying for in the trip I rckon you'r talking best part of £400 in a week for the games! I also think it gives Swansea an advantage - they moved the game to accommodate them - never asked Sunderland just moved it from the Tuesday. If it was on the Tuesday it gives SAFC an extra recovery day between the midweek and weekend away games. As per the norm though, the PL seem to value the Welsh above the English! I expect it for London sides but Swansea isn't even in England so why should anyone give a **** about them in the ENGLISH Premier League!
I agree with the FA, to be honest. If we had a cup game on Sunday, there's no way we'd be happy to also play the Tuesday. In fact, it's just common sense that they aren't going to play a cup game, miss a day and then straight into a league fixture. When has that ever been the norm? Everybody else in the league has just had to play 2 games in 3 days over the Christmas, we didn't, we got a couple of days extra rest before we played Liverpool...
Thing is we had less rest before playing Villa than anyone else did on the Saturday The issue I have with it is that Swansea have 2 home games from the 3 and all supporters already had their tickets and travel sorted for the Tuesday night game when they moved it - if the Sunday game was a league game I would agree with you - for Swansea it is a cup game against (with all due respect) Oxford! We have a cup game at Arsenal, then away league games to Swansea and Spurs (also Swansea are not playing the following weekend until the Monday) so they have 3 games in 8 days (2 at home) and we have 3 away games in 7 - 3 of the longest league journeys as well in a week. Less time to prepare for the Saturday away game due to having to move the Tuesday night game!
Yeah, I agree with that bit too. The supporters that can't now make it should be compensated by Swansea for any expenditure that they can't claim back. I can't get away from my thinking though, which is, this is the way it has always been with rearranging fixtures, when a team plays on a Sunday. Why it should it be any different for us? The FA should certainly have dealt with this quicker, it's just standard though to allow teams 48 hours rest between games. It's unfortunate for us, but we need to just get on with it.
Thing is mate that the tuesday is more than 48 hours rest for Swansea - I think Sams issue is more with the fact that there are 2 league games so close to a cup game - therefore devaluing the cup! (having read his comments again) which he is completely correct about - why not have the 2 league games in a week between other league games instead of on a cup week?
Dont know what the fuss is about, every team plays 19 away games now you got 2 on the trot league games happens to most teams, just unlucky sunderland are away in the cup, but you had 50/50 chance of being drawn at home.
Sounded like he was referring to the team when he said the league should be on a level playing field. The fans are a different matter and some will obviously just give a game a miss. It happens, that's life.
Yes but how would you feel about travelling 1800 miles in a week to watch your team if you were from one of the poorer areas of the country? (the last part of that sentence may be impossible for you to comprehend but I don't know how your work/personal/.financial situation is and it's none of my business but I am making assumptions) but I hope you can see what I mean by it Having two league games in a week that involves the cup is completely devaluing the cup (which is what sam is getting at) having 2 away league games that week makes it stupidly difficult to manage! I love the FA cup but reckon we won't be in the draw for the 4th round and won't really mind if we're not. "bigger fish to fry" as they say!
Just how the 'cookie crumbles' if your drawn anyone at home or Boro away things are not so bad, Palace and Leicester also have 3 away matches on the same days Sunderland play.
Not sure if you get the "2 league games the week after the cup" comments or you just don't read it properly It's nothing to do with being drawn away in the cup. It's to do with the 2 league games being the week of the cup - and the league game on the (now) Wednesday being moved just 2 weeks before the game itself after all of the fans had probably booked all of the their travel/accommodation/holidays from work for the Tuesday game. The cup is great - I love the Cups - but the 2 league games immediately after are far more important to us. Why not leave the midweek game until later in the season when the cup isn't on? Make everyone play 3 league games in a week which doesn't take away from the cup at all? That would make far more sense to me and also doesn't devalue the cup Palace have 170 miles on the Saturday for the cup, 268 on the midweek, 435 on the weekend - less than 830 miles (1000 less than Sunderland) and Leicester have Spurs (200m) , then Spurs (200m) then Villa (85m) so 485 miles in a week - so you're saying that palace and leicester have as bad a pile up as Sunderland? Seriously? Especially as Leicester can simply set up for a few days in London then head home for a short journey to Villa! whereas Sunderland have 1800 miles to travel in the week? I wonder how you'd feel is Spurs had to travel 1800 miles for domestic away games in a week
There's 14 premiership teams playing on the Wednesday after the FA Cup, so Sunderland are not alone , be interesting to see what teams play their first XI and how many clubs value the cup, which for most is going to be their only chance of glory
2,000 supporters going to Arsenal !, in this weather, come on Sam play a strong team. I have already said Wembley was built to make it easy for southerners and politicians easy to get to, no regard for northern supporters. Could have built it near Derby.
Brick wall.. Bangs head again!! Devaluing the cup isn't just devaluing it for Sunderland! It is devaluing the competition (which I have said twice now) so I my issue along with Sam allardyce is that the premier league are giving the fa cup no respect!
