Sunderland host AFC Wimbledon in League One Last time out Sunderland beat Manchester City and Wimbledon beat West Ham. Bottom club AFC Wimbledon travel to the Stadium of Light for the first time. George Honeyman returned to training on Monday. Grant Leadbitter could also feature after signing a 2 year deal on Tuesday. Will Grigg has not yet arrived on Wearside and is not expected to figure in Sunderland's game against AFC Wimbledon. The 27-year-old has been out of action with an ankle injury for the last fortnight but had been due to return to training with Wigan on Friday, and Ross expects him to start training with Sunderland on Monday and to be in contention when the Black Cats go to Oxford United next weekend. Ethan Robson has gone out on loan to Dundee. Jack Ross: “We haven’t brought Grant back for sentimental reasons, he could have easily continued his career in the Championship." “Once I started speaking to him, I had a real feel for how desperate he was to come back to Sunderland, and how much he wants to help take the club back to where he feels it belongs." “He understands we have a long path ahead of us, but his playing career speaks for itself, and he’s ready to play his part.” Wally Downes: “If we had played like we did on Tuesday, it would have been a cricket score, Fear is the biggest motivator in the world and it forced them into playing well. Now they’ve shown me they have got that ability.” “This should breed confidence because we’re going to Sunderland next, who were a Premier League club two years ago and are at the top of the table now. You can’t go there as shrinking violets and you can’t go there as Charlie Big Potatoes. They have to perform again.” Match Appointments: Referee: Ben Toner Assistant Referees: Richard Wild and Simon Clayton Fourth Official : Matthew McGrath Team Line ups Sunderland: McLaughlan, Matthews, Dunne, Baldwin, James, Cattermole, Honeyman, O’Nien, McGeady, Morgan, Wyke Subs: Ruiter, Oviedo, Flanagan, Leadbitter, Power, Maguire, Gooch Injured: Love, Hume, Loovens, Grigg Suspended: None AFC Wimbledon: Ramsdale, Watson, Thomas, Oshilaja, McDonald, Nightingale, Wordsworth, Connolly, Wagstaff, Pinnock, Appiah Subs: Jervis, Garratt, Trotter, Soares, Sibbick, McDonnell, Pigott Betting Odds: H 8/13 A 4/1 D 29/10 My two pence: We could have done without Wimbledon producing their performance of the season last weekend but they are not bottom of the league for nothing. Let’s hope they used up all their energy and now return to type. My guess is a 3-0 home win. Ha’way the Lads
Can't look beyond a win for you guys. Too many draws recently, has kept you in touch but now it's time to push on. I'm not sure who is going to score the goals but i think 2-0 and you'll be in the automatic places by the end of Feb.
with our two new strikers ?and Honeyman fit plus leadbitter added we should get cracking and put a winning run together. Leadbitter for Catts, but when winning Catts for Leadbitter.
They’ve had a decent break to recharge the batteries after a hectic few weeks so should be firing on all cylinders. With new faces and injuries clearing should put some pressure on starting 11 to perform. Be great to get a few for the goal diff and a clean sheet but i’d take 1 - 0 now to get back to winning ways in the league.
Went for the home win,again(and it's not just a gut feeling this time). But our last 5 game's 4 x draw's & 1 win, just an't good enough, must do better,game's in hand we have and have to win.ktf. Big win this weekend.
Jack Ross: "It’s well documented that we had a bid accepted for Will Grigg very late last night, and my understanding is that it looks like that will all go ahead. We are waiting for FA approval. Over the next hour or so we should get confirmation of that. "Lewis and Grant will certainly be in the squad. Kazaiah only travelled up late last night, so we’ll see how he is this morning." "As a young man, as a character and his attitude towards the game, he very much fits in with what we’re trying to do." "Also, we’ve only really had Lynden and Aiden for majority of the season that give us natural options in wide areas. I know Duncan, but I still very much view him as anything we get from him is a bonus. So, to have another option in wide areas is a plus for us. Lewis is so two-footed that he can play from either side as well." "It gives me another option, but it also strengthens that competition for places, I think that’s important at this time of the year as well." On Maja: " What I feel personally is irrelevant because I’m here to manage a football club. It’s not about whether I feel happy, sad, disappointed or whatever it might be." "I spoke to Josh during the week and I’m not going to say anything other than the relationship I had with him was very good. I think there was some life-learning experiences for Josh through that month that we had that will stand him in good stead as a person, never mind as a footballer. We all have that at different stages in our life." "The contribution he made to our season to date was fantastic. I’m disappointed I don’t have him because I enjoyed working with him and I think he’s a talented player. I wish him every success in his move and he’s somebody that I think will remain in contact with me because I think he did value the help we gave him over the last 7 months as well."
There is no official report on Grigg signing for us either on the bbc sport site or sky sports, worrying that mind really happy we have a very big squad now. I would like to see Morgan making his debut tomorrow and maybe Grant coming on in the 2nd half weather permitting Barnsley and Portsmouth games look In doubt with a bit of luck.
https://www.safc.com/news/team-news/2019/february/sunderland-seal-grigg-deal Sunderland AFC have completed the signing of Will Grigg from Wigan Athletic. Arriving from the DW Stadium, the striker put pen to paper on a three-and-a-half year deal moments before the January transfer window slammed shut. Grigg is a proven goalscorer and he boasts an impressive strike rate in Sky Bet League One, having bagged 25 goals in Wigan’s 2015-16 title-winning campaign. And he was similarly clinical during the 2017-18 season, scoring 19 times as the Latics were once again crowned third-tier champions. A goal-laden career within the Football League has seen the 27-year-old win promotion from League One on four occasions in the last five years. As well as his double title success at Wigan, Grigg also won automatic promotion with Brentford during the 2013-14 season, and with MK Dons during the 2014-15 campaign. A Northern Ireland international, the striker has earned 13 caps to date while also being named in the nation’s 23-man squad for Euro 2016. Grigg becomes the club’s fifth and final January signing, following Jimmy Dunne, Grant Leadbitter, Lewis Morgan and Kazaiah Sterling to the Stadium of Light, while Max Power’s loan deal was also made permanent.
It is on the beeb now too. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/47086441 They reckon that was our 8th bid for Grigg. Stewie was clearly very determined to get his man.
