Same Old Sunderland, 1-1 Against Portsmouth

A game which looked over as a contest after only 6 minutes was brought back to life by Sunderland ’s inability to kill off the opposition. Yet again! How many times over the years have Sunderland allowed the opposition to fight their way back into the game and steal a late point (or all three?)…too many to remember.

Last night was as frustrating as ever. After starting the game well and winning a penalty, Portsmouth went a man down and Bent dispatched the spot-kick. I thought we were really going to take the game to Pompey but our lack of confidence showed and we struggled to create opportunities going forward.

Even with ten men, Portsmouth looked like scoring, they battled well and looked dangerous on the attack. O’Hara in particular played very well. The sad thing is, it was probably one of the better Sunderland performances I’ve seen lately and I was convinced we were strong enough to beat even a resolute Pompey side.

Kenwyne Jones had a good game; it was like watching the Kenwyne Jones of old. He won everything in the air; he was causing the defenders all sorts of trouble. When he pulled off an exquisite 360 in the centre of the field, he left ex-Sunderland player Ben Haim for dead, only to be dragged to the floor by Ben Haim who managed to get away without a caution (he was later booked which should really have been a second yellow). By this stage the referee had completely lost the plot and it was clear he was trying in vain to even things up having sent off Ricardo Rocha for accidentally tripping Bent when through on goal. He nearly got that wrong, initially sending off Hassan Yebda only to realise it was the wrong player. What an idiot.

The second half was similar to the first, Sunderland choked up the pressure and welcomed Portsmouth to come at them which they duly obliged. It was looking more likely they were going to get an equaliser but Kilgallon come very close to putting the game to bed after striking the bar with a fantastic effort. Sunderland also had a disallowed goal which had went in off a Portsmouth defender. Bent was judged to be offside, which the replays proved to be the right decision.

In the 54th minute Lee Cattermole was sent off for a second booking in what seemed like as many minutes. The first was never a booking in the first place and the second although a little harsh was a silly challenge and knowing what the referee was like, it was uncalled for.

Sunderland later found themselves down to nine men. In a fit of madness David Meyler was sent off for an elbow on Steve Finnan in the 87th minute. He’d only been on the field for two minutes before being show his marching orders. Meyler had been brought on for an injured Andy Reid who went down holding his ham-string.

The referee – Kevin Friend has sent off four players this season. Three of them Sunderland players. He had a shocking game but Meyler’s sending off was a certainty.

When the fourth official revealed there were six minutes to be added on I think most fans hearts sank. We were on the back foot and defending for our lives by this stage. Portsmouth threw everything at us. And in the 96th minute Aruna Dindane equalised in the 96th to earn Portsmouth a draw. Typical.

We really are a soft touch at the moment. I hope the lads sort it out soon. And to think relegation battles were behind us.

Next up…Arsenal!