Bound for Europe
The Salut! Sunderland service does not run to instant reports on pre-season friendlies. Or at least it didn’t.

Summer breaks – and yes, for those who got drenched in and around Darlington last night, it is officially still summer – were never going to get in the way of Pete Sixsmith. Big Pete, pictured left on a city inspection in case Paris is chosen again (and in time for us) for a Champions League final, had a spot of pre-Premiership match practice of his own to put in.

The two succinct messages, both enhancing my enjoyment of the rather balmier climes of the south of France, read: “1-0 half time. Wallace” and then “2-0. Stokes”. His fuller thoughts, fresh in, appear on the continuation page – well worth a read.

From here, I will just say this. These games are interesting rather than instructive. When we win, and 2-0 away, even at Darlo, is a respectable enough start (our 5,500 travelling-not-that-far support was also respectable), you hope it’s a foretaste of what’s to come.

And when you lose, you look for that reassuring managerspeak line about these games being “all about fitness not the result”.

There is more about the detail of the game here, and also here. Read on to see what Pete, who would turn out to watch the Lads if they were playing table football in a Redcar amusement arcade, made of it.

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