***** see also Toon truly Doon *****

AND some restrained, non-gloating images – utterly priceless – at Ready to Go

SUNDERLAND SAFE … TOON DOON with BORO …

… from the SoL and the south of France, both Pete Sixsmith – surely, I thought, that’s him above but it’s not* – and Colin Randall did their bits to keep Salut! Sunderland abreast of momentous events.

But Villa earned our undying affection by sending Newcastle United crashing deservedly out of the Premier League.

Minutes after the final whistles sounded everywhere, Salut! Sunderland passed the 1,000 mark for hits so far today – helped hugely by visits from fans of other clubs after our feature on the Who Are They? awards – and then Niall Quinn announced that Ricky Sbragia had stood down as manager but had a guaranteed future at the Stadium of Light if he wanted it …

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Each matchday, Pete Sixsmith – Sixer to friends – delivers his seven-word verdict. It has not always made a pretty sight, but it IS always to the point and fair. His seven words* at around 6pm today are some of the most important he will ever have written – which is saying a lot for a bloke who has passed exams, taught Stan Cummins’s sister (isn’t that right Pete?) and filled in his own tax forms … roll on salvation

May 24 2009 Sunderland 2 (0) Chelsea 3 (0) Better performance but Villa are the heroes
May 18 2009 Portsmouth (0) 3 Sunderland (0) 1 Another defensive horror show threatens another relegation
May 9 2009 Bolton (0) O Sunderland (0) O Effort and commitment but still need point
May 3 2009 Sunderland (0) 0 Everton (0) 2 Another defensive shambles, another nail in coffin
April 25 2009 West Bromwich Albion (1) 3 Sunderland (0) 0 A performance so bad it defies description
April 18 2009 Sunderland (1) 1 v Hull City (0) 0 Vital win in a truly awful game
April 11 2009 Sunderland (0) 1 v Man United (1) 2 Better performance than result gives some hope
April 04 2009 West Ham United 2 (1) v Sunderland (0) 0 Dreadful result and performance enhances relegation credentials

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So we’re all fretting away like mad. We need our minds taking off the trauma of 4pm-6pm Sunday.

Then let Salut! Sunderland offer a little relief by announcing that it has found three prizes for winners of the great Who Are They? awards.

No, we cannot offer a Championship season ticket for St James’ Park as they haven’t been printed yet and we wouldn’t want to tempt fate anyway. No flyaway holidays; not even a measly million from Chris Tarrant or your MP’s duck pond account.

But we have things football fans would actually want to possess:

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