I had arrived in the North East for a school reunion at Durham City Rugby Club. I stayed in the Bannatyne Hotel in Belmont and my old school friend Malcolm Bates got me a ticket as he was a season ticket holder at the club. It was a cold blustery day with the cold wind swirling around the stadium. I thought we were doing well to contain Arsenal when Wes Brown decided to pass back to the keeper and only succeeded in getting in a tangle and allowing the ball to run loose Alexis to nip in and lob Man none for the first goal. The rest of the game I felt was even stevens but there was still time for more comical and embarrassing defending with Vergini under pressure passing back to his keeper instead of clearing the ball away from goal. Mannone then made a right pigs ear with the ball and ended up toeing the ball to Alexis who again accepted the ball scoring with a simple tap into the net. Will we be relegated? Will Guys Poyet keep his job? The answers will come in the ensuing months, only time will tell.

With Stiz and Bradley, Sanchez