Protests over board to continue..

Further protests over the running of Sunderland AFC are expected at the forthcoming home match against fellow promoted club Wigan.

Following Mick McCarthy's sacking fans have used the opportunity in the limelight to highlight the real problems at Sunderland AFC, the board.

National and local radio phone-ins and television debates have been dominated by Sunderland fans, players, ex-players and pundits giving their views on the situation on Wearside.

The debate still remains as to whether sacking McCarthy was beneficial, with the suggestion that the timing was poor. Striker Kevin Kyle added his views to the wealth of dissenters, agreeing with fellow player Liam Lawrence that 'With ten games to go, to sack the manager - I don't see any point in it,' Kyle told Sky Sports News.

'What's anybody coming in now going to achieve with ten games to go?

'They are not going to save us, we're going down.

'If we go down and get relegated, I don't think there's a better man to get us back up than the gaffer, as he's already proved his worth in The Championship.'

What most fans seemed agreed on though, is that what Sunderland needs to really move on, is a completely new set up, beginning at board level. A 'Murray out' banner was displayed towards the end of the game at Manchester City, and further similar protests are thought to be planned, though stewards will be told to be on watch for any such action.

The irony of the situation being that the protests are planned at home before and after the match against Wigan, a side who spent similar amounts of money in the summer and whose facilities and set up is vastly inferior to Sunderland's. Yet 10 places and 30 points separate the two sides. For this the blame can only lie with the running of the club.

One thing is for sure, if Murray thought sacking McCarthy would deflect the blame from him and his fellow board members, he was gravely mistaken.

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