Sunderland failed to break down Swansea City and picked up a frustrating solitary point on the road.
Anthony Patterson saved a penalty against the run of play, but Sunderland hit the woodwork three times as they were held by ten-men Swansea who played most of the game a man down after Charlie Patino's two yellow cards in the first half.
Going into this game, Sunderland had just picked up their first win in three matches, after the lads butchered Norwich last Saturday. The game saw Nazariy Rusyn make his first start for the club and Jack Clarke continue his stellar goal scoring form. However, if Tony Mowbray had any plans of going up this season his side would have to put a significant run of wins together.
Next up was Swansea City, a team that did the double over Sunderland last season. But, a lot has changed since then and the Jacks have lost a lot of key players and staff. Former top scorer Joël Piroe made the move to Elland Road, meanwhile assist machine Ryan Manning, and manager Russell Martin both joined Southampton. Former Barnsley man Michael Duff was brought in as Martin’s replacement, and his side sat 13th going into this game after a 1-0 win at Blackburn last weekend.
Starting 11: Anthony Patterson, Trai Hume, Luke O’Nien (C), Dan Ballard, Niall Huggins, Dan Neil, Pierre Ekwah, Patrick Roberts, Jobe, Jack Clarke, Nazariy Rusyn.
Mowbray named an unchanged starting 11, but to my surprise Eliezer Mayenda wasn’t on the bench, despite travelling with the squad. That said, the bench was looking far stronger, with the likes of Alex Pritchard, Bradley Dack, Dennis Cirkin, Abdoullah Ba, and a variety of prospects all available.
The game began with a minutes silence for remembrance day, since it was Swansea last home game before the 11th November. Rusyn then kicked things off and the match was underway.
Dan Ballard played through Dan Neil, and the midfielder received a few funny looks after he decided to go for a shot instead of passing it to Patrick Roberts. The Lads were pressing well and controlling the game.
Unlike last time, Roberts and Neil linked up for another opportunity on goal. The Home side were just about blocking the shots. Charlie Patino was then booked for a late challenge on Pierre Ekwah.
Nazariy Rusyn had a great opportunity, after Jobe threaded through a lovely weighted ball. Unfortunately, he was a bit off balance and his shot went just wide. The Ukrainian was then booked for standing in front of the ball, which stopped Swansea from taking a quick free kick.
The Lads continued to ask questions of the Swansea defence, and it looked like a goal was coming. Trai Hume fizzed the ball across the box, and Jack Clarke came close to making it 1-0. The replay showed that it was a good save from goalkeeper Carl Rushworth.
I immediately felt a sense of déjà vu when Patino hacked down Ekwah again. The young midfielder picked up his second yellow, and was sent off for the clumsy challenge. This was a huge boost for the lads who were now playing against 10 men.
Roberts came close to scoring, but another great save from Rushworth kept things level. The first half ended with a Swansea corner, which ended with Luke O’Nien giving away a penalty. It was a careless error, but fortunately Patterson dove the right way. Jamal Lowe will be really disappointed with himself - I'm never a fan of a stuttered run up. O’Nien was a very lucky man and needs to cut out his set-piece grappling.
Jack Clarke then had his free kick hit the crossbar. What a chaotic way to end the half. Sunderland were in complete control, and Swansea failed to cash in their golden ticket for an advantage.
The 10 men of Swansea got things back under way, but Sunderland very quickly regained control of the game. This half was shaping up to be attack vs defence. Jay Fulton and Dan Ballard both picked up yellow cards for some tough challenges. Michael Duff was also shown a yellow for his touchline outburst.
Tony Mowbray decided to make his first changes of the game. Rusyn, Jobe, and Huggins came off for Hemir, Pritchard, and Dack. It was clear that he was trying to add some more creativity to our attack.
The minutes were ticking by, and Sunderland were still hunting for a goal. Roberts whipped in a ball that was very nearly tapped in by Hemir. Jamal Lowe also had a decent opportunity from a counter attack, but just like the penalty the shot was flat.
Pierre Ekwah then had multiple long shots, one of which looked like it was going in. Alex Pritchard then got in on the action and had a solid effort, that went out for a corner. Luke O’Nien nearly broke the deadlock from that corner, but Rushworth made another great save.
Dan Ballard hobbled off the pitch and Dennis Cirkin was subbed on in his place. Trai Hume drove forward and had a crack, but just like most efforts on goal this afternoon it went wide.
Harry Darling was booked for time wasting, and Abdoullah Ba was subbed on for Dan Neil. At this point the lads just needed a goal. Swansea were piling men back, and they were blocking everything.
Ba then had an effort that hit the bar. It felt like we would never score, although it would only have taken one chance to change everything.
Eight minutes of stoppage time were added, and Swansea were defending for dear life. Luke O’Nien entered the book for a late tackle on Jamal Lowe, and will now serve a one match suspension.
The game ended 0-0, and I can’t lie I’m a bit disappointed. Sunderland have to win games like that if they want to win promotion.
ALS Man of The Match – Anthony Patterson: He was a passenger for most of the game but we probably would have lost if he hadn't came up with that great penalty save.
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