Championship/Sunderland 2 Stoke City 2:Hardly allowing their hosts room to breath, let alone exchange slick passes, Stoke City produced a diligent, disciplined performance even Roy Keane must grudgingly have admired. Creditably, Tony Pulis's team looked to attack at every opportunity and nearly subjected Sunderland to their first Championship defeat of 2007.
Instead the substitute Daryl Murphy's late goal - scored with his left foot after Grant Leadbitter's ball in and Nyron Nosworthy's flick-on - prevented a first reverse in 12 league games.
Keane's side fell behind following Darren Ward's goalkeeping error. When Darel Russell intercepted Danny Simpson's intended clearance and let fly from around 25 yards his shot did not seem overly strong and was, in any case, aimed straight at Ward, who appeared to have it well under control. Then, just as the home danger appeared to have passed and the save was made, the goalkeeper permitted the ball to trickle through his fingers and into the net.
Sunderland promptly equalised. Grant Leadbitter had been one of Keane's brighter sparks and his powerful run and whipped-in cross confounded Pulis's defence. All that remained was for David Connolly to chest it down for Dean Whitehead to stretch out a boot and direct the bouncing ball beyond Steve Simonsen's reach.
Stoke might have regained the lead when Liam Lawrence, a winger swiftly moved out of the Stadium of Light by Keane, swung in a cross from the left and Stoke's towering centre forward Mamady Sidibe was not too far off target with an overhead kick.
If Sidibe made Nyron Nosworthy, his far from insubstantial central-defensive minder, appear a relative midget, Nosworthy and Jonny Evans were left looking like novices when, with half-time fast approaching, they failed to deal with another left-wing cross, this time from Russell. After the ball had been permitted to bobble around for too long, it dropped for Carl Hoefkens, whose superbly executed half volley flew beyond the helpless Ward.
In a bid to offer Sunderland attacking pace down the flanks, Keane introduced Ross Wallace at left back in place of Evans - who had struggled in the face of Stoke's physicality - and also moved Danny Collins to centre half. Yet Stoke kept closing down Sunderland and Keane was soon berating Wallace for shooting wildly on sight rather than seeking out incisive passes.
Stern John's sole attacking impact had been an ambitious attempt to lob Simonsen and he, too, was replaced, by Daryl Murphy. Yet even though Tobias Hysen displayed some searing pace, he and his team-mates were finding Stoke stubborn opponents. Much of that obduracy seemed to stem from Salif Diao, whose central-midfield dominance was impressive.
SUNDERLAND:Ward, Simpson, Nosworthy, Evans (Wallace 46), Collins, Leadbitter, Whitehead, Yorke (Liam Miller 68), Hysen, John (Murphy 55), Connolly. Subs not used:Fulop, Tommy Miller. Booked:Simpson, Collins, Liam Miller. Goals:Whitehead 24, Murphy 90.
STOKE:Simonsen, Hoefkens, Zakuani (Dickinson 82), Higginbotham, Griffin, Lawrence, Diao, Fortune, Russell, Sidibe (Eustace 86), Parkin (Fuller 61). Subs not used:Hoult, Martin. Booked:Lawrence, Hoefkens. Goals:Russell 22, Hoefkens 45.
Referee: M Jones(Mansfield).
