Hull City striker Josh Magennis delivers Sunderland verdict plus Peterborough boss reacts to costly setback

The game at the KCOM Stadium finished 2-2 as Magennis equalised twice for the hosts, extending the Tigers’ lead at the top of League One.

“It was a frantic game and it probably had everything barring a red card,” Magennis told the club’s website.

“At this stage of the season we’re coming up against teams that are fighting for so much, whether it’s survival or like Sunderland going for promotion.

“There’s so much at stake and our performance in the first 20 minutes last night wasn’t really good enough, certainly compared to the standards we’ve set this season.

“But I think it’s testament to us as a group that we’ve come from a goal down to go on and push the game, and we probably should have won it in the end because we had the chances to do so.

“It’s disappointing that we didn’t win, but it was huge that we didn’t lose because that might have given Sunderland a foothold.”

Peterborough slip up against Gillingham

Sunderland are now seven points off the automatic promotion places with four games remaining – but that gap could have been wider if second-placed Peterborough hadn’t lost 1-0 at home to Gillingham.

“It’s a bad result. And we only have ourselves to blame,” Peterborough boss Darren Ferguson told our sister title the Peterborough Telegraph. “You can’t start games like we started this one against any team, never mind one that just likes to get the ball forward.

"The first 20 minutes have cost us the match. We treated the ball like a hot potato and played the game they wanted us to play.”

Accrington Stanley boss looking to cause an upset

Next up for Sunderland is a home game against Accrington Stanley this weekend.

John Coleman’s side are 12th in the table following a 2-1 win over Doncaster and will be looking to cause an upset.

“They’ll be going in with a lot to play for but so have we and I’ll never say never,” said Coleman when asked about Sunderland.

“You’ve just got to see the run Wigan are on at the moment, why can’t we be like that.”

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