Sunderland fan blog: Fury after Dan Neil’s red card will remain for a long time after Middlesbrough defeat

“There are always learning curves but as for the second half of the game, we’ll throw it in the bin and move on.”

The majority of Tony Mowbray’s post-match press conference circulated around the one key decision that ultimately altered the course of this contest, but here was one sentence that summed up this Sunderland team.

This is a group of players that everyone knows is full of youth and so there’s always likely to be these days along the way, along the journey that has so often impressed and excited.

Yet what really riles Sunderland supporters, and a post-match Mowbray, is the inconsistency of match officials.

The new rules that were imposed within the early stages of this campaign have rather faded away within a matter of months.

Clamp down on time-wasting and dissent was meant to make games more enjoyable and without major controversy, but this was a game that was ruined by the moment just before the half-time interval.

After telling both managers pre-match that he would referee the game “empathetically”, Jarred Gillett ultimately destroyed what was, up until that point, a highly-exciting game of Championship football.

An equally-contested first-half in which both sides cautiously played their own styles of football was all set up for another exciting half of football, until Neil saw red.

In the end, Middlesbrough strolled to a heavy victory on Sunderland soil that will leave frustration and disappointment lingering for some time.

The Black Cats will have to respond against Alex Neil’s struggling Stoke City after the international break but, after a rather impressive period since the last break, all is not lost on what has been an exciting season so far.

For the 10 men this will no doubt be a learning curve, but for Mowbray and the supporters the fury directed at Gillett will remain for a long time.