The Black Cats boss made 11 changes to his starting XI following Saturday’s win at Bristol City, with Neil keen to give minutes to other members of his squad.
An excellent strike from Wednesday midfielder Dennis Adeniran put the hosts ahead in the 16th minute, before substitute Sylla Sow added a second after half-time.
Our chief SAFC writer Phil Smith has dished out his player ratings from the match at Hillsborough.
Here’s how each player fared:
1. Alex Bass - 5
Nothing he could do about Adeniran’s stunning opener, but a slack pass out led to the second. Didn’t have a great deal to do but distribution was quite inconsistent. 5 Photo: Martin Swinney
2. Trai Hume - 6
Showed his tenacity with some good challenges in his own box. A little tentative going forward at times but put one good cross in and was one of the few who looked comfortable for the most part. 6 Photo: Frank Reid
3. Carl Winchester - 4
Really struggle to get up to the pace of the early on and have the ball away too regularly. Did improve and got stuck in but nearly gifted up a third goal late on. 4 Photo: Frank Reid
4. Bailey Wright - 5
Looked understandably rusty after having had no game time through the first couple of the weeks of the season. 5 Photo: Frank Reid