Sunderland 1-0 Middlesbrough: Controversial decisions, moment of genius and superb debut
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Sunderland bounced back to winning ways to defeat Middlesbrough and return temporarily to the top fo the Championship table on Saturday afternoon.
Chris Rigg’s brilliantly inventive finish in the first half proved to be the difference in a tight game between two teams with big promotion ambitions this season. Here’s the story of the game and its talking points from a Sunderland perspective...
SUNDERLAND GET DOUBLE REPRIEVE EARLY ON
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdLe Bris had made just one change to his Sunderland side, opting to bring Chris Mepham in for his full debut with Dan Ballard only returning to full training towards the end of the week. Middlesbrough started the brighter of the two sides, and probably should have taken the lead when they opened Sunderland up down their left flank inside the first five minutes. Jones crossed well from the right and with O’Nien slipping inside the box, Tommy Conway had a free header from just in front of the penalty box. He beat Patterson with his effort but it struck the bar and went over, a big early reprieve for the hosts.
They had another moments later when Trai Hume lunged in on Latte Lath to try and bring an end to a dangerous attack, catching the striker late. The referee showed a yellow card and Azax curled the free kick well over the bar from just outside the area.
SUNDERLAND SETTLE AND A FLASH OF GENIUS PUTS THEM AHEAD
Sunderland settled after that rocky start, content to sit fairly deep and only press when Middlesbrough worked their way towards the edge of the box - hoping then to spring quickly and in numbers. Clear chances started to become few and far between for both sides, though Matt Clarke probably should have done better when rising to meet a corner, heading comfortably over the bar.
Patterson went long from the following goal kick and after a poor attempt at a clearance from Ayling, Sunderland were in. Mundle drove towards goal and teed up Roberts, who cut inside and had a shot. Edmundson stuck out a leg and the loose ball fell to Rigg, who got in front of the goalkeeper but looked to have overrun it as the ball headed for the byline. Instead he unveiled a deft to backheel to steer the ball in, a flash of genius to open the scoring.
BIG DECISION JUST BEFORE HALF TIME
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdBoth teams looked more dangerous throughout the half when on the break, the speed with which Middlesbrough got forward justifying Le Bris’ decision not to press high and push numbers in the pitch. They traded dangerous attacks just before half time, Mundle drawing a save from Dieng after he cut infield following Jobe’s clever pass. Boro sprung forward themselves and Azaz’s long-range effort was nodded over the bar by Cirkin.
In stoppage time the referee waved away Sunderland’s claims for a penalty after Mundle again burst into the box, going down under a challenge. Middlesbrough broke forward quickly and Latte Lath was in on goal, his dinked effort just dropping over the crossbar.
PROMISING START TO SECOND HALF
Sunderland had badly lost their way after the break at Home Park a week previous but there start here was much more encouraging, controlling the game much better and even carving out some chances of their own. A brilliant crossfield pass allowed Roberts to cut inside from the right and his long-range effort dipped jyust inches past the far post.
It wasn’t until the 68th minute that Middlesbrough forged their first big chance of the half, lovely footwork from Aidan Morris inside the box freeing up the space for him to shoot. Thankfully for Sunderland, his effort was high and wide of the far post.
MUNDLE ALMOST SETTLES IT
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdMundle had again been hugely impressive and went close to scoring a brilliant individual strike when Sunderland nicked the ball back in midfield, breaking to the edge of the area where Mayenda drew a foul. Dieng expected the effort to go towards his far corner but instead Mundle whipped it to the near corner, his effort striking the post and bouncing agonisingly clear.
BORO APPLY PRESSURE BUT SUNDERLAND HOLD ON
Sunderland understandably ended the game camped in their own box but the hosts held out well and the contest finished without Anthony Patterson really having too much to do.
It was a tight game and Middlesbrough will feel they were wasteful in some promising positons, but Sunderland responded impressively to their first defeat and produced a pleasingly mature showing in the second half. Rigg’s superb finish will rightly get the headlines but equally impressive were Jobe Bellingham in midfield and Chris Mepham at the heart of defence, an unfussy showing exactly what Sunderland needed.
Sunderland XI: Patterson; Hume, O’Nien, Mepham, Cirkin; Neil, Browne, Rigg (Ballard, 90); Roberts, Mundle (Roberts, 80), Mayenda
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdSubs: Ogunsuyi, Watson, Jones, Aleksic, Rusyn, Moore, Hjelde
Middlesbrough XI: Dieng; Ayling, Clarke, Edmundson, Borges; Morris, Hackney; Jones (Doak, 60), Conway, Azaz (Hamilton, 61); Latte Lath (Burgzorg, 73)
Subs: Bryn, Barlaser, McGree, Dijksteel, Hunt, McCabe
Bookings: Hume, 8 Latte Lath, 20 Roberts, 45 Rigg, 70 Doak, 86
Attendance: 42, 871
Comment Guidelines
National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.