Stephen Elliott: Sunderland have unearthed an 'absolute gem' after star performance

I believe this game not going ahead was a blessing in disguise and would have given Tony Mowbray more time to work with his squad and new additions on the training pitch.

I wouldn’t be surprised if because of this we saw arguably the best performance of the season at Reading on Wednesday.

The fact that the win was without talisman Ross Stewart and for the best part Ellis Simms, this was extra impressive.

I can’t move on without talking about how good the three goals where, especially Jack Clarke’s which has to be one of Sunderland’s best ever team goals.

Going into the weekend’s game against Watford, the manager would have been confident but also aware of the lack of fit forwards in the squad.

Watford is always going to be a difficult game given that they have a squad that was competing in the Premier League not so long ago and it proved that way.

The hosts started the game on the front foot and I thought it was going to be a long afternoon after they scored the opening goal.

But, as we have become accustomed to seeing, this Sunderland team can stay in games and with the attacking players in the squad always create opportunities.

After going in level at the break once again Watford came out firing on all cylinders and probably deserved to take the lead again after the unfortunate Luke O’Nien headed into his own net.

I think the last half hour of the game will have pleased the manager and the supporters that made the trip the most though.

The introduction of all five substitutes shows that if a spark is needed then there are players that can come onto the pitch and have a big effect on proceedings.

I thought all the subs played their part.

Amad Diallo looked like he wanted the ball all the time and showed his quality when on it.

He will be important to Tony Mowbray and I would not be surprised to see him in the starting line-up sooner rather than later.

However, in young Costa Rican Jewison Bennette I think the club have found an absolute gem.

He looked electric when he entered the fray and the way he finished for his equaliser showed a maturity beyond his years.

I’m not too sure if Alex Neil would have been so inclined to make that many subs, so I see this as big plus for this manager.

The two thousand travelling fans would have been delighted with the point especially after going behind on the two occasions but I’ve a sneaky feeling that the manager is probably thinking on another day he comes away with all three points.

There were enough chances created and one blatant penalty shout turned away.

Going into the break in the play-off positions highlights it has been a brilliant start to the season and once again there is a buzz around the club and city.

With this comes a bit more expectancy and hopefully these players can continue to live up to these expectations.

If they do we will be in for an exciting first season back in the Championship.