Sunderland coach delivers verdict on League One campaign so far - and what squad must do next

A win would take the Black Cats up to the two points-per-game mark at the halfway stage of the League One campaign, and would suggest a side on track for promotion.

McAllister says his side will have to 'earn the right' to show their attacking quality against a side struggling near the bottom of the division.

The assistant head coach believes there are increasingly positive signs of his side building both unity and confidence.

"You always want to be better than where you are," McAllister said, when asked to reflect on where his side stands in the table.

"But ultimately you're striving to be around that two points-per-game, which over a 46-game season gives you a really good chance of winning promotion.

"We're just about on track for that and so we've got to keep pushing on.

"For us it's just about the next game and right now that's Doncaster.

"It will be a difficult game, so we have to prepare and plan properly. The lads are in good form at the moment, we have to go and do the basics, earn the right and then play our stuff.

"We've got a style of play and the lads are showing that understanding of it now.

"We signed a lot of players in the summer and it takes time to gel, to form those partnerships on the pitch and to get those units working.

"That helps you bring out the philosophy and there's a trust there now, between the coaches and the players, and the players and the coaches, that we'll keep improving and getting better.

"We know where we want to be at the end of the season so we've just got to keep it going step by step.

"The window opens soon and we've got a few injuries of course, so we're always looking to add and strengthen.

"But right now we've got a group who are showing what they are capable of, we've been playing some good stuff over the last seven games.

"We've also gone to Arsenal and times caused them problems and shown our quality, so we keep cracking on from there."

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