Sunderland parade Newcastle United fan conquerer before West Brom game as Cats near 100 corners without scoring

On a bitterly cold night on Wearside, the Black Cats knew coming into the game that a win would move the club up to seventh place with a win and move 10 points clear of the relegation spots… but it wasn’t to be.

In the first half, Sunderland took the lead through Manchester United loanee Amad, who converted the penalty he had helped win following a superb one-two with Luke O’Nien.

Former Celtic man Tom Rogic then levelled the scores for West Brom in the second half with a brilliant finish to beat Anthony Patterson after much pressure from the Baggies. Daryl Dike then gave the visitors the lead with seven minutes left on the clock.

But there are some moments that can be missed during the course of the game… here, we take a look at some of the interesting events that may have passed you by at the time:

Sunderland show their class off the field

As a club, Sunderland showed their class off the field before a ball had even been kicked at the Stadium of Light. It was confirmed on Sunday evening that West Brom’s club doctor Julian Widdowson had died at the age of 63.

Widdowson joined the Baggies in 2018 and was a very popular and respected member of staff at The Hawthorns. Carlos Corberan's team honoured his passing by wearing black armbands against Sunderland

Sunderland responded to the news by paying their respects to West Brom for their tragic loss. Before the game, the Black Cats beamed a tribute to Widdowson’s life on the scoreboards at the Stadium of Light.

The gesture did not go unnoticed by The Baggies. Following the match, Jed Wallace tweeted a photo of the Stadium of Light which included Widdowson’s picture and tribute on the screens and tweeted this message.

He said: "What a comeback & performance from the boys. Thankyou to everyone at Sunderland for this touch of class, let’s keep going lads,” whilst West Brom’s official account added: “A lovely touch ahead of kick-off. Thank you @SunderlandAFC.”

The unwanted Sunderland statistic

Sunderland have scored some lovely goals this season. Patrick Roberts netted a lovely double against Reading and there was the superb team goal finished off by Jack Clarke in the same game.

Manchester United loanee Amad Diallo netted a tremendous goal against Birmingham City and we’ve also seen the likes of Ross Stewart, Ellis Simms, Jewison Bennette, Elliot Embleton and Alex Pritchard score some decent strikes so far this season.

The one thing they all have in common, however? None of these goals, good though they have been, were scored from a Sunderland corner. Yes, that’s right. The Black Cats are yet to convert a set piece to this campaign.

Sunderland have taken 93 corners this season without success, which is hardly surprising given the lengthy injuries to both Simms and Stewart.

Josh Kelly returns to Wearside

In another nice touch by Sunderland, Ryhope-born boxer Josh Kelly was welcomed back to the Stadium of Light after becoming the British super-welterweight champion earlier this month.

The Black Cats fan defeated Newcastle United supporter Troy Williamson to win the belt and received a nice reception from match-goers.