Sunderland produced a resilient defensive display at The Hawthorns to secure three points

Régis Le Bris believes Sunderland’s win at West Brom was a sign of their growing maturity.

West Brom dominated possession throughout the game at The Hawthorns, but managed only three shots on target for all their control of the ball. Sunderland had a slice of fortune with their first-half goal, with Joe Wildsmith unable to clear Trai Hume’s delivery to the back post.

Le Bris was candid in admitting afterwards that his side need to offer more composure in possession but says the three points and the clean sheet reflected their improving game management after losing a lot of points from winning positions earlier in the season.

"It was an important win away," Le Bris said.

"The first half was OK in possession, we had some good spells but when we scored the opponent had to push and take risks. In that situation our zonal defence, midblock and lowblock were really important. We did really well from a tactical point of view but I want to reinforce the idea that the mindset of the team was key. They were really well connected, won many duels and the team spirit was impressive.

"It's the normal evolution of the game, because they used many bodies in the box and tried to play crosses, to use different options to create some chaotic situations in the box. We defended this very well and protected Anthony. The game became a little bit crazy because when we recovered the ball the chances were there to counter. So until the end it was on the end but I think you can feel now that the maturity of the team is getting better. I think probably three or four months we lost these games, we lost many points from these circumstances so this is a big positive."

Le Bris pays tribute to Sunderland matchwinner Trai Hume

Hume’s matchwinner was his second in as many weeks and Le Bris paid tribute to his ‘warrior’ who continues to play through the pain barrier for this team.

Le Bris said: "A left back who can score, it is very useful for us! It shows that when the players are now in the stage of the season, it is not just about good qualities. We have shown a lot of good qualities to get the number of points we have but it is now a question of mindset and if they are very connected like this, everyone can score. Trai has been really important for us and hopefully other can players follow his example.

"Trai is young but very mature, we can feel his mindset in different phases of the game. When a player becomes so impactful, it tells you something about his maturity. He's very well balanced and this ability he is adding to the game, his profile is getting even better. Trai is a warrior, even with an injury he wants to play. He wants to compete and game after game, he shows how much he is improving."

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