This is what Simon Grayson had to say about Fleetwood Town's draw with Sunderland in League One

The Black Cats took a first-half lead when Ross Stewart headed home Elliot Embleton’s free-kick, and the Wearsiders appeared to be in control of the match when Aiden McGeady converted from the penalty spot 16 minutes from time.

But when Callum Morton pulled a goal back in the 81st minute it resulted in a nervy finish as Sunderland tried to hang on.

Fleetwood were then awarded a penalty for a shirt pull against Bailey Wright and Gerard Garner converted from the spot, sending goalkeeper Thorben Hoffman the wrong way.

Fleetwood head coach Simon Grayson, who took charge of Sunderland for a brief stint in 2017, reacted to the result.

“We’re in good form and they’re the team at the top of the division, so we knew it would be a good game,” he said.

“They have players that ask questions of you and we have a never-say-die attitude.

“We were 2-1 down last week against Rotherham and 1-0 down at half-time here today but we keep going right to the very end.

"And it’s even tougher when you’re 2-0 down but we showed the spirit and it’s a great point for us.

“If you don’t have the desire and the spirit you probably don’t get that point at the end of it, so we have a real tight group.

"We’re down to bare bones-type numbers today but those that were out there gave it everything.

"They worked extremely hard to cause them problems and had to defend well at times.”

A message from the Football Clubs Editor

Our aim is to provide you with the best, most up-to-date and most informative Sunderland AFC coverage 365 days a year.

This depth of coverage costs, so to help us maintain the high-quality reporting that you are used to, please consider taking out a subscription to our new sports-only package here.

Your support is much appreciated. Richard Mennear, Football Clubs Editor