Wearsliders going back on the boos

LEE JOHNSON admitted Sunderland have hit a crisis in confidence as they suffered a fourth defeat in five games and were booed off.

Nigel Clough masterminded a rare win for the 20th-placed League Two side, who bossed the game and scored early through Rhys Oates.

This might have been classed as an FA Cup giantkilling had the Wearsiders not tumbled so far in recent years.

The problems are mounting up for Johnson with a major slump in form and only one goal scored in the last five games.

A brilliant start to the season has petered out amid a packed fixture programme, including a Carabao Cup quarterfinal, EFL Trophy progress and a trimmeddown young squad lacking character.

Once again they were pedestrian going forward, making unforced errors and hardly creating any clear openings.

Johnson admits he and his players will face fierce criticism. He said: “Seven or eight games ago we were playing compact, popping it around and passes were flowing over the ground. Today it just wasn’t there.

“First half, there was no confidence. Second half there was no one hiding.

“Our technical performance was so poor.”

Clough has a great record on Wearside, winning four times there as a manager.

He said: “This is very special for the fans and players.

“You don’t come to many stadia as good as this and perform like that, win and celebrate at the end.”

SUNDERLAND: Burge 4; Alves 4 (Winchester (46th) 4), Wright 4, Flanagan 4 (Doyle (46th) 4), Cirkin

4 (O’Nien (71st) 5); Evans 4, Neil

7; Dajaku 4 (Pritchard (46th) 4), Embleton 4, O’Brien 4 (Gooch (45th) 4); Broadhead 4

MANSFIELD: Bishop 6; Hewitt 6, Hawkins 7, O’Toole 7, McLaughlin 7; Lapslie 8 (Sinclair 85th); Clarke 7, Maris 7, Quinn 7, Charsley 6; Oates 7 (Bowery (63rd) 6)

STAR MAN: George Lapslie

REF: J Oldham