FLOP CATS Leveller has Lee tearing hair out
TRAVELLING Sunderland fans took over more than half of the Wham Stadium – but Stanley’s Mitch Clark ensured they couldn’t take over at the League One summit.
When supersub Aiden O’Brien struck with his first touch after coming on the Black Cats found themselves on top.
But with six minutes to go and looking to add to their lead they were suddenly opened up after a Tom Flanagan miskick.
The impressive Matt Butcher then had a clear run towards the edge of the area and calmly set up Clark for the easiest of finishes.
What was even more galling was that Accrington had been reduced to 10 men, after defender John Sykes picked up a second yellow card for taking out forward Ross Stewart.
It hasn’t been the best of weeks for boss Lee Johnson in the clamour for promotion.
In midweek he was red-carded as the Cats’ 10-game unbeaten league run came to an end in a 3-1 defeat against Lincoln. Before that a 98th-minute equaliser at Wycombe cost them victory.
He admitted: “This was a very professional performance until around the 87th minute and then an individual error has cost us.
“It gets frustrating for all of us that they had gone down to 10 men. An opportunity to go to the top of the league has been wasted again.”
But it’s in the DNA of Stanley and manager John Coleman to place a spanner in the works.
Coleman said: “If you had been someone coming down from Mars today and not knowing anything about football you wouldn’t think they were the big club and we weren’t by the way we played in the first half.
“We took the game to them.” A frustrating opening 45 minutes for the visitors led Johnson to bring on O’Brien.
And it was some introduction – his first meaningful touch powering his side into the lead in front of the bank of joyous fans.
The Republic of Ireland striker, who is always capable of producing something special, did just that – his well-struck effort deflecting over the arm of Stanley keeper Toby Savin.
That inspired Sunderland but the sting in the tail came from plucky Accrington who once again upset the odds – and all the noise at the end came from their outnumbered fans.
ACCRINGTON STANLEY: Savin 7; Clark 7, Sykes 6, Nottingham 6, Amankwah 6; Butcher 7, Pell 7, Hamilton 6; O’Sullivan 6 (Rich-Baghuelou 80), McConville (Longelo 80); Bishop 7.
SUNDERLAND: Hoffmann 7; Wright 6, Doyle 6, Flanagan 6, Cirkin 7; Gooch 7, Neil 6; Dajaku 7, Pritchard 6 (O’Brien 46, 7), Embleton 6; Stewart 7.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Matt Butcher. Solid and
dependable and calmly set up Mitch Clark for the equaliser. REFEREE: James Bell 7.