PRESTON NORTH END .......................................... 2 Many happy returns for McGeady and his Cats boss
MATCH STATS
AIDEN McGeady scored on his return to Preston to earn Sunderland a point at Deepdale, but could not prevent the Black Cats’ winless streak extending to nine games.
George Honeyman put Sunderland in front inside the opening halfhour, but Preston turned the game around in the space of two minutes early in the second half thanks to a free-kick from Josh Harrop and then a stunning strike from Jordan Hugill.
But McGeady, who spent last season on loan at Preston from Everton, levelled the scores just two minutes later.
The draw was a welcome improvement after back-to-back league defeats, but it was not enough to lift the Black Cats out of the Championship relegation zone ahead of the international break.
Former Preston boss Simon Grayson made five changes to the Sunderland side that started the heavy midweek defeat at Ipswich Town.
He dropped Lamine Kone and, with Marc Wilson missing out through injury, brought John O’Shea and Ty Browning in as the central defensive pairing.
Didier Ndong replaced Darren Gibson alongside Lee Cattermole in midfield.
And Lynden Gooch and Honeyman came into the side in place of Bryan Oviedo and Callum McManaman out wide.
Preston boss Alex Neil made one change to the team that began Tuesday’s win at Hull City, with Harrop coming in for John Welsh.
After their awful midweek showing at Portman Road, Sunderland looked a much better side in the first half in Lancashire.
They seemed better organised defensively, and worked harder to close Preston down in midfield.
Clear-cut chances were few and far between in the opening half, but those that were created were fashioned by Sunderland.
Honeyman flashed a volley wide of the right-hand post in the 25th minute, after the home side only half-cleared McGeady’s right-wing corner.
And a minute later, Gooch saw a shot on the turn from just outside the box saved by Chris Maxwell.
The breakthrough came in the 28th minute from a set-piece.
A free-kick from deep was headed down by Vaughan to Gooch inside the box and he fed it into the path of Honeyman, who finished from eight yards.
Then, shortly before the break, McGeady fired a shot just wide of the top right-hand corner from the edge of the D.
But Preston launched a response at the start of the second half, and had Hugill played a better pass to Tom Barkhuizen when they had a two-versus-one situation, they might have levelled.
It proved to be just a temporary respite for Sunderland, however.
Harrop curled a free-kick goalwards from just outside the left corner of the box, and it beat everyone inside the area, and nestled in the right-hand side of the net in the 55th minute.
Sunderland were still reeling from that blow two minutes later when Hugill unleashed an unstoppable shot on the turn from the edge of the area which left Jason Steele no chance as it went in off the underside of the bar.