SUNDERLAND ......................................................... 1 Keeper steals the limelight as Cats battle back again
JOSH Maja’s fifth goal of the season – and Jon McLaughlin’s penalty save – helped Sunderland come from behind against Fleetwood Town and extend their unbeaten start to seven games.
The Black Cats trailed to Paddy Madden’s ninth-minute set-piece goal, but Maja levelled shortly before half-time.
Both sides created enough chances to win the game, but none clearer than the penalty five minutes into the second period when Adam Matthews brought down James Husband.
Madden took the kick but McLaughlin saved, becoming the first Sunderland keeper to save a penalty (excluding shootouts) at the Stadium of Light – and in fact the first Black Cats keeper to save a penalty on home soil since 1989.
Sunderland finished strongly but could not find a winner, and they remain fourth in League One despite dropping points at home for the second successive week.
After making a raft of changes for the midweek Checkatrade Trophy game, Jack Ross reverted to a similar side to the one that faced Oxford United last weekend.
But there were still four changes to the starting XI that began against the U’s, two of which were forced upon him with Max Power missing as he started a three-game ban while Bryan Oviedo is away on international duty with Costa Rica.
Their places were taken by Dylan McGeouch and youngster Denver Hume, who impressed in the Checkatrade game.
The other changes saw Glenn Loovens and Matthews return after injury, taking the places of Alim Ozturk and Donald Love.
Fleetwood Town boss Joey Barton made one change to the side that won at home to Bradford City last weekend.
Conor McAleny replaced the suspended Wes Burns, who was suspended after being sent off against the Bantams. Sunderland could have gone in front inside two minutes when Hume’s cross from the left found Lynden Gooch via a defender, but his shot from eight yards went wide of the target.
Fleetwood then began to cause problems with Ashley Hunter rounding McLaughlin inside the penalty area and crossing, but Ched Evans could not apply the finish.
But the visitors went ahead on nine minutes with a simple setpiece goal, Madden beating his marker all too easily in the air to head home from Hunter’s rightwing corner.
Sunderland looked at sixes and sevens every time the ball went into their box and Evans missed a golden chance to double his side’s lead in the 20th minute, failing to make contact with Madden’s header across goal when it seemed he must score.
Sunderland gradually got a foothold in the game and Maja forced keeper Alex Cairns to palm away a low shot 10 minutes before the break, with Lee Cattermole heading over the top when the ball came back into the box. But Maja levelled in the 38th minute, meeting George Honeyman’s left-wing cross on the volley and although he scuffed his shot, it beat Alex Cairns and went in off the far post.
Honeyman then warmed Cairns’ hands with a fierce drive from the edge of the box which the keeper fumbled and then grabbed at the second attempt before anyone could follow up.
Matthews had a rush of blood five minutes into the second period when he brought down James Husband inside the box and referee Darren Drysdale pointed straight to the spot.
But McLaughlin got down low to his left to push Madden’s penalty to safety.
Five minutes later, Sunderland were caught napping by a quickly taken set-piece which released Evans inside the area, but his shot hit the side netting.
Sunderland then missed a terrific opportunity when Gooch drove into the box on the left and crossed for Jack Baldwin, with the centre-back somehow managing to volley wide from three yards.
The Black Cats pushed hard for a winner and went close twice in quick succes- sion five minutes from time.
First, sub Tom Flanagan saw his header brilliantly saved by Cairns diving low to his left.
And then Baldwin was also frustrated by the keeper as his header looked to be on its way into the bottom left-hand corner.
Fleetwood almost stole it in injury time when sub Kyle Dempsey’s shot nearly wriggled through McLaughlin, but the keeper grabbed it in the nick of time.