Cats boss Grayson ready for a tough cup test at Carlisle

Simon Grayson is thrilled that his Sunderland side will face a short journey to Carlisle United in the second round of the Carabao Cup.

The tie will be played in the week commencing August 21.

Grayson (pictured) said: “Carlisle isn’t far away which is a real bonus as you don’t want to be travelling too far.

“We wil take large numbers there. Keith (Curle) has a strong team and it will be a tough game.

“It will be classed as a derby for us – it is not a bad draw for both teams.

“I took a team up there in preseason recently and have had plenty of games against them – and got plenty of stick!”

Sunderland edged through the first round thanks to George Honeyman’s goal late in the second half at Bury last night. The visitors had struggled to create chances against a limited home side, but the Black Cats boss was pleased to see them edge through. He said: “We knew it was going to be a tough place to come. We need to get that winning mentality going and we showed a real good attitude to this game. We defended well when we needed to defend.

“You have to be aware that players have capabilities at any level, late on they were throwing bodies forward at free-kicks to try to get a goal.

“John O’Shea helped us along the way and ultimately it has been a good day for us.

“It is important we get back to back wins as soon as we can.”

Grayson also said that Lee Cattermole and Billy Jones were left at home with the team’s hectic schedule in mind.

He said: “We could have done with leaving a couple of more out. we left a couple at home. Lewis and Aiden were always going to come off and the lads that came in did well.

“Supporters go home happy and they have seen a good performance and they will now get prepared for three more games in seven days.

“Billy and Lee were left at home. Ultimately we have a game Sunday (Norwich away), Wednesday and Saturday. It is a tough schedule and we will be in a buoyant mood after this.”