Diamond cuts down Posh in cup thriller

JACK Diamond hit a hat-trick as Sunderland Under-23s thrashed Peterborough United to book their place in the last 16 of the Premier League Cup.

Diamond set the Black Cats on their way to victory inside the first five minutes at Eppleton, with Lee Connelly adding the second just before the half-hour.

Benji Kimpioka won and converted a penalty early in the second half before Morgan Penfold reduced the arrears to 3-1.

But Connelly soon added his second and Sunderland’s fourth and Diamond made it 5-1, before Oliver Shackleton hit back.

Diamond had the last word, sealing his treble in injury time.

The Black Cats are two points clear at the top of Group A with one game to play, and will face second-placed Stoke City at the end of the month at Eppleton to decide who is group winner.

U23s boss Elliott Dickman included first-team squad men Kimpioka and Bali Mumba.

And they made the perfect start when Diamond put them in front in only the fourth minute.

The midfielder’s cross was only half-cleared and he won the ball back off a hesitant defender on the edge of the six yard box, firing low past the keeper from close range.

The second goal came in the 28th minute, with Sunderland working the ball down the right before Connelly drove home.

Sunderland added a third seven minutes into the second half. Kimpioka was tripped by Samuel Cartwright and got up to send Allen the wrong way from the spot.

But Peterborough pulled a goal back just two minutes later, Penfold applying the finish to Harrison Burrows’ right-wing cross.

Sunderland restored their threegoal cushion on 64 minutes when a clearance was hit straight at Kimpioka, who threaded a pass through to Connelly to score.

The fifth goal came on 80 minutes, with sub Jake Hackett’s throughball inside the full-back releasing Diamond in the left-hand channel and he cut across the box and rounded the keeper before slotting home.

Peterborough did not throw in the towel, and Shacklton scored with an angled shot from inside the box on the left which found the top right-hand corner.

But seconds after Allen had denied sub Connor Slack in the second minute of injury time, Diamond completed his hat-trick when he scored from close range following a corner.