An Eliezer Mayenda brace gave Sunderland all three points at Hillsborough to conclude the month of February and put more distance between us and 7th place.
ANTHONY PATTERSON: 7/10
Made two quite simple saves and one good one, most of Sheffield Wednesday’s closer attempts today didn’t hit the target. I’ve seen some debate as to whether he played a role in causing their goal but I think he’s quite far down the list of people to blame. There were a few occasions where I thought his commanding of the box could have been better.
TRAI HUME: 8/10
Assisted the winner with a fantastic cross and generally got the better of his opponents down the flank. Only thing to criticise is that there were times when he should have put more pressure on their winger.
CHRIS MEPHAM: 6.5/10
Did well for the vast majority of the match and bailed out O’Nien in the first half. Unfortunately he was the biggest cause of Wednesday’s goal which massively effects his rating.
LUKE O’NIEN: 7/10
He was pretty solid, maybe could have done better in the air. Only made one glaring error throughout the match but that was covered by his centre back colleague. He was covering the other man in the box for their goal so he’s not at fault in my opinion.
LEO HJELDE: 7.5/10
Hjelde made a decent claim for challenging Cirkin for starts for the rest of the season. A wonderful pass to put Mayenda in for the opening goal and he came off better more often then not when challenged by attackers. Maybe he was lucky not to give away a penalty for handball, but I couldn't really see it from my spot in the away end.
ALAN BROWNE: 6/10
A low-key performance from him, he wasn’t our most notable player by any means and never really looked to wow anybody. Understandable given that’s he’s just returning to first team action.
DAN NEIL: 7/10
Neil had a few great skilful moments and did his midfield work mostly very well. He played a part in Paterson’s goal though, easing off of him as the cross came in rather than challenging for the ball.
PATRICK ROBERTS: 7/10
Showed off some decent skill, had some good runs forward and created a number of chances. No goals or assists for him yet again however, which is what his performances have ultimately been lacking in.
JOBE BELLINGHAM: 7/10
He wasn’t on the ball that much but was comfortable when he did have it. Blocked a shot and did the dirty work well.
ROMAINE MUNDLE: 6.5/10
It did feel like Wednesday were doubling up on him throughout the whole match. He only had one shot all game, that was from a free kick, but it was a good effort and required a save from the goalkeeper.
ELIEZER MAYENDA: 9.5/10
Scored a brace, the first was well composed and the second via a header which has been a weak point for him sometimes this season. Always willing to ask questions of their defenders even if he didn’t always come off the better party.
SUBS:
WILSON ISIDOR: 6/10
He came on when we were in a defensive mindset so he didn’t have many chances to impress. However, he gave their backline something new to think about.
DENNIS CIRKIN: N/A
Came on to shore up the three points and did his job, didn’t play enough minutes for a rating.
CHRIS RIGG: N/A
Definitely put himself about after being subbed on but no rating because he came on so late.
HARRISON JONES: N/A
Played only a few minutes but looked bright on the one occasion when he had the ball.
