Sunderland are one step closer to Wembley after a win against Sheffield Wednesday, at a jam-packed SoL. Here's how the lads rated out of ten...
ANTHONY PATTERSON 8/10: Didn't have much shot-stopping to do, but came out for crosses with confidence and conviction. Strong hands against Wednesday's more physical players.
LYNDEN GOOCH 8/10: Did a great job of stretching the play at fullback, and giving us another option going forward. Kept his concentration when tracking back, despite receiving no support from Patrick Roberts.
BAILEY WRIGHT 10/10: A Rolls Royce at the back. Won absolutely everything, and continues his excellent form under Alex Neil. We'd be daft not to offer him a new contract next season.
DANNY BATTH 9/10: Just like Wright, Batth was great today. Dominant in the air and didn't allow Gregory a sniff.
DENNIS CIRKIN 8/10: Solid defensively although didn't offer a lot going forward. Had his hands full today but dealt with it really well on his return to the side.
CORRY EVANS: 9/10: Battled hard in midfield and put in a fantastic shift. A proper captain's performance, kept his cool in front of a massive attendance.
LUKE O'NIEN 8/10: Plenty of energy as always, but seemed overawed by the occasion at first- with some misplaced 5 yard passes. Picked up a daft yellow which limited his influence in the second half. Dug in deep when we de
PATRICK ROBERTS 7/10: Went on one mazy run and fired just wide, but pretty ineffectual other than that. Tidy on the ball but no real end product. Needed to be more physical at times, which obviously isn't his game.
ALEX PRITCHARD 8/10: Hit the bar with a cracking effort, and always looked a threat. A creative force going forward and some dangerous set pieces before he came off. Hopefully Neil's just resting the playmaker for Monday and it's not another injury concern.
JACK CLARKE 8/10: Pressed well and showed good feet at times, without creating anything of note. It was a game where the wingers had to track back, and I would argue he defended slightly better than Roberts on the other hand.
ROSS STEWART 8/10: Showed great determination to chase the ball after the initial save, giving us an advantage going into the second leg. Didn't win all his battles up front, but worked hard for the team and helped add some physicality in front of the attacking trio behind him.
SUBS
ELLIOT EMBLETON 7/10: Helped us see out a hard-fought win.
JAY MATETE 7/10: See above...
CALLUM DOYLE 6/10: Played even less minutes than the other subs, but added another body into the melee in the last minutes.
