OPPO: Birmingham City
VENUE: Stadium of Light
RESULT: Sunderland 1 Birmingham 1
TEAM: Poom, Breen, Bjorklund, McCartney, Wright, Arca, Oster, McAteer, Whitley, Stewart, Kyle
SUBS NOT USED: Alnwick, Thonton, Thirlwell,Williams, Smith.
BACK IN BLACK: Graham Barber
ATTENDANCE: 24966
MCCARTHY’S COMMENTS
“It would have been hard not to be our best performance against a Premiership club since I came — because last season we were s***!
“It’s a one-off in the cup. You cannot say we could do that every week against Premiership teams but nevertheless against one who’ll finish mid-table or above, it ranks as a very good performance.”
“People ask how far we have come and maybe you can find the answer in the performance we have put in against Birmingham.
“We showed endeavour, were full of running and could have won it.”
“It was a minging afternoon and it is St Valentine’s Day, so some people have decided to sit at home holding hands with the missus.
McCarthy’s men refused to lie down and they hit back through Kevin Kyle in the 39th minute and it was another goal of genuine quality.
The Black Cats looked inspired against Steve Bruce’s side.
Gary Breen was back in McCarthy’s side for the first time in more than three months and he played well.
Stewart had the bit between his teeth in the opening stages and twice nearly punished the Blues with good control and running inside the box.
The Black Cats had Birmingham’s defence at full stretch.
The Black Cats put in one of their best performances of the season.
Sunderland stood up well to the challenge of the in-form Premiership side, unbeaten in their last six games, and with Jeff Whitley and Jason McAteer bossing the midfield the Black Cats were the better side in the opening 30 minutes.
Jason McAteer and George McCartney combined to set up Marcus Stewart down the left and he drilled in a fizzing cross. The cross was so powerful that all Kyle had to do was make contact with it and he did so with a perfectly timed header.
The second half never matched the pace or quality of the first but both sides had their chances to clinch the game.
In the 75th minute Poom produced the save of the match to palm away a Stan Lazaridis piledriver.
Sunderland kept up the pressure until the final whistle but still had to be grateful to some excellent last-ditch defending by Joachim Bjorklund.
The Black Cats responded to the occasion by producing the kind of high-octane show that until two years ago was their Premiership trademark.
Last season Sunderland would have collapsed if they’d gone behind, but McCarthy demands character from his players and they showed it.
McCarthy has revitalised a troubled club by bringing back a spirit and togetherness to the dressing room and passion to the Stadium of Light stands.
The evidence was there to suggest that not for too much longer will this side be playing its football in the Nationwide League.
This was the best Sunderland have played in months — possibly for even a year or two!
But for a little more coolness in front of goal they should have claimed a top-flight scalp.
Birmingham just did not know what had hit them. For fully 45 minutes, they reeled from a constant stream of Jason McAteer and Julio Arca-inspired attacks.
Sun Star Man: Jason McAteer – Without doubt, his most influential game for the club.
Sun player ratings: SUNDERLAND: Poom 7, Wright 7, Bjorklund 6, Breen 7, McCartney 8, McAteer 9, Whitley 8, Oster 7, Arca 8, Stewart 7, Kyle 7.
Sunderland were more than a match for a Birmingham team unbeaten in seven matches and pushing for Europe in the Premiership. They even had Alan Hansen paying compliments not associated with a Sunderland side for quite some time: “They were neat, tidy and effective.”
Sunderland had grit and determination in midfield, courtesy of Jason McAteer and Jeff Whitley, and not a little inventiveness too.
Their equaliser was superbly crafted and adeptly finished.
If Birmingham play like they did on Saturday then they can probably forget about making the sixth round for the first time in 20 years.
Independent MoTM: Jason McAteer
Kyle’s sublime equaliser had ensured Sunderland’s inclusion in today’s Cup draw.
Kyle’s equaliser showed there was more to his game than merely being a human battering ram because he flicked in Marcus Stewart’s superb cross with remarkable delicacy.
Until Forsell’s goal, McCarthy’s team forced the tempo and piled on the pressure only to be found repeatedly wanting with the final ball.
With Kenna and company increasingly disorientated by some refreshing dribbling on Julio Arca’s part, McCarthy’s men – relegated to the First Division in the wake of a defeat at St Andrew’s last April – were in the ascendant.
Sunderland picked up the pace and made most of the early running.
The First Division side then strung together a collection of passes to open up the Birmingham defence down the right.
Sunderland failed to convert their early superiority into a goal and the Premiership side inevitably made them pay on 27 minutes.
Sunderland overran Birmingham in midfield at times, and the First Division side passed the ball patiently and crisply.
