Former Sunderland boss Jack Ross has claimed that he faced many challenges while in charge of the North East club, some of which were positive while others helped shape him as a coach.

The Scotsman was sacked back in October after 18 months at the Stadium of Light, with the Black Cats sixth in League One after 11 games.

Ross was appointed following Sunderland's relegation from the Championship in May 2018 and nearly led them straight back up in his first season at the helm.

The Black Cats suffered two Wembley defeats in the 2018/19 season – first losing the EFL Trophy final to Portsmouth and then seeing their promotion hopes crushed in a last-minute loss against Charlton Athletic.

Ross' side appeared to carry a bit of a hangover from the play-off final defeat in the first few months of the season, which appears to have been a contributing factor to the poor form and subsequent sacking.

The 43-year-old coach has returned to Scottish football to take charge of Hibs since and, speaking to the Daily Record, opened up on his time at the Stadium of Light.

He said: “I faced many challenges at Sunderland and a lot were really good and positive.

“Some have helped shape me again as a manager and a lot are just good memories to have.

“You must continually try to improve. Part of that comes with experience and part comes from your own desire to improve on what you do.”

It has been far from plain sailing for Ross' replacement, Phil Parkinson, who had a shaky start and now has his side seventh in League One with 10 games remaining.

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The Verdict 

Ross' appraisal of his time at Sunderland is a pretty honest and open one.

The Scotsman was pretty unfortunate during his time at the North East club, losing his star striker halfway through the season and then being denied promotion by a 95th-minute winner.

Judging from his comments, he is not dwelling on what might have been and doesn't seem to hold anything against his former club.