Charlie Methven has delivered a strong message to Sunderland supporters, urging them to make sure they're making a difference in the promotion run in.

The Black Cats are currently second in League One, one point clear of Barnsley with a game in hand. Of all the teams at the top, they perhaps face the toughest run in.

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They've also been decimated by injury recently, although with the depth of their squad it hasn't had the sort of impact it might at other clubs.

That hasn't stopped Methven pleading with fans to make sure they're in place to make a difference, starting this weekend against Coventry City.

"I would just ask every fan to do whatever they can to help," he told the Sunderland Echo. “We are in a very competitive environment right now playing against other clubs, in some cases quite big clubs, who have got various things to play for and if you look at the ticket returns it is obvious that Coventry are bringing an enormous following.

“I just hope that every Sunderland fan out there who is just thinking at the back of their mind ‘should I go, shouldn’t I go, might I go, might I not go’, decides to come and be part of making a difference to their football club.

“Sat at home, you cannot make a difference to your football club but if you and 1-2,000 other people turn up and make some noise and get behind our players and get on the backs of the opposition, you can make a difference. And in a situation where the margins are fine, it could make a big difference."

The Sunderland support has been fantastic at times this season, with more than 40,000 making the trip to Wembley, and 30,000 the average at the Stadium of Light.

That's more than twice as many as all but two other clubs in the division and now Methven is hoping those numbers can spur Sunderland's players on to achieve promotion.

The Verdict

You have to use every advantage that you can and right now, numbers are one thing going for Sunderland.

They can make the Stadium of Light into a cauldron of noise and atmosphere, something visiting teams won't be used to. Coventry are familiar with playing in front on 12,000, but 30,000?

That will be a different test altogether.