Sunderland can take a lot of pride and positives from their 3-3 draw at Adams Park on Saturday but ultimately it saw the Black Cats miss an opportunity to return to first place in League One.

Ross Stewart was unfortunate not to score a hat-trick in consecutive matches with two expert finishes, the latter assisted by Lynden Gooch, and his early bullet header going down as a David Stockdale own goal. Sunderland produced some irresistible free-flowing sequences at times but will be hurt by Joe Jacobson's last gasp equaliser.

Gooch explained the disappointment felt after the game when he spoke to ChronicleLive.

He said: "I think most people, if you said before the game, take a point and move on they would have snapped your hand off. Considering the way we played and the opportunities we created, scoring late on to take the lead, it's a bitter pill to take.

"Conceding so late was so disappointing. We created some great opportunities and I thought we played some really good football, even though you come here and they are back to front as quick as you like."

Late goals could be the difference between automatic promotion and play-offs this term with a valuable two points snatched away from Lee Johnson's men at the death.

The Verdict

They do not come much later than 98th minute equaliser and Johnson has a task on his hands to put the scrappy goal to the back of the squad's minds. The Chairboys' goals were from two corners and a deflected long range strike, making it all the more sickening that they were unable to pick up all three points. The Black Cats do though have the opportunity to make amends when they play host to 19th placed Lincoln City on Tuesday evening.

It is a chance for Sunderland to inflict revenge on the Imps after Michael Appleton's men beat the Black Cats in the 2020/21 play-off semi finals.