CIRKIN SEES RED BUT CATS PURRING

Mowbray hails his battlers

- Pete Matthews

TONY Mowbray lauded his Sunderland players after they came from behind to beat Birmingham.

Amad Diallo’s second-half strike handed Sunderland a big boost in their push for the Championship play-offs.

George Hall put the Blues ahead, but Trai Hume levelled going into half-time and Diallo’s low finish in the 76th minute was enough for the Black Cats, who were reduced to ten shortly afterwards when Dennis Cirkin was dismissed for a second yellow card.

The Black Cats are now within touching distance of the top six.

Mowbray said: “It was an important time to score our goal because I thought for the first ten minutes we started really sharp, particularly down the right-hand-side, and then one of their first attacks they go and score.