2 Up, 2 Down: Safety Secured As Sunderland Draw With Wolves

WOLVERHAMPTON, ENGLAND - MAY 02: Regis Le Bris, Manager of Sunderland, acknowledges the fans following the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Sunderland at Molineux on May 02, 2026 in Wolverhampton, England. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images) | Getty Images Ciaran McKenna says… Sunderland make their point Playing with ten men for seventy minutes isn’t easy and can close a skill gap considerably, but the Lads had to dig in and they did just that. I and many others had this fixture down as a great opportunity to get three points but in retrospect, a point is better than none.

A stronger Lads bench It was nice to see a full bench of senior players — something that hasn’t been available for a good few weeks now. It was only the addition of Jocelin Ta Bi (who it can be argued is equally as inexperienced as Harrison Jones) that he replaced, but it made me feel a bit less apprehensive about the lack of options on the bench. Habib Diarra being available also helped, as his pace and power will always be a boost against tired legs.

Dan Ballard’s dismissal I understand that according to the rules, you can’t pull on an opponents’s hair, but my frustration is that it’s been regarded as violent conduct — and Ballard missing the remainder of the season for his finger getting wrapped in a long strand of hair is absurd. Not only do I think Ballard isn’t the type of player to do that ‘violently’, but the lack of violence in the footage is clear too. Still, just don’t touch his hair and you won’t get sent off.

A soft Wolves equaliser It’s not the first time this season that we’ve been undone by a set piece, as I am sure you’re all hyper aware of after the Forest game, and despite our consistently robust defence of the box for most of the season, conceding from balls into the box has become far too common. Obviously not having Ballard in there is a hindrance, but it’s another poor goal to concede and a continuation of a worrying pattern. Lars Knutsen says… A gutsy performance After disappointing recent results, this was a performance of guts and character.