Sunderland threw away a lead to lose at Accrington in a game the Black Cats should have won at a canter. The Black Cats went in front through Ross Stewart's penalty on the stroke of half-time, after Jack Clarke had been fouled by Harvey Rodgers.
But in the second period Sunderland conceded two sloppy goals, first when Bailey Wright conceded a penalty for a foul on Sean McConville just after the hour, and the Accrington man got up to convert. And then substitute Korede Adedoyin capitalised on woeful defending to score the decider 15 minutes from the end.
Sunderland should have been out of sight even before Stewart gave them the lead, with only a series of fine saves from Accrington's on-loan Burnley keeper Lukas Jensen - and one bad miss from Patrick Roberts - keeping them at bay. And in the second half Sunderland squandered more chances before Accrington staged the turnaround.
