Niall Huggins came through 45 minutes against Reading in the Premier League Cup as the ten-men of Sunderland were beaten by Reading. The Black Cats struggled to get to grips with the pace and power of the Royals front three, with Max Thompson's second-half sending off making it more difficult.
Graeme Murty's side ended the second-half strongly but the search for his first win on Wearside continues. The young Wearsiders showed a good ability to look after the ball in patches, but their frailty in the final third was their undoing.
The reappearance of Huggins in a red and white shirt and Ben Crompton's firest-half header, were the only positives in a disappointing evening. Tony Mowbray, Kyril Louis-Dreyfus and Kristjaan Speakman were all in attendance.
