Last week, Sunderland and Burnley - two of the highest scoring sides in the division - drew a blank at Turf Moor. This week, Sunderland and Hull City - two teams without a specialist centre-forward between them - drew 4-4 at the Stadium of Light.
Go figure. Actually, don't bother.
Some things simply defy rational explanation. What matters is what it all means.
READ MORE: Tony Mowbray praises 'great' Jack Clarke, after the youngster responds to half-time rocket
And for Sunderland, what it meant was a massive missed opportunity. The Black Cats were seven points shy of the play-offs going into the game but Tony Mowbray had said on the eve of the match that he was not yet ready to write-off his side's chances of an unlikely top six finish.
Had Sunderland held out for just a couple more seconds against Hull, they would have slashed that gap to four points and it would be game on. But the last two kicks of the match cost them - first, when substitute Pierre Ekwah kicked Regan Slater to give away a penalty, and then when Ozan Tufan converted from the spot to earn his side a (deserved) point.
So instead Sunderland only trimmed the gap to six points. And while that is still not insurmountable over the final six games, for a side that has now won just one of its last nine games, it is a very tall order indeed.
Ultimately, the most likely scenario this season is that Sunderland will fall short of the play-offs. That would come as a disappointment after the season they have had, and yet it should not.
No-one realistically expected Sunderland to go from a fifth-placed finish in League One last season to a top six finish in the Championship this. With relegation strugglers Cardiff City up next, followed by back-to-back home games against Birmingham City and then another relegation candidate in Huddersfield Town, Sunderland have a run of winnable games ahead - although Hull also fell into that category, but did not yield three points.
If Sunderland are still in the play-off race at the end of that sequence - ie, still in with a chance going into the final three games of the season - that will be a remarkable achievement in itself. As for the Hull game, it was just one of those wild rides which see-sawed one way and then the other, toying with the emotions of the 40,000 fans within the stadium along with all those watching on at home on TV.
In the opening half-hour, the defensive organisation that had served Sunderland so well against Burnley, when they became the first away team to keep a clean sheet in that corner of Lancashire for almost a year, was entirely absent as Hull sliced through their back line seemingly at will and Tufan put the Tigers ahead inside the opening 15 minutes. But then came the first curveball, as Sunderland scored twice in as many minutes to turn things around by the midway point of the half, with Joe Gelhardt and Amad on target.
Then, just three minutes later, another lurch as Allahyar levelled things up before the rest of the first half played out in relative calm. Mowbray was not a happy man at half-time, but his team responded after the break and took control of the game.
Even then, a dreadful mistake from Trai Hume when he tried and failed to run the ball out of play for a goal-kick let in Slater to put Hull 3-2 in front midway through the second period, as the balance tipped back in the visitors' favour. Yet the softest of penalty decisions for a foul by Alfie Jones on Jack Clarke allowed Amad to score his 11th goal of the season - taking over from the injured Ross Stewart as the Black Cats' top scorer - and restore parity from the spot.
Ten minutes from time, Sunderland came from behind for a second time as Clarke added a goal to go with his two first-half assists and winning the penalty, to make it 4-3 and it looked like an incredible victory was on the cards. But then came that final twist, as Ekwah's inexperience showed and Tufan kept a cool head.
READ NEXT:
- Sunderland the 'epitome of a Tony Mowbray team', says Hull boss Liam Rosenior
Ex-Sunderland boss Mick McCarthy leaves Blackpool after loss against relegation rivals Cardiff City
- Dan Ballard set to miss the remainder of Sunderland's season in 'huge blow', confirms Tony Mowbray
- Sunderland taught a 'harsh lesson' admits Tony Mowbray after Hull score last-gasp equaliser
- Sunderland player ratings as Jack Clarke and Amad stand out in thrilling draw against Hull City
