"Any lead has got to be good - this is the team we've got, this is what we do, and we'll go to Luton and try and repeat," said Tony Mowbray. If you were looking for tubthumping bombast on the back of a pulsating play-off victory, you asked the wrong guy.
Steel, quiet determination, and a laser-focus on getting the job done, is more Mowbray's style. It is an approach that has served him well all season as Sunderland have defied gravity following last season's promotion via the play-offs after finishing fifth in League One, clinching a Championship play-off place on the final day of the campaign, and now find themselves with one foot in another Wembley final after coming from behind to beat Luton in the first match of this two-legged semi-final.
Of course, as Mowbray was typically quick to point out, it is far from a done deal. His team must still go to Kenilworth Road on Tuesday night.
READ MORE: Sunderland face anxious wait over injured duo after play-off win as concerns grow
But they will go into that game holding a priceless advantage after coming from behind to beat Luton - a side that finished third in the table and 11 points above them in the the regular league season - at a raucous Stadium of Light in front of a season-high EFL attendance of more than 46,000. That Sunderland should find themselves in the play-offs at all is one thing, with only one other team in the last decade coming out of League One and finishing in the Championship top six the following season.
To do so with the youngest squad in the division, the majority of which had minimal - if any - Championship experience is quite another. Throw in the fact that that squad has not so much been hollowed out as stripped to the bone by injuries, and it is a minor miracle.
That is the context into which Sunderland's astonishing season must be set. Against Luton, Mowbray sent out a patched up team that lacked any specialist centre-backs, any out-and-out centre-forward, and only one 6ft-plus outfielder in the shape of Pierre Ekwah.
His back three consisted of right-back Trai Hume (5ft 11in), converted midfielder Luke O'Nien, and full-back/wingback Lynden Gooch (both 5ft 8in). Two of his most creative players, Patrick Roberts and Jack Clarke, had to take on some defensive duties as wingbacks.
And 5ft 10in Joe Gelhardt was left to lead the line against Luton's giant centre-halves. That lack of height was punished at Luton's first corner after only 10 minutes, with the visitors keeping the ball alive inside the box before Elijah Adebayo lashed home from close range.
But Sunderland, who had started the game strongly before falling behind, reasserted control towards the end of the half and got back on terms five minutes before the break when Alex Pritchard rolled a short free-kick to Amad and the Manchester United loanee curled an unstoppable shot into the top left-hand corner for his 14th goal of the season. The turnaround was completed just after the hour when a short corner routine ended with Clarke's cross finding the head of Hume, and got in front of his marker to nod home.
Sunderland fully deserved their victory against a well-drilled, powerful, Luton side. The Black Cats had to compete for every ball, and Ekwah produced a man of the match display in central midfield alongside Dan Neil, covering virtually every blade of grass and using his muscle and awareness to augment the skills of players such as Roberts, Clarke, Pritchard and Amad.
It has taken an immense effort to get this far and, as Mowbray pointed out, they will need a repeat performance on Tuesday night. But it is remarkable to think that, a year ago, Sunderland had finished fifth in League One, had seen off Sheffield Wednesday over two legs in the play-off semi-final, and were gearing up for a final against Wycombe Wanderers in the hope that it would be fourth time lucky as they tried to escape the quicksand of the third tier.
Today they find themselves potentially two games away from a return to the Premier League. Actually, 'remarkable' does not nearly do it justice.
It is incredible.
READ NEXT
- Luton are still 'right in the tie' insists defiant Hatters boss, despite play-off loss at Sunderland
- Tony Mowbray addresses Jobe Bellingham's presence at Sunderland's play-off against Luton
- Sunderland will not go to Luton to defend insists Tony Mowbray, as his side holds play-off advantage
- Sunderland player ratings as Pierre Ekwah delivers masterclass in play-off win against Luton
- Sunderland will take crucial lead into play-off second leg after coming from behind against Luton
