Sunderland winger Jack Clarke reckons the Black Cats 3-0 win over Rotherham United has only further strengthened their belief they belong in the Championship following a whirlwind week on Wearside.
The Black Cats lost manager Alex Neil to Stoke City at the end of last week just before they faced off against Norwich City, which they ended up losing 1-0.
Tony Mowbray has since been installed in the dugout at the Stadium of Light.
READ MORE: Tony Mowbray wants Sunderland players to 'flourish' under his leadership after Rotherham win
His first showing as Sunderland boss went about as well as it could have, with the Black Cats, spurred on by an inspired Clarke who bagged a goal and two assists, running rampant against Rotherham.
And speaking in the aftermath of the win, Clarke believes the 3-0 win can be a result for Sunderland to build upon.
"I felt like I played really well and the stuff I was trying tonight came off which is always good," Clarke said.
"It's always good to get three points on the board, Rotherham are a tough team and we knew that coming into the game. It's our first home win of the season, a clean sheet under the new manager - hopefully it's something to build on.
"I can't really remember too much about it [the goal] to be honest.
"I think there was a goal kick, a knockdown, Rossco [Ross Stewart] set it back to me and everything's just opened up from there and I've managed to slot it away which is always nice. It probably looked like I had to do a lot more than what I actually did because everything just opened up as I was going but it's always nice to score."
This season has seen Clarke operating in a left wing-back role, which saw him deliver a devastating performance against Rotherham on Wednesday night.
And it's a role Clarke feels he can thrive in, with the 21-year-old claiming he's happy to take on added defensive responsibilities if it helps the team out.
"I enjoy it [playing left wing-back]," said Clarke.
"Obviously there's a lot more defensive responsibility but I don't mind that if it's helping the team out. I feel like I'm getting a lot more of the ball, sometimes in deeper areas than I'd want but I like the ball at my feet to be able to carry the ball.
"I like to be able to create opportunities for other people and myself so it's a role I'm getting on board with playing."
The win over Sunderland means the Black Cats now sit eighth in the Championship table after seven rounds of action. So far, Clarke and co have won three, drawn two and lost two, which is an impressive start for a newly promoted side.
"I think everybody, all the fans and us as players, we feel like we should have more points from the games we've been playing," added Clarke.
"We've shown we belong at this level and hopefully we can sustain a run, pick up more points under the new manager and take everything we did against Rotherham into the Middlesborough game on Monday and pick up a result there as well."
