'It's a human thing, really, sometimes to try and protect what you've got.' That was how Tony Mowbray summed up the frustration of watching his Sunderland players go into 'protect mode' after taking the lead against West Brom.
But that's only half the story. 'Protect mode' is fine - so long as it works and the team successfully preserves its lead.
There would have been few complaints if Sunderland had won 1-0 at the Stadium of Light. However, when 'protect mode' malfunctions, the momentum of the game shifts, you fail to react, and you end up emptyhanded - that's another matter.
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And that latter scenario is how it played out against the Baggies. Sunderland were the better side for half-an-hour, got their noses in front when in-form Manchester United loanee Amad earned and then converted a penalty, and almost doubled their lead minutes later when only a vital block from goalkeeper Alex Palmer denied Alex Pritchard from close range.
But that was as good as it got. Then Sunderland began to sit back. They became passive. They allowed West Brom to gain a foothold in the game.
The warning signs were there long before the break, and Sunderland needed half-time to come to regroup and rethink the situation. Yet the game continued in the second half where it had left off in the first, with the visitors asking all the questions and only the fact that Anthony Patterson happened to be in the right place at the time when John Swift's shot struck him prevented West Brom getting back on terms within minutes of the restart.
As the pressure built, there was a growing feeling that an equaliser was only a matter of time, and when West Brom sent on a series of subs around the hour mark it tipped the balance. First one of those subs, Daryl Dike, teed up another, Tom Rogic, to level things up 20 minutes from time.
And while at that point Sunderland looked like they would snap your hand off for a point, West Brom were pressing for a winner. It duly arrived seven minutes from time, as a Ged Wallace cross tempted Patterson off his line but the goalkeeper changed his mind and that allowed Dike to head home.
Sunderland had lacked attacking spark for almost an hour before Mowbray brought on Patrick Roberts as part of a triple substitution in the 89th minute, but as part of those changes he also took off his only out-and-out striker Ellis Simms. It was an odd choice when chasing the game with only a minute plus injury-time remaining, and it was hardly surprising that it did not work.
A win could have lifted Sunderland to seventh in the table; as it was they remain 11th. West Brom's rise under new boss Carlos Corberan continues, with a fourth successive win seeing them climb out of the relegation zone to 17th place and they are now just four points behind the Black Cats with a game in hand of them.
It was a disappointing night for Sunderland, to say the least, but the truth is that Mowbray's newly-promoted team were beaten by a well-established Championship side and one which before the season began had been expected to challenge for a top six spot rather than find itself in a relegation battle.
'There will be good days around the corner, and we will learn from nights like this,' said Mowbray. Sunderland fans must hope he is correct on both counts.
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