Sunderland boss Steve Bruce was made to feel very unwelcome on his return to Wigan as Hugo Rodallega struck his sixth league goal this season to banish the home teams memories of last week’s hammering at White Hart Lane.

 

Bruce brought Rodallega to the English game but was more frustrated by his own teams performance. “It’s very difficult to put into words sometime” said the Black Cats boss, “We didn’t look a shadow of the team we were last week. It looked to me as if 0-0 was written all over it, but we deserved what we got after coming here and putting in a performance like that”.

The game at the DW saw Sunderland give the opposite type of display to that which they have repeatedly shown at the Stadium Of Light. The 5,000 strong Mackem travelling support headed home to the north east disappointed and Bruce felt their pain. “They (the fans) were magnificent and for them to see a performance like that disappoints me” he said.

To literally add insult to injury, Northumbria Police are to investigate allegations that striker Darren Bent’s mother was racially abused at the DW by a Sunderland fan.