NIGEL Clough said the three points on the road had been coming for Albion and that his team finally got their rewards with a 2-1 win at the Stadium of Light.
It was Sunderland’s first home league defeat of the season thanks to goals from Ryan Edwards and Liam Boyce, cancelling out a penalty for the home side.
It was particularly pleasing for the Brewers manager after the disappointment of the injury time defeat at Peterborough.
He said: “You look over the two games and we would have taken three points. If we had got two draws, we would have been happy so to take three points is a good return and it should have been more except for the screamer we conceded at Peterborough on Saturday.
“But we don’t go mad when we win, we don’t go mad when we lose. It’s a long old season and it’s just three points that has been coming on the road from Doncaster, Peterborough and then we get our rewards tonight.”
The victory comes despite Clough being disappointed with his team’s first 45 minutes.
He said: “We hadn’t played very well so it was important to go in at half-time level and then after the break we were more like our usual selves. We scored the winning goal and created three or four more very good situations. We also defended brilliantly and restricted them to one shot on target.
“We hadn’t played with the sharpness and intensity we usually do in the first period. But when we raise our energy levels not a lot of teams can live with us.”
Clough was pleased with two goals from inside the six-yard box.
He said: “Ryan Edwards has made some wonderful runs tonight and he was right in there to put the rebound in where he should be. It was a good team goal as well. Ryan’s all-round midfield play was very good tonight.
“We have put balls across the face of the goal all season and haven’t had anyone there, but we did it tonight and Liam Boyce was in there where it mattered.
“If Scotty Fraser is putting those kind of balls across, we need to be in there to finish them.”