Talking Points: Sunderland slip up as Neil howler hands Hornets victory

Today at 01:00 AM

It was another frustrating away day for the Lads as we were edged out by Watford at Vicarage Road. Bomber takes a look at the game's main stories

Dan's daft dive in!

What on Earth was he thinking? With Sunderland largely on top throughout the second half, it wasn't merely a terrible piece of decision making, but a hugely costly one.

Watford, who were seemingly happy with a point, sat deeper and deeper, dropping to a pretty flat back five before one of their few breakaways in the second half managed to bait Neil into lunging in. He got nowhere near the ball and gave the referee an easy decision to make with just six minutes left on the clock!

Just seconds before, he made the same lunge and committed the same foul on the same player and got away with it.

With Dennis Cirkin backing him up not five yards away, and only two Watford players in the box against Chris Rigg, Jobe, Luke O'Nien and Chris Mepham, for the fan watching on it became like the car crash you see happening in slow motion but can do nothing to prevent.

That's a red card and a howling, points-costing mistake in the new captain's first five games with the armband.

Is Neil falling into that category of good players who should be left to be good players rather than being burdened with the additional pressure of a captaincy?

A first proper look at 'Our Willy'

Result aside, there was one huge positive for Sunderland, and that was the peek we got at what Wilson Isidor can be capable of.

There was frustration during the first thirty minutes as we struggled to get out of our own half, but once we went behind and we came out of our shell, he really shone.

Whether he was running the channels or positioned more centrally, he played with pace and power, and most of all that was good for us either came through him, or saw him on the end of it.

He nicked in at the near post in the first half, just hitting the side netting, and ran at Watford from the opposite side before just flashing a strike wide of the far post.

Getting in front of his marker and poking the ball home at the near post in equalising for us was the icing on the cake, and it was just a shame that we couldn't take the points his performance deserved back to Wearside with us.

A great response after conceding

It was clear that we intentionally set up in a way that would give Watford the lion's share of possession and territory; after all, we have one of the lowest cumulative minutes of possession in the Championship so far this season.

However, our execution of the game plan against Watford was poor.

Whilst we looked reasonably solid in our shape, there was nowhere near enough pressure on the ball when Watford took it into our half. They were free to move the ball however they saw fit and they did that very effectively, deserving to go ahead in the match.

Whilst we shouldn't have to wait to go a goal behind to start playing in an exciting, attacking manner, the response after going a goal down was incredibly encouraging.

It's important that we don't let our frustration at the penalty given away and the point dropped cloud what was for sixty minutes, a great performance deserving of taking us to the top of the league.

An opportunity thrown away

With West Brom slipping up and losing to Sheffield Wednesday, yesterday's match was all set up to have us return to the top of the table with just a point, therefore having been so close and so deserving of at least that draw needed, you can't dress it up as anything other than an opportunity missed.

In context, it's bitter, but it's not the end of the world, as Watford was always going to be one of the hardest away games of the season.

Elsewhere, West Brom lost and Burnley and Sheffield United drew, so we still sit in the automatic promotion places on goal difference with everyone having played the same number of games.

October is going to be massive for us, and in particular the two home games in four days against Derby and Leeds. It'll be good to be back on home soil, having picked up three wins from three at the Stadium of Light so far.

A positive response will be needed and some rotation almost guaranteed for the Derby game will provide the change and breath of fresh air the starting eleven probably needs after such a result.

A win on Tuesday and we'll be buzzing leading up to a massive game against Leeds, with yesterday's result all but forgotten about.

Sunderland's third kit ticks the box!

When the pictures of the third kit were released on Instagram, the response from fans was divided at best, and I too was one of those that didn't really get it. It was thetalking point for days and the cause of many a Twitter debate, or a full-on raging argument!

However, after now seeing it in practice rather than in a moody photoshoot with vintage cars and washing machines, my mind is made up and I love it.

Maybe it was the sight of seeing it on players wearing stonewash denim and posing on electrical appliances that put me off, but combined with the shorts and seeing footballers footballing in it, I'm sold!