Fans were left amused as Sunderland’s Luke O’Nien gets booked for piggyback on Bristol City’s Alex Scott in the latter stages of the game.
Nahki Wells’ penalty in extra time saved a point for the hosts, extending their unbeaten streak to 11 games in all competitions.
Jack Clarke’s brilliant strike had the Robins trailing. However, the visitors won their first spot kick in 469 days after Jay Dasilva burst into a box and was taken down by Alex Hume.
Wells put the ball past Sunderland goalkeeper Anthony Patterson, who brilliantly saved a QPR penalty in midweek, to keep his side’s strong form and send the Black Cats gutted at coming so close to taking all three points, and it would have been three consecutive Championship victories.
Well, that’s one way to stop a counter-attack 🤣@SunderlandAFC | @LukeONien pic.twitter.com/a1aViHxsnP
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) February 18, 2023
“I think both teams were pretty young, pretty athletic,” Mowbray said as per Sunderland Echo post-match.
“We could feel their threat and we tried to organise our team to prevent the counter because that’s where a lot of their goals have come from – they nick it in midfield and then break quickly with the athleticism that they have. We tried to stop that and it took a little bit away from our forward momentum, I think. But if you’re overly cavalier you find yourself 2-0 down, so we lost a bit of sting.
“They had spells in the game where they gave us problems but generally I felt we controlled it. We had a fifteen, twenty minute period there [after the goal] where we were in the box for a long time.
“When Jack whacked that one in I thought we’d get over the line but we have to accept the penalty, put the point in the bag and move on.
“If we’d said at the start of the week that we’d get seven points, including another trip to London which was our third in ten days, we’d have probably taken that.
“Nigel has given his young team and given them a lot of belief and I like watching them play. We had our moments and another day we score another goal or two.
“They had some experienced players in key positions, we had a 19-year-old and 20-year-old in central midfield against two men, one of which has come from Leicester City in the Premier League. It’s a great experience for us to play against that knowledge and experience. It was just another challenge for our young team and generally we handled it well, other teams are allowed to attack us and have a gameplan, that’s football.
“We just couldn’t quite see it over the line. It’s a good experience for us.
“So: let’s take those seven points from this week and move on.”
Nigel Pearson said, as per Irish News: “I was a bit nervous at the end. Nahki was nice and calm. It is a little bit ironic that it would be a penalty that got us something today. The officiating again was irritating for both sides.
“We felt we would have got a penalty when Sam Bell was pushed. The important thing is our players got reward for what was another positive performance which showed the character as players.
“There was a resilience there today which I was really pleased to see from them.
“I wasn’t happy with how Rob was treated off the pitch. He was in pain, quite a serious injury. We have to wait for a scan. For the officials to be happy with players to be trampling on them on the side, is a disgrace. Really poor. We had to move him safely (possible ACL).
“But the important thing is we got something out of the game which gave us reward for another positive performance, the fans have had another difficult journey up here in yesterday’s weather. Football wins today.”
As mentioned however, fans were in hysterics as Sunderland’s Luke O’Nien gets booked for a piggyback on Bristol City’s Alex Scott…
@SAFCMAD1879: Love him me
@MichaelSkudley: Oh9 he’s brilliant. Who else would get a yellow for taking a piggyback 🤣🤣
@Chris26060062: Best yellow ever had me in tears 🤣🤣
@LukeWydinho: Alex Scott would run through and score with him on his back anyway
@skybluecol: Horrible player that O’Nien
@tjbrown___: Took that well Alex scott tbf. Great player
@DanielJenks89: Calm down Luke, the Cheltenham Festival is not for another month
@hildainstant: He’s just out there entertaining himself 😂
@Tanya_M_S: 🤣 anyone for a piggy back @LukeONien
@alexking1973: It’s genuinely impossible to hate like Onien #safc
@stevenmclean4: Nah Luke is the greatest 😂😭
@CharlieHorner_: Sir Luke O’Nien. Or Mr. Sunderland. What a man #safc
@IamSuckFake: What a tackle
@alanj123455: All credit to their player. He went along with it and didn’t roll all over the place. Think it was just a foul lol
@CAM_F_98: Games gone soft
@AnthonyMilsom: Couldn’t have done that during the week when he cost me £150…
@DomKnight__: best moment of the game pahahah, proper jimmy bullard antics
@The_Bear_Safc: Love how he gives him a kiss at the end 😂
@Meach86: How can you not love Luke O’Nien? 😂
@HilsLM: I’m creased
@JammieSafc: 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 he’s some boy is our luke
@AJScampi: Greatest yellow card ever!
Never a card. Ref has no banter pic.twitter.com/o3lkgHLGo3
— Daniel (@MannixKnows) February 18, 2023
Aye 😅
— deanSAFC76 🇬🇧 (@BeanGre73226284) February 18, 2023
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