Carl Lawson believes Sunderland’s Checkatrade Trophy tie at Rochdale will provide the perfect platform for a number of young players.
The Black Cats are expected to name a strong side when they travel to the Crown Oil Arena, with a number of young players set to feature alongside members of the first-team.
Jan Kirchhoff will play a part and the fixture will be vital as the German continues his recovery from a hamstring injury, but it will be equally important for the likes of Lawson as a number of under-23s take their development to the next level.
“It is going to be tough but it will be a good test for us against a proven Football League side,” said Lawson. “It’s going to be a challenge against a powerful team but for the younger players it’s great for our development and a great opportunity.
“Hopefully I'm involved because it will be good test against senior opposition and I'll be able to see where I am in my development.”
He continued: “You always want to start the season well and we have managed to do that in the Premier League 2 with two wins from three games.
“The new players have settled in well and we’ve got to know them all really well during pre-season and in our opening few games.”
