Robbie Stockdale has shared his delighted after Sunderland came from behind late on to book their place in round two of the Checkatrade Trophy.
Following a goalless opening period, Adam Campbell broke the deadlock on 49 minutes to hand Notts County a precious lead.
With time against the Black Cats, Stockdale's side battled back but grew increasingly frustrated as they continued to draw blanks in the final third.
However, just as Campbell's strike looked to have been enough to knock the Sunderland out, second-half substitute Josh Maja levelled the tie on 83 minutes before Seb Larsson’s effort was deflected home by Haydn Hollis in stoppage time.
Speaking after the game, Stockdale delivered his verdict.
“We were always the team in control but we didn’t create enough chances,” he said.
“We played some nice pretty football without any cutting edge. We spoke at half-time about the threats they pose, one of them was corners and they scored within five minutes.
“From there on we huffed and puffed and became a bit frustrated but it took two pieces of absolute quality to win the game.
“George Honeyman burst through the middle, played an excellent ball to Josh and it was an excellent finish.
“Then a set-piece which we were really pleased with because we work on those type of things and overall we were pleased with it.”
He continued: “It’s a fantastic learning curve for them and that’s why it’s such a huge benefit for us to be in the competition.”
