Elliott Dickman refused to be too critical of his side following a 3-0 defeat to Liverpool on Sunday afternoon.
The young Black Cats took on an experienced Reds side which included Danny Ings and Marko Grujic, who cost a combined value of over £13m, but they matched their counterparts for much of the game.
After failing to take two key opportunities Dickman’s side fell behind, with Matty Virtue firing Liverpool into the lead on 78 minutes before adding his second following Rhian Brewster’s strike.
And although the under-23 manager was disappointed by the Reds’ late flurry, he insisted that there are plenty of positives to build on.
“We were really pleased for 78 minutes because we kept a good shape and the players stuck to the game plan,” said Dickman.
“We conceded a poor goal and the lads thought we had to get back into the game, which we did, but we had plenty of time to do that and wanted them to stick to the plan.”
He continued: “Unfortunately we opened ourselves up a little too early and got done with another two goals.
“I don’t think we deserved to lose the game but when you give away goals as cheaply as we did you’re going to get punished.
“The lads are disappointed in the dressing room but we’ll take the positives from the opening 78 minutes and build on them.”
