Elliott Dickman refused to be too downbeat after Sunday’s Premier League 2 defeat to Chelsea.
With an average age of just over 18, Sunderland under-23s lined-up with three youth team players in the starting XI as Jack Diamond, Jake Hackett and Benji Kimpioka stepped up.
However, it proved to be a tough afternoon for the young Black Cats as the Blues came out on top, with a 5-0 victory which saw Callum Hudson-Odoi score a hat-trick.
Speaking to safc.com, Dickman refrained from focusing on the negatives, instead insisting Sunday’s test provided a great learning curve for his young players to learn from going forward.
“We have lost the game 5-0 and been out played,” he said.
“From our perspective some of the lads have done well. They have stepped up from the under-18s and have been made to play against a side with all that experience.
“It is not an easy challenge and I thought they handled themselves well.
“Some of our older players needed to step up to the plate and show a little bit more leadership than they did today.
“But from our point of view some of the younger players did well and while the result wasn’t what we wanted it gives those players something to learn from.”