Sunderland under-18s’ boss Paul Bryson believes his side are gaining momentum as they travel to Middlesbrough on Saturday.
The lads are looking to build on Tuesday’s victory over Tranmere Rovers, which saw them progress to the second round of the FA Youth Cup.
And with the mood high in the dressing room, Bryson believes the Boro clash provides a good opportunity to claim their first Premier League win of the season.
“The lads have been in good spirits since Tuesday; I can tell the win has put a bit of belief in them,” Bryson said.
“It’s all about consistency for us now; we’ve put a couple of good performances in of late, but we must keep doing that if we are to pick up points.
“Tuesday was a big win for the lads, and I think they can really build momentum from it ahead of Saturday’s game; hopefully we can put another good performance in and kick on now.”
Bryson will be without key man Cole Kiernan for the derby through suspension, after the striker picked up his fifth yellow card during Tuesday’s cup tie.
“Cole will be a big miss for us, he’s been one of our standout players so far this season,” Bryson continued.
“It does provide an opportunity for a couple of the younger lads to come in and I’m hoping they grab the opportunity with both hands.
“We would like to give them the opportunity if we were in a better state, but with a long injury list and suspensions, it’s needs must as the moment.”
Boro come into the game with one win in their previous seven games, and victory from the lads will take them three points behind their North East counterparts.
Bryson added: “We’re expecting another difficult game. They’re a well organised team and have some very good players.”
“We know their coaches and a lot of the lads know each other, so that will add a bit of spice into the game.
“If we can replicate the Tranmere performance, we’ll give ourselves a good opportunity of coming home with three points.”
