Aaron Connolly explains Sunderland relief amid frustration at what happened after long-awaited goal

Sunderland forward Aaron Connolly admitted to feeling “relief” at finding the net for the club for the first time and reckoned, “that’s what I want to do, I just want to score goals.”

The 24-year-old is desperate to get his career back on track after a troubled few years and is doing just that with the Black Cats. He has started just twice in red and white because of limited opportunities but cracked home a volley from the edge of the penalty area against Millwall on Saturday after just 10 minutes to give the visitors the lead.

The game was halted for around 30 minutes due to medical emergencies in the crowd, with doctors from both clubs praised for their swift response. The action continued and despite Millwall snatching a dramatic late point in the Championship clash, Connolly’s opener ensured the Black Cats extended their unbeaten run to nine games.

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Connolly told the club: “There was a lot of relief when the ball hit the net and it was a proud moment for me. I was about to run down to the away end but it was a bit far away so I thought ‘I need to save my energy here’.

He added: “I said after the Preston game, I just want to score goals. I want to add my experience. I want to contribute as much as I can and obviously I would have liked to help to contribute to three points.

“Obviously it was disappointing conceding so late on. We gave everything for 90-plus minutes. Millwall are doing well this season so it was going to be tough and we played so well. We had a lot of changes in the line-up and it shows our strength in depth. We came here expecting three points and it’s devastating to concede so late on but it shows our strength in depth. A point is a point and we are still right up there. The most important thing is that we are picking up points.”

Sunderland have to pick themselves up for big games against West Bromwich Albion, on Tuesday night, then a trip to Sheffield United on Friday night. “We can’t afford to be down about the late goal, there are a lot of games to play,” Connolly continued.

“We’ve got West Brom and then Sunderland which is a massive week. I know we will go away from Millwall feeling frustrated but the games come thick and fast and you have to look at the positives. We are on an unbeaten run and you can see all the lads are doing their bit.”

He added: “The fans were outstanding throughout, even when we conceded they were backing us all the way. I said to Meps [Chris Mepham] in the warm-up, ‘do they have the top stand or the bottom?’ But they have filled both. I have never seen anything like it.
“We believe we can beat anyone in this league. Hopefully there’s six points coming up.”

Sunderland head coach Regis le Bris shared his pride at the way his much-changed table-topping side fought despite being forced to settle for a point. The Frenchman was forced to make six changes because of injuries and suspensions but Anthony Patterson returned in goal and Ajo Alese was back from injury too.

Speaking to safc.com he said: “The first half was really positive. We controlled the game and we played under pressure. The collective mindset was very good. We scored once but we probably had two or three opportunities to score a second goal.

“We didn’t and we knew when we are away to this kind of team, with a very impressive style of play with good accuracy, it is going to be tough. We won the first contact often but we weren’t always able to keep the ball.

“We have to improve some elements of our game, especially in the second half. In the end it is a good point away from home. The sequence of games we have had shows we are consistent. The difference between a point and a win is important. We have many things to improve but at the minute the team spirit is very good.”

Jobe Bellingham, Patrick Roberts and Trai Hume will all be available for the West Brom game.