Sunderland travelled to St Mirren in their penultimate game of pre-season, with the League One side winning 6-0.
Sunderland’s academy setup has always been something that has remained extremely credible throughout some of the darkest times in the club’s recent history – mainly down to some of the players they’ve produced, which include World Cup stars Jordan Pickford and Jordan Henderson.
Sunderland’s squad for their League One campaign will likely feature a number of their young prospects, some of whom found the back of the net in their penultimate pre-season friendly against St Mirren, with George Honeyman, Josh Maja, Luke Molyneux and Lynden Gooch all scoring.
The Black Cats won the game 6-0, with manager Jack Ross having now won back-to-back pre-season games.
One of the standout performers in the Black Cats’ win against Ross’s former side was 22-year-old Gooch, who looks like one of the key prospects for next season.
The American scored two goals – one from open play and another a calmly taken penalty. Gooch broke into the Sunderland first-team back in 2015 in a 6-3 League Cup win against Exeter City, after defining loan spells with Gateshead and Doncaster Rovers.
One of Sunderland’s shining lights in a deplorable season for the Black Cats last term was 23-year-old Honeyman, who has even been rumoured to take the captain’s armband next term.
Honeyman also netted against St Mirren, with the young midfielder showing his attacking instincts when he latched onto a stray ball inside the opposition penalty area. Like Gooch, Honeyman enjoyed a loan spell with Gateshead in 2015, before making his first-team debut for the Black Cats in January 2017, with the midfielder making 48 appearances and netting six goals in a Sunderland shirt.
19-year-old Sunderland forward Maja played 90 minutes against the Scottish side and scored two goals, whilst his fellow attacker Molyneux featured late as a substitute – but also hit the back of the net. Both players will be keen to cement a place in their Scottish manager’s starting 11 next season.
Here’s some of the best of the reaction to Sunderland’s youngsters’ outstanding performances:
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