Source: Northern_Echo
Derby disaster spurred us on – skipper
LEE Cattermole claims last month's Tyne-Wear derby debacle was the catalyst for a team-bonding drive that has propelled Sunderland into the Premier League's top six.[LNB] Cattermole was as shellshocked as anyone after the Black Cats crashed to a 5-1 defeat at the hands of their fiercest rivals, but in his role as skipper, the 22-year-old immediately vowed to do his utmost to remove any lingering negativity.[LNB] The midfielder helped organise a series of meetings, in which the failings exposed at Newcastle were discussed, and a number of bonding sessions, in which the whole of the squad came together in a show of unity.[LNB] The result has been a threegame unbeaten run, featuring wins over Stoke and Chelsea and a draw at Tottenham, which has lifted the Black Cats to within three points of a Champions League place.[LNB] It's been a great response since the Newcastle game,[LNB] said Cattermole. Even at the time, I said I thought it could be a good result for us in a funny sort of way. It obviously didn't feel like it then, but maybe I've been proved right.[LNB] We had to go back to the drawing board after that Newcastle game and I think it's made us stronger as a team.[LNB] We went out for lunch together in the week after the Newcastle match, and that's something we don't normally do. It was a good chance for us to chat as a team and talk a few things through. We've arranged a few different things off the field together and tried to make the atmosphere as positive as we can.[LNB] We've really come together as a group, and we've taken seven points from nine since Newcastle. I think we're starting to repair the damage a bit.[LNB] Last weekend's win at Chelsea has inevitably raised hopes of a concerted push for a European place this season.[LNB] With the Premier League seemingly more wide open than ever, and with Sunderland already having played against eight of the other nine teams in the top ten, the next month could see Steve Bruce's side cement their position at the heart of the Europa League-chasing pack.[LNB] Cattermole is keen to maintain the club's current momentum, but having started the season targeting a top-ten finish, the Stockton-born midfielder is not about to alter his ambitions.[LNB] The aim has always been to finish in the top ten, and at the moment, I don't really see any reason to change that, he said. We had a tough run last season, but we still could have finished in the top ten on the last day. That has to be the number one ambition this year.[LNB] We're not really deviating away from that, and I know it's a cliché, but we still have to take each game as it comes. We have to keep working hard every week.[LNB] Cattermole was not involved with England Under-21s this week, and Steve Bruce has praised Stuart Pearce for leaving another Sunderland player out of the side that faced Germany on Tuesday.[LNB] Danny Welbeck was omitted from the Under-21 squad at the start of the week, and while Fabio Capello has been criticised for running a number of England's senior players into the ground, Bruce was delighted with Pearce's careful handling of his striker.[LNB] Danny was pulled out of the Under-21s as a precaution really, he said. Sometimes you want to publicly thank people, and Stuart Pearce was quite sensible.[LNB] After running his socks off on the Sunday (at Chelsea), Danny playing again a couple of days later would have been asking something of him.[LNB] Thankfully, common sense has prevailed and we expect him to be okay with a couple more days' rest.[LNB] Sunderland's FA Youth Cup third-round tie with reigning champions Chelsea will take place at Eppleton Colliery Welfare Ground on Tuesday, December 7 (ko 7pm).[LNB] As a result, the reserve fixture with Blackburn scheduled for the same evening has been postponed.[LNB]
