CHRIS COLEMAN is trying his best to stay positive after blaming bad defending and referee Simon Hooper for Sunderland's latest day of misery that has pushed them even closer to League One.

Despite an encouraging display at the Stadium of Light, the Black Cats suffered a 12th home defeat of a depressing campaign to leave them five points adrift of safety.

Should Birmingham City beat Bolton on Tuesday night then that gap would become eight with only six matches remaining, increasing the threat of relegation from the Championship to Coleman's men.

Sunderland's latest reversal was suffered in awful conditions when they conceded from three decent deliveries into their box, while Hooper could have given a spot-kick when Lynden Gooch was brought down in the area by Barry Bannan. The Scotland international was also on a booking at the time.

While disappointed and frustrated, Coleman knows his players can't afford to give up at this stage and he is desperate for everyone to keep fighting ahead of this Saturday's trip to Leeds United.

Coleman said: "The Barnsley game was cancelled and Birmingham play tomorrow (Tuesday) but even so nothing's unbridgeable until it's mathematically unbridgeable. Performance-wise there's not much more I could have asked. We did more than enough to come away with a result, that's for sure. I've sat here many times and not been able to say that because we've not performed.

"I thought the referee, though, and I never blame the referee for results, but I thought he was short today. The fine moment where we (should) get a penalty, they go to ten men and we get nothing was hugely disappointing.

"I can't understand why he didn't make the decision because the linesman on that side has a clear view, there's no bodies in between, and the ref's in a good position himself. Everybody in the stadium saw that and saw the same thing. The Sheffield Wednesday fans would have thought the same thing, the Sheffield Wednesday bench would.

"The two people who didn't the two people who we needed to see it and call it right didn't. I thought that was a huge moment where the advantage could have swung to us.

"I was disappointed with that but I wasn't disappointed with the overall performance, it was much more like it. I was disappointed with two of the goals we gave away. Before they got possession of the ball we had opportunities to clear the danger and we didn't and we were punished."

Sheffield Wednesday manager Jos Luhukay even agreed with his Sunderland counterpart afterwards by suggesting it should have been a penalty.

Coleman added: "I'm not surprised. I've been where he is and got away with it. I don't blame him. It's not his fault, he'll be happy. But they (the ref and the linesman) were the only two people who thought it wasn't a penalty.

"Normally if there's a crowd of bodies and the officials can't see through a crowd of players I understand that. But there was no crowd of players - it wasn't a tough decision.

"We had opportunities. We had the ball before Sheffield Wednesday got it and didn't deal with it properly, we gave it to them. That's let us down.

"I'm disappointed about that, but everything else... I've been there when we've been really nervous, poor and lacklustre - no invention, no creation, no contact on the opposition. All that was there. I couldn't fault the players."

Sunderland only have six matches remaining to try to avoid the drop into League One and Coleman is determined that he will not give up after the last two performances, including Friday's 4-1 win at Derby County.

The Sunderland boss said: "If we hadn't done in the last two games what we've done performance-wise I'd say no, it's done. We can go to Leeds and win. It won't be easy but we can go anywhere in this division and win.

"It happens all the time. It was just the run we were on, we weren't really performing. But the last two performances were more like it. If we do that in the next six games we can win three, that's for sure. It's a big job for us but we have to see Leeds United as the last game of the season for us.

"It's not like we're a non-league team and we've drawn Leeds United in the FA Cup and it's not going to happen. We're in the same league - all right, we're at the wrong end and they're mid-table but it's not inconceivable that we can go there and win a game of football."

Sunderland's latest defeat was inflicted after failing to deal with three deliveries into the area; disappointing after the way they defended so strongly at Derby. Lamine Kone was missing from the side and it is unclear whether he will face Leeds.

Coleman said: "I've no idea. It's a groin problem he picked up on Friday night midway through the second half. He had a light session on Sunday, wasn't comfortable, and was even worse on Monday morning. We don't know."