DISAPPOINTED Sunderland manager Peter Reid last night looked back on a Premiership run which has brought only one win in 11 matches and admitted: "It is not good enough."

After losing the two Easter games to Spurs and Coventry Reid is now looking to his players to bounce back in the big derby game against arch-rivals Newcastle United at the Stadium of Light on Saturday, but it will take a total resurgence in the final four games of the season to rekindle dying hopes of winning qualification for European competition next season.

Reid said: "We have won only one game in 11 and the players are obviously disappointed.

"But that's history now and we have just got to try to bounce back by working hard.

"You can't keep criticising the players - they have been terrific this season.

"Against Spurs we paid the penalty for some crazy defending but today they have worked really hard especially in a difficult second half against a team fighting for their lives.

"We need to keep working hard and we need a break."

Reid saluted the second-half performance of goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen, who kept Sunderland in with a chance of winning a point, and complained that referee Dermot Gallagher should have awarded a late penalty for a stoppage-time foul on Darren Williams.

"It was a difficult game for us and we didn't really get started until they went one up," he said.

"Our goalkeeper kept us in the game with some magnificent saves, but at the end we had Coventry under the cosh but we just couldn't get a goal.

"But we kept on going and tried hard to get back into the game - Niall Quinn had a good chance and possibly we should have had a penalty near the death."

When asked about the referee's performance, Reid replied: "If I said Dermot was useless and a homer I would get into trouble.

"I would rather say he had a difficult afternoon."

But the Sunderland boss had no sympathy for Varga, sent off for two bookings for fouls.

He said: "It was a rash challenge, but it was only his second bad tackle of the game.

"There were things going on in the opening five minutes that the referee let go and we were scratching our heads about some decisions.

"I think Dermot (the referee) had a little trouble sorting things out.

"I thought it was a penalty when Darren Williams was brought down in the box but perhaps the referee was unsighted."

Reid said that match-winner John Hartson had caused problems.

"Hartson is a handful if they get quality balls to him - he makes things happen."

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