ALAN Stubbs has admitted that Sunderland need to start displaying a far tougher mental resolve if they are to move off the foot of the Premiership, writes Scott Wilson.

The Black Cats finally picked up their first point of the season at the sixth time of asking on Saturday, but the 1-1 draw with West Brom was hardly a cause for celebration.

Mick McCarthy's men looked to have all three points sewn up as the game entered the third minute of stoppage time, only for Zoltan Gera to outjump the whole of the home side's defence before heading home Diomansy Kamara's left-wing corner.

The dramatic equaliser left Sunderland four points adrift of safety and, just as worryingly, exposed a mental fragility that will only worsen as their wait for a Premiership win goes on.

"It's an absolute body blow for us," conceded Stubbs, who has rapidly established himself as the Black Cats' leading defender since signing on a free transfer last month. "My main thought at the moment is one of disbelief.

"The fact that we've got a point doesn't give us any satisfaction at all. We know what we should have done.

"The pressure comes from within. It all depends on how much pressure the individual wants to put on himself.

"But, in terms of our mentality, we have to become stronger. We've got to play for 94 minutes and not 92-and-a-half or whatever it was against West Brom."

The manner of the Baggies' equaliser was particularly galling as Gera, hardly the tallest player on the pitch, was allowed to rise largely unchallenged as he powered onto Kamara's centre.

Gary Breen's opener had been scored in similar fashion and, while West Brom's previous eight corners had amounted to nothing, Sunderland's defenders switched off with victory in their grasp.

"It was a corner and it was something that we, as a team, should have cleared," admitted Stubbs. "It's what you practise for. Whether it was a lapse in concentration or not, we are there to clear corners - not just as a back four, as a team."

The harshest of critics might point to Saturday's draw as evidence of Sunderland's inability to cope with the demands of life at a higher level.

The result leaves the Wearsiders still searching for their first win of the season, but Saturday's visitors provide proof that a slow start is not necessarily the precursor to a failure at the finish.

West Brom won just one game in the first half of last season, yet still managed to avoid relegation with a win over Portsmouth on the final day.

Stubbs admits the Baggies' revival should act as an inspiration to his team-mates.

"I'm sure we'll get knocked down enough this season," he said. "It's my job as a senior player to help pick the lads up.

"If we can keep going, things will change. I'm convinced of that. The doubters will keep building and they will continue to put pressure on this team. But we've got to rise above that, and we will do."

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