JACK ROSS has backed Will Grigg to rediscover his goalscoring form, despite the striker having missed two more excellent chances to open his Sunderland account in Friday’s 2-2 draw with Accrington Stanley.

Having spurned two gilt-edged opportunities in Tuesday’s draw with Blackpool, Grigg was left frustrated again on Friday as he side-footed wide of the target before hooking a first-time shot over the crossbar from inside the six-yard box.

The Northern Irishman became the most expensive signing in League One history when he completed a £4m move from Wigan Athletic on deadline-day at the end of last month, but he has not failed to score in his opening three Sunderland matches.

He will get another chance to break his duck when Gillingham visit the Stadium of Light tomorrow, and Ross is confident it will not take long for the goals to start flowing.

“I thought Friday’s game was similar to the one on Tuesday really,” said the Sunderland boss. “It would be a greater concern if, in the last two home games, he hadn’t had any opportunities. It would be a greater concern for me if, as a team, we weren’t creating anything or he wasn’t getting into those positions in the box.

“In the last couple of games, I’m sure he’ll feel he could have come out with two or three goals. Over the course of the two matches, he’s had chances to do that, but his record and pedigree, and what I’ve seen of him since he’s come here, would suggest that if these chances keep coming, then the goals will start coming as well.”

Sunderland’s players clawed back a two-goal deficit to claim a point on Friday, and while they received raucous support as they scored two goals in the space of seven minutes in the second half, there was audible discontent as Accrington scored two goals of their own.

There is an understandable edginess amongst the Sunderland support at the moment – Friday’s draw means the Black Cats have now won just two of their last nine league games – and Ross will be urging his players to stay strong if things do not go their way tomorrow.

“There’s that tangible frustration at times that you can feel, and that’s challenging because you can almost touch it,” he said. “In the periods of the game that don’t go so well, you can feel that frustration.

“But then the backing we got when we got back into the game on Friday was brilliant, and you can’t have one of those things without the other. You have to be able to deal with the frustration when things aren’t going so well because that’s why you get that level of support when things are going well. It’s just about learning to cope with it for a lot of the players.”