JACK ROSS is delighted to have been able to provide some “payback” to Sunderland’s long-suffering supporters by guiding his side to a Wembley final.

The Black Cats booked their place in the Checkatrade Trophy final as goals from Will Grigg and Lewis Morgan secured a 2-0 semi-final win at Bristol Rovers.

Sunderland will take on Portsmouth at Wembley on Sunday, March 31, and are set to have up to 40,000 supporters roaring them on as they attempt to complete what would be the first half of a notable double that could also see them win promotion back to the Championship.

Last season’s relegation from the second tier was the culmination of a miserable two-year spell that saw Sunderland suffer back-to-back demotions, and while Ross accepts a weekend at Wembley will not repair the damage that has been wrought in the last few years, he is happy to have restored a smile to the faces of his club’s fans.

“The ultimate reward for the supporters will be taking the club back to the Premier League, and the first part of that is obviously to try to get out of this league this season,” said the Sunderland boss. “That will always remain a focus, and that is what will reward the fans properly.

“But it’s great to be able to give them a little bit of payback for the fact that they came out and bought 20,000 season tickets before a ball had even been kicked this season. It’s not blind loyalty, but that’s an incredible show of loyalty given what had happened in the past.

“I know from people around the club how much the fanbase enjoyed their last visit to Wembley and what it meant to them in terms of having a weekend in London. They really enjoyed the occasion, and I’m sure they’ll do that again.

“I don’t think they’ll take too much notice that it’s a different competition – I think they’ll go there and it will be a release for them from what they’ve gone through in the last couple of years. I’m proud of the group that they’ve managed to provide that for the supporters, and once it comes around, the focus will be on winning the competition outright.”

Sunderland’s last trip to Wembley saw Gustavo Poyet’s side lose to Manchester City in the final of the Capital One Cup, but the 2014 adventure is best remembered for the remarkable pre-match scenes that saw the travelling contingent from Wearside completely take over large parts of London.

A similar invasion is anticipated at the end of the month, with the Black Cats’ run to the final a direct result of Ross’ willingness to take the Checktrade Trophy seriously from the outset.

“We’ve treated the competition seriously and picked teams that have been right for the occasion,” he said. “So when you get to this stage of the tournament, you don’t want that hard work to go to waste.

“The prize is big. Irrespective of what competition it is or why you’re involved in it, to get to a final at Wembley, with a chance, of winning silverware is huge. This type of opportunity doesn’t come around very often so it’s massive for us. We treated the game properly, and I’m delighted to have come out on the right side of the result.”

Last night’s victory was never really in doubt from the moment Grigg broke the deadlock with a clinical finish at the end of the first half. Morgan doubled Sunderland’s lead at the start of the second period, with the victory extending the Black Cats’ unbeaten run to an impressive 16 matches in all competitions.

“We’re in a good place just now as a squad, and I think that’s been reflected in a lot of our recent performances,” said Ross, who joked that he will ask chairman Stewart Donald to buy him a new cup-final suit. “We’re getting the reward with the results now as well.

“There’s been a consistency of selection, and we tried to do that again tonight. The couple of changes we had to make, we were able to bring in good players.

“There’s a good momentum about the group, I think they’re in a good place, and we’re looking forward to what the next two months are going to bring them. They’re absolutely excited now about playing in a cup final, and why shouldn’t they be? We’ll park it for the next few weeks, but it’s something for everybody to look forward.”

Ross was especially pleased to see Grigg claim his first goal from open play since his record-breaking January move from Wigan Athletic.

“I’m delighted for him,” he said. “His quality from open play has been good, and it was good again tonight. It’s got to be because of the way we play, there’s a lot of onus on him to play in that manner.

“He’s undoubtedly helped us in forward areas, with the way he plays the game. He’s played an important role, but tonight will be satisfying for him because that’s why we bought him. That type of touch and finish is what he’s all about.”