JACK ROSS understands the ‘level of expectation’ that resulted in Sunderland’s players being booed off after the opening game of the League One season, but the Black Cats boss insists it is important to retain a sense of perspective at such an early stage of the campaign.

Sunderland’s tendency to draw too many games at the Stadium of Light was in evidence once again as Lynden Gooch’s penalty cancelled out Tariqe Fosu’s opener to secure a 1-1 draw with Oxford United.

An error-strewn display resulted in a smattering of boos at both the half-time and full-time whistle, and led to some supporters questioning Ross’ future after the game. Stewart Donald and Charlie Methven will not be making any hasty decisions, but after missing out on promotion last season, Ross has to prove he is the right man to lead a successful push to the Championship this term.

The Scotsman understands that, but also insists it is important to appreciate the bigger picture after a summer that has seen Sunderland lose three of their highest earners in Bryan Oviedo, Lee Cattermole and George Honeyman. That trio have been replaced by much more inexperienced alternatives, and while things didn’t quite gel as planned at the weekend, Ross felt there were positive signs to emerge from his side’s display.

“I understand the expectations of this club, but the reality and what we have in the group is different to the perception,” said the Sunderland boss. “It is fine lines, but we dominated that game territorially, and you only do that with good players and when you are pushing.

“It becomes more difficult when you go behind because the whole game is more frustrating for obvious reasons, such as how difficult it is to get a flow. But we feel we have attributes we didn’t have last season in terms of more pace and mobility.”

Ross is hoping to make at least one more addition to his squad, although the fact that Thursday’s transfer deadline only applies to teams in the Premier League and Championship means he could opt to keep his powder dry until the end of the week to see if anyone from the top two divisions suddenly becomes available on loan. Left-back is a priority position, with Oviedo’s departure meaning Denver Hume is the only natural choice in the role.

“We would like someone in that area,” said Ross. “You can see we have good depth in other areas, but it is important for us to have another option and competition for Denver, so we will continue to work on that over the coming days. We have already worked hard on that regard with the possibility Bryan would leave, so it was a case of knowing exactly who would work for us within the parameters of the club.”