AFTER joy on their travels comes frustration on home turf. The story of the last four days for Sunderland but also very much the story of their season.

Sunderland have won more games on the road than they have at the Stadium of Light and on the eve of the visit of Sheffield United, Tony Mowbray told of his desire to “change the narrative”.

A win against the automatic promotion chasers would have done exactly that and the Black Cats looked on course when Edouard Michut fired them into a first half lead with his first goal in English football. But delight turned to woe for Sunderland as the Blades scored late in the first half and again on the hour mark in controversial fashion to become the seventh team this season to leave the Stadium of Light with all three points.

The result was harsh on Sunderland, who followed up their impressive Norwich win with a spirited display. Mowbray has played down his side’s play-off chances all season but admitted this week that successive home wins against Sheffield United and Luton would have had his team right in the mix.

But those hopes look slim to say the least now. Sunderland trail the top six by eight points. And the automatic promotion hopes of Middlesbrough down the A19 were also dented, with Sheffield United opening the gap to third place to six points.

In a bid to get Sheffield United back on track after four defeats in six games ahead of their trip to Wearside, Paul Heckingbottom made four changes, including dropping joint top scorer Oli McBurnie to the bench, where he was joined by Billy Sharp.

What Mowbray would give to have two strikers available, never mind on the bench. On the back of the impressive win at Norwich, Mowbray named an unchanged team.

Under pressure and faltering in the battle for second place, Mowbray warned his players that Sheffield United would be out to make a statement on Wearside and would be positive from the get-go, and so it proved.

The Blades created their first opening with less than 60 seconds on the clock when the classy James McAtee was denied by a fine Ballard block. It was a sign of things to come.

Sheffield United had two thirds of possession in the first quarter of an hour, poured forward at will and gave Sunderland the runaround.

Patterson denied Daniel Jebbison at full stretch after one impressive free-flowing move and a Max Lowe cross was cleared from under the crossbar with two visiting players waiting at the back post for a tap-in. It felt like a matter of when, not if, Sheffield United would break through.

And yet on the back of such a battling second half at Norwich, Sunderland again dug deep, weathered the early storm, grew into the game and got themselves in front. It was a fine opening goal as well. Ba, the scorer at Norwich, was creator this time, playing it into the path of Michut, who finished well into the bottom corner.

Having worked so hard to get themselves in front, the manner and timing of Sheffield United’s leveller was frustrating for Sunderland. The board indicating three minutes of stoppage time had just gone up when George Baldock pounced on a loose ball, raced down the right, found McAtee, who found the bottom corner.

Sheffield United had their tails up after their leveller and had it not been for the brilliance of Patterson, the visitors would have been in front early in the second half. As they did for the equaliser, United stole the ball in the middle and broke with men over. McAtee found N’Diaye to his right but Patterson made himself big and saved brilliantly with his feet.

There was nothing Patterson could do when United got themselves in front just after the hour mark, though Sunderland felt there should have been an offside flag. A Tommy Doyle free-kick from the left squirmed through a crowd of players and into the bottom corner, but what irked the Black Cats was the fact Sander Berge, who was in an offside position, took a swing at the ball. Replays appeared to show he didn’t make contact but he still made an effort to play the ball. Sunderland were furious.

Just as they did at the start of the first half, Sunderland again dug deep and tried to force their way back into the game. Jack Clarke forced a good save out of Foderingham before Roberts cut in from the right and saw a low shot cannon back off the post.

That was as close as they came as Sheffield United held on through seven minutes of added time.