LAST season, Sunderland were well-organised, hard-working and industrious, but lacked that little bit of extra quality that might have taken them into the Premiership.

On Saturday, as the new Coca-Cola Championship got underway at Coventry, the Black Cats were well-organised, hard-working and industrious, but lacked that little bit of extra quality that might have earned them a winning start to the campaign.

The season in microcosm? Possibly, and while manager Mick McCarthy will continue to preach the virtues of honest toil, the outcome of the next nine months could well hinge on the extent to which Sunderland's few flair players can influence the outcome of matches such as this.

For 85 sun-baked minutes, McCarthy's side gave as good as they got in a dour midfield battle with a Coventry side led by former Sunderland boss Peter Reid.

But then full-back George McCartney inexplicably handled the ball in his own penalty area, allowing substitute Patrick Suffo to slam home from the spot, and the lively Eddie Johnson added a second after Mart Poom had made a smart save from Suffo's driven half-volley.

One point turned into nothing, Sunderland found themselves at the bottom of the new-look Championship, and McCarthy was left to question just how much progress he has made over the summer.

"It was a decent away performance and I thought we did enough to get a point," said the Black Cats boss.

"I would have been happy with 0-0 because the game was going nowhere - there were no chances at either end."

True, but, with the greatest of respect to Coventry, perhaps Sunderland should have been making some.

There is a lot to be said for being difficult to beat.

The First Division, sorry Championship, is a tough, abrasive league in which physical presence and defensive rigidity is crucial over the course of 46 energy-sapping games. But, as Sunderland proved last season, keeping things tight is not quite enough.

McCarthy acknowledged as much last week when, bemoaning his lack of success in pursuit of a striker, he spoke of how Norwich had finished as champions last term thanks to their ability to bring four goalscorers to the club at crucial stages of the season.

The Canaries' success was built on solid defensive foundations, but it was embellished by the likes of Darren Huckerby and Matthias Svensson who were able to convert dour goalless draws into crucial 1-0 wins.

Sunderland still seem to lack that kind of match winner and, while Coventry's late double strike was an unexpected and somewhat undeserved body blow, McCarthy's side did nothing to suggest they were capable of finishing with a similar flourish.

These are still early days, of course, and McCarthy's summer signings will need time to bed in and adjust to the pace of games such as this.

But, for long spells at Highfield Road, midfielder Julio Arca was the only Sunderland player willing to take the kind of attacking risks that might have secured an all-important breakthrough.

Carl Robinson and Jeff Whitley were more concerned with protecting their back four, John Oster endured one of his occasional off days, while the front pairing of Marcus Stewart and Stephen Elliott looked like exactly what they are - a 31-year-old who has arguably left his best days and his pace behind him, and a 20-year-old making his senior debut.

Tellingly, Sunderland's best spell came after the 54th-minute introduction of Kevin Kyle and, while the striker is not yet fully fit following his summer hip problem, his well-being already looks crucial to the Black Cats' chances.

He ruffles opposition defences in a way that neither Stewart nor Elliott can and, while McCarthy remains desperate to bring another frontman to the club, he knows how crucial a role Kyle will have to play if Sunderland are to go one step further this season.

"I thought Stephen Elliott did well," said the Black Cats boss. "But he really needs to be a foil for Kevin Kyle or somebody of that ilk - so does Marcus Stewart. If Kevin is fit, I have a really good striker."

Kyle started on the bench after playing in just 45 minutes of Sunderland's pre-season schedule, but centre-half Stephen Caldwell didn't even make that after his summer switch from Newcastle.

McCarthy started with 21-year-old Ben Clark and, after moving to Wearside to ensure first-team football, it will not have escaped Caldwell's notice that, had he stayed put, he could well have been starting for Newcastle next weekend given the possible absence of both Jonathan Woodgate and Andy O'Brien.

Clark was elevated to the first team at the start of last season, but found himself frozen out after breaking his nose in the 2-0 win at Preston.

The youngster looked calm and composed alongside new skipper Gary Breen and, despite McCarthy insisting there is little to choose between him and Caldwell, Clark is likely to be given an extended opportunity to prove himself.

He did that with a timely tackle on Johnson inside the first five minutes and, while Poom was forced into an early save from Gary McSheffrey, neither side looked like forging a breakthrough before the interval.

Coventry's best chance came when former Newcastle trainee Bjarni Gudjonsson flashed a right-wing centre across the face of goal, while Sunderland's only meaningful chance was a Robinson header straight at goalkeeper Scott Shearer following Arca's 44th-minute free-kick.

Things began to hot up after the interval - in footballing as well as meteorological terms - with Poom producing a fine double save to keep the scoresheet blank.

The Estonian international turned Michael Doyle's stinging drive around the post, before saving bravely at the feet of Johnson from the resultant corner.

Elliott should have done better with a close-range header that he looped safely into Shearer's arms but, after he was replaced by Kyle, Sunderland began to gain the upper hand.

Richard Shaw produced a fine last-ditch tackle to rob the Scotsman after he had been sent clear by Stewart, although a fully-fit Kyle might well have got his shot away, and a sweeping move involving Arca, Liam Lawrence and Stewart ended with the former Ipswich striker shooting tamely at Shearer.

The game looked to be heading for a stalemate when Andy Morrell's flick on struck McCartney on the arm and, while the Sunderland full-back was in close proximity to the striker, he did little to prevent the infringement.

Suffo gave Poom no chance from the spot, and Coventry added a late second when Johnson was the first to react to the Estonian's low save.

Result: Conventry City 2 Sunderland 0.

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