A FIERCELY defensive Mick McCarthy is refusing to blame his players for the Black Cats miserable start to their Premiership campaign, with the Sunderland boss hoping the early two-week international break can have the same effect as last term.

During last season's Championship winning campaign, McCarthy's charges picked up just five points from their first six games before a fortnight's break from the league produced an instant upturn.

The Black Cats won their next away game 4-0 at Gillingham on the way to picking up 12 points from 12 as their promotion charge got off the ground.

Saturday's 1-0 defeat at Wigan made it no points from four games, and McCarthy is hoping a similar transformation 12 months later.

"Is it a good time to have a break or is it a bad time to have a break?" said McCarthy. "I don't know.

"We had it last season when we were in the Championship. We had something like five points from six games and we came back and had a great run."

The only problem for Sunderland is their first game back on September 10 is a daunting trip to Premier League champions Chelsea, which should prove a little more troublesome than a visit to the Priestfield Stadium.

The likelihood is that it will be no points from five games, a run of 20 consecutive Premiership defeats for the Black Cats with McCarthy's personal record in top flight management reading played 14, lost 14.

Despite his dislike of Sunderland's historical recent ineptitude in the top flight, the statistics will be revisited until McCarthy's side can turn around their current malaise.

And the Black Cats boss has reiterated he'll continue with the silk glove rather than the iron fist approach in his bid to get the season up and running.

McCarthy said: "What I said to them is that I'm proud of them individually and collectively. I'm absolutely delighted with their efforts.

"I'm not delighted with how many points we've got - of course I' not - but we've played well so far this season and I don't think we've got our just reward.

"I'm not going to talk about the performance (at Wigan) because it would be a similar spiel to the one at Liverpool and against Manchester City.

"All I will say is that from Charlton onwards I have been proud with the way my players have played and gone about it. Their endeavour, effort and performances, I don't think have been given their true reward for the way they've played as yet.

"We have to keep believing and doing that, and hope the season turns around for us.

"The only way it will turn around is by keep believing and keep playing the way we are doing."

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