Tony Mowbray was quick to lift the spirits of Sunderland's "disappointed" players in the dressing room after the draw with Hull City.

Sunderland's players were frustrated to have not held on for all three points against City after going ahead through returning Ross Stewart in the second half, Ozan Tufan levelling for the hosts.

But Mowbray's message to the players was that there was no reason for disappointment and they should be proud of their efforts against a team "on the up", especially considering the Black Cats had to play the last half an hour with 10 men after the controversial sending off of Elliot Embleton.

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Mowbray said: "With 10 men it was very difficult. Credit to the lads for coming away with a point.

"They're disappointed in the dressing room but they shouldn't be disappointed. We have played against a team on the up, a team with a lot of confidence."

Mowbray has been impressed by Hull City's improvement since Liam Rosenior took charge and knew his side were in for a tough test on an afternoon of celebration as the Tigers marked 20 years at the MKM Stadium.

He said: "I'd read the programme while they were warming up - the owner, captain, manager were all telling the world how focused they were for this game. Great credit to our team for coming away with something.

"I've watched since Liam has come in, they generally control the games. They have good rotations, they push their right back really high on the offside line, they rotate around in midfield. They have a good system of play and I think we took them out of their rhythm."

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Mowbray added: "I really like Liam. When he was at Derby with Wayne (Rooney) I'd have good chats with him after games. He's a bright guy. If the opposition isn't prepared he gives them problems.

"I think they're on the up. I think they're a team that believe they can control games and he's given a lot of confidence to the players. I was frustrated we didn't threaten their goal more in the first half.

"We know how we play, we had to be mindful of how they play so did change the formation a little bit. We almost played 4-4-2 to fill their rotations and give them problems. You don't win a game in one half and I always felt we'd get chances."