TONY MOWBRAY admits he will be investigating whether Alex Pritchard should have been passed fit to feature in Sunderland’s 4-1 win at Wigan Athletic.

Pritchard came off the bench in the 62nd minute at the DW Stadium, but was forced to hobble off just four minutes later after suffering what appeared to be a recurrence of the calf injury that had seen him miss the previous two games.

The midfielder had trained without any problems for most of last week, but was understandably devastated as he was forced to leave the field and face up to what is likely to be another lengthy lay-off.

“We’re really disappointed over Pritch,” said Mowbray, who saw his side climb to fourth position in the table as they won their final game of 2022. “We’ll have to assess whether it was right that he went onto the pitch, yet he had trained for a good few days and was really confident, ready and chomping at the bit. That’s a real frustration for us, of course.

“It’s a calf injury. He’s done his calf. He’s been training for the last four or five days with the team, and maybe a week before that, and has been fine. He was chomping at the bit to come with us this week and get on the pitch, and yet as soon as he pushed off, he felt it. He’s got a calf injury, so he’s a bit down in there. But he’ll be fine.”

Mowbray’s decision to leave Ross Stewart out of his starting line-up was justified, with Ellis Simms scoring as he led the line before Stewart left the bench to claim a goal of his own from the penalty spot.

“I had one or two conversations with players this week,” said the Sunderland boss. “I think Ross thinks every time he goes on the pitch he’s going to score, and to be honest, that looks like being the case at the minute.

“I try to make decisions for the team, but also for the player, and I don’t think after being out for six months that he can come back and play three games in a week and think it’s going to be okay.

“I made that decision today and Ellis scored and did really well. Then, Ross comes on and scores as well, so that’s great for the football club.”

Corry Evans was not in the squad for the Wigan game, but the midfielder’s absence was a precautionary measure and he should be available to face Blackpool on New Year’s Day.

“Corry isn’t really injured,” said Mowbray. “He’s just got a bit of muscle fatigue. He’s done 11,500 metres and broken his own record of distance covered in the last couple of games.

“He needed a break, and I felt as though we could get through this game without his experience. Thankfully, we did, but I’m pretty sure he’ll be back at the weekend.

“Danny Batth might be joining the party in the next few days, we’ll have to wait and see, Dennis Cirkin might rejoin the party in the next few days. It would help, but Luke, Danny and Bailey were really good, and Trai Hume deserves a mention because he was really good too.”