TONY MOWBRAY is ready to turn to some of Sunderland’s more inexperienced youngsters next month as he begins to start planning for what his team might look like next season.

With the Black Cats seven points adrift of the play-off positions with just eight more games to play, there is a general acceptance that a top-six finish is unlikely this term.

There is certainly no suggestion of writing off the final five weeks of the season, but having been tasked with developing a squad that contains a large number of unproven youngsters, Mowbray senses an opportunity to blood some of the players that have found game time hard to come by in the last few months.

The likes of Jewison Bennette, Pierre Ekwah and Isaac Lihadji are all being lined up for potential starts in the next eight matches, while Mowbray could also opt to hand a first league appearance to 15-year-old midfielder Chris Rigg.

“I think we’ll look to do that (give more game time to young players),” said the Sunderland boss, whose side return to action after the international break with a Friday-night trip to league leaders Burnley. “Whilst we’re still in touch and feeling it, and every question is about whether we can make the play-offs because we’re only three or four points off it, then it’s a different conversation. But I think the opportunity is potentially there now to blood some of these young players a bit and see how they go.

“There has to be a balance because we still want to win. We’ve got Huddersfield and Birmingham to play at home, and I’m sure the fans will expect to win. Rightly so, because we’ll expect to win too. So, if I’m playing four new kids who have hardly ever played, and we get beat 1-0, then nobody’s going to be happy.

“So, it’s a balance, and I have to try to get that balance right between some experience and quality that can win the game and trying to bring in and give game time to some of these young lads who we hope are going to become regulars in the future.”

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Striking the right balance between experience and youth is a challenge, but it is one that Mowbray has succeeded in for the vast majority of his tenure at the Stadium of Light. While Trai Hume, Edouard Michut, Abdoullah Ba and Amad Diallo might be first-team regulars at the moment, they initially had to bide their time before breaking into the ranks.

“That’s the conundrum,” continued Mowbray. “When do we just want to win, and when do we want to grow and develop these young players into first-team footballers that could become stars?

“That’s what happened to Amad. Amad didn’t play too much at first, he was on the bench a lot, a bit like Jewison, Ba and Michut. They were all on the bench together, and it’s only really his personal levels that have meant that he’s ended up playing more games. That’s what made him a stick-on in the team. Hopefully, some of these young lads will follow the same path.”

In particular, Mowbray is excited to see what Bennette might be capable of if he is afforded a lengthy run in the starting side. The 18-year-old, who is currently on international duty with Costa Rica, is yet to start a Championship game for Sunderland.

“Hopefully, Jewison will become a stick-on in the team, and you can’t pick a team without him, because he keeps on creating chances and influencing games,” said Mowbray. “I thought he was quite bright when he came on against Luton.

“He can eliminate people, he can skip past people and he’s really sharp from standing still to fast. Yet he has to learn the positional balance of a team. If he’s going to play on the right wing or the left wing, then he has to play there, he can’t end up on the other wing because we’ll get hurt by the defender who’s attacking on his side of the pitch now.

“He just has to learn a bit of positional discipline to help the team because I can see what he brings with the ball, and how talented he is. That’ll come over time.”