SUNDERLAND could be celebrating a double award victory before the week is out after their flying start to the season was rewarded with two nominations.

Regis Le Bris is up for the Championship Manager of the Month award, while Luke O'Nien is one of four nominees for the player award.

Le Bris has enjoyed a stunning start to life in the Sunderland hot seat with four straight wins sending the Black Cats into the first international break of the season top of the Championship table.

A SkyBet spokesperson said: "The Frenchman has been astute enough to recognise both the talent and the youth in Sunderland’s squad, condensing detailed preparation into simplified instructions and seeing his attacking side collect a perfect 12 points with a 10-1 goals differential."

Le Bris is up against Tom Cleverley, whose Watford side won their three August games before losing at Sheffield United on September 1 before the international break.

West Brom's Carlos Corberan is also up for the award with the Baggies having picked up 10 points from their first four games, while Blackburn's impressive unbeaten start led to a nomination for boss John Eustace.

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Not only did Sunderland win their four August games, they hadn't conceded a single goal until O'Nien's unfortunate own-goal in the dying seconds at Portsmouth.

Despite that minor blemish, O'Nien's outstanding start to the campaign alongside his fellow Sunderland defenders has led to a Player of the Month nomination.

A SkyBet spokesman said: "Alongside Sunderland’s flair players, O’Nien’s energy, dependability and reading of situations can be under-appreciated. His impact isn’t, though, especially when he contributes two goals and three clean sheets in four games."

O'Nien is up against two former Sunderland forwards in Duncan Watmore and Josh Maja.

Watmore has been in blistering form for Millwall in the early weeks of the season, scoring four goals in four games as well as chipping in with an assist.

Maja, meanwhile, has put last season's frustration behind him. The striker suffered a long spell on the sidelines after suffering an ankle injury at Sunderland last December but is now fully fit and has burst out of the blocks this term with four goals and an assist, including two headers in a hat-trick against QPR.

Oxford striker Mark Harris is the fourth player up for the award. The 25-year-old has played a starring role in Oxford's impressive start to life back in the Championship with four goals in as many games.

The winners, decided by former Barnsley manager Danny Wilson, Sky Sports’ EFL expert Don Goodman and Sky Bet EFL trader Ivor Davies, will be announced tomorrow.