Premier League: Sunderland 3 Wolves 1

Sunderland’s last home game of the Premier League campaign ended with a 3-1 loss to relegation-threatened Wolverhampton.

For the second home game in a row Sunderland conceded three goals and at the final whistle, Wolves, the lowest scorers in the division, had succeeded in knocking six goals past the Black Cats in their two encounters this campaign.

Just as they did against Fulham in their last game at the Stadium of Light, Sunderland started the game brightly and played some delightful football in the first half.

But once again they went down to the sucker punch when Stephen Hunt’s 22nd-minute cross from the left was volleyed home by defender Jody Craddock at the far post.

Sunderland bounced back when Stephane Sessegnon acrobatically converted Bolo Zenden’s corner in the 33rd minute and the teams went in the break on level terms after an open 45 minutes in which Zenden hit the post for the Black Cats and Jamie O’Hara for Wolves.

Another 40,000-plus crowd at the Stadium of Light would have hoped their team’s better football would prevail.

But Sunderland were dreadful in the second half and slipped behind in the 53rd minute when Steven Fletcher found it all too easy to head home Matt Jarvis’s cross.

And the Wolves made certain of the three points when defender George Elokobi headed home O’Hara’s free kick in the 80th minute.

Victory took Wolves to the magic 40-point mark, just four points adrift of Steve Bruce’s sadly under-performing side.