'Sunderland are undoubtedly the biggest club in the Championship...'

Tony Mowbray has paid tribute to Sunderland fans and spoken of just how big a club he believes Sunderland to be.

Tony Mowbray says Sunderland are ‘undoubtedly the biggest club in the Championship’ as he hailed the supporters for their role in the win over Blackburn.

Nearly 44,000 fans went through the turnstiles at the Stadium of Light on Boxing Day to see Sunderland come from behind to win 2-1 courtesy of an injury-time Ellis Simms winner.

In previous years, Sunderland have tended to falter in front of bumper crowds but the young players seem to be relishing the challenge now.

"I'm from just down the road, and in my mind Sunderland is undoubtedly the biggest club in this division - it's probably in the top half of the Premier League in terms of size of club and its support base," Mowbray said.

"[The supporters] showed against Blackburn the noise they can make and the support for the team.

"There have been a few games this season where it hasn't gone our way, but they don't take it out on the team. They'd rather leave than boo or be negative towards the team, which is a credit to them.

"They were right behind the team for the full 95 minutes, and I think that's really important - particularly with young players, because I think they need to know there is support behind them.

"They kept us going and we saw the game out having gone in front. Huge credit to the crowd and to the people who came on Monday to support the team."

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