Gordon relishing Black Cats’ derby challenge

SUNDERLAND keeper Craig Gordon is targeting derby joy this weekend as his side goes in search of a first away win of the season.

The Black Cats head for Middlesbrough on Saturday buoyed by their deserved 2-1 victory over Reading which ended a run of four successive defeats.

That eased them up the Premier League table and rekindled belief that they can make an impression in the top flight this season after a £35million-plus (€50.1m) summer spending spree.

Gordon, whose capture accounted for £9m (€12.9m) of that — a British record for a goalkeeper, is confident there is more to come after a tough run of fixtures.

The 24-year-old said: “We take a lot of encouragement from the performance and result.

“It is going to be a happy place this week. Hopefully we can build on the Reading result.

“We have had some positive performances this season even though the results have not always gone right — like against Liverpool and Manchester United.

“We have shown that we can win games at home, and we need to do it away from home now.

Sunderland’s most recent trip to the Riverside Stadium provided one of the few bright spots of their last Premier League campaign two seasons ago when goals from Tommy Miller and now Boro midfielder Julio Arca secured a 2-0 win.

It was their first victory of the season and one of only three for the entire league campaign as they plummeted out of the division with a record low 15 points.

However, there has been massive change on Wearside during the intervening period with Niall Quinn and his Drumaville consortium having taken over and handed Roy Keane the task of reviving the club’s fortunes.

Their remarkable Championship campaign last season took them from the foot of the table to the very top as they secured an immediate return to the Premier League.

Massive investment over the summer has seen Quinn back Keane’s vision for the future and although defeats by Wigan, Liverpool and Manchester United either side of an embarrassing Carling Cup exit at the hands of League One Luton, took the edge off a promising start, Saturday’s win has raised spirits once again.

Meanwhile, Jack Pelter yesterday signed a one-year contract with the club after proving his fitness.

The New Zealand-based centre-back initially penned a month-long deal as the Black Cats monitored his ankle injury — but has now been offered a 12-month contract after returning to full fitness earlier this month.