The Black Cats managed to grab the lead through a determined Connor Wickham, before Charlie Adam equalised for Stoke with a standout finish across the face of goal.

Stoke didn't account for Steven Fletcher though, who broke his 2014 goal drought with a brace to ensure that Sunderland marched to a comfortable 3-1 victory at home.

Here, Sports Mole looks at how the game developed and who the key performers were on Wearside this afternoon.

Match statistics

Sunderland
Shots: 8
On target: 3
Possession: 39%
Corners: 7
Fouls: 10

Stoke City
Shots: 11
On target: 5
Possession: 61%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 17

Was the result fair?

Wholeheartedly. Things were slightly more even going into half time, but Stoke faded drastically in the second half despite having the lion's share of possession. Sunderland completed only half as many passes as Stoke, but Gus Poyet's men had the creativity and killer instinct to secure three points. The hosts also defended brilliantly, with Sunderland's back line a key component in this afternoon's victory, just behind the brilliance of Connor Wickham and Steven Fletcher.

Sunderland

Poyet would've been twisting the truth a little if he really believed that his side's lack of a win this season wasn't a concern. However, they added the finishing touches in the departments required this afternoon, with Wickham and Fletcher finally coming good for the Black Cats. Despite having less of the ball, Sunderland were clinical and defended resolutely. The hosts' pressing was a joy to behold and they left Stoke with no time on the ball, resulting in a whole host of mistakes from Mark Hughes and his men.

Stoke City

The visitors were by no means terrible, but they faded from the fixture after half time. Stoke completed just under 400 passes, almost double that of Sunderland, but they've got nothing to show for it. The visitors made far too many mistakes at the back, while the brilliance of Peter Crouch was nullified by the lack of a supporting cast. Hughes is probably to blame too, given that he failed to haul off an appalling Marko Arnautovic.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Connor Wickham: It could've been any of three players really, with Fletcher and Patrick van Aanholt impressing too. However, Wickham scored and had a hand in all of Sunderland's goals. The striker showed great determination and reading of the game to gamble to score the opener, while his run to to assist Fletcher in the second half and kill the game was terrific. He wasn't shy in getting back to help out his team on the defensive end of things either.

Biggest gaffe

This afternoon's biggest gaffe came in the form of Hughes failing to make positive changes. The away side still had a chance of a point or even a victory with 15 minutes to go, but the Stoke boss failed to see that Crouch needed a partner to make use of his skill and strength. Arnautovic was ineffective all afternoon and managed to play a full 90 minutes, when the game was perhaps crying out for the guile of Stephen Ireland to help unlock the Sunderland defence.

Referee performance

Neil Swarbrick produced a fairly good performance. He allowed the game to flow when required and only booked when necessary. The official did pull out no less than seven yellow cards, but he was responding to a particularly scrappy passage in the second half.

What next?

Sunderland: The hosts will be buoyed by this fantastic result, with Poyet's side looking solid at the back and now grabbing the goals it needs to turn draws into wins. Cattermole looks to be behaving in a more considered fashion too and the performance of van Aanholt will fill the Black Cats with confidence as they prepare to face Southampton away from home after the international break.

Stoke City: Hughes has work to do going into his next fixture with Swansea City at the Britannia. They know they can defend well, but today has highlighted that Adam is perhaps the only creative spark currently firing in the team. Moses went off with what looked to be a fairly irritating knock, while Arnautovic looked uninterested. They have time, though, and Hughes should have Mame Biram Diouf back for their next Premier League game.