Sunderland can solve Ballard injury woes by unleashing academy “leader”
Sunderland will hope this youngster can impress in Daniel Ballard’s absence
There’s no coincidence that when Daniel Ballard hobbled off in the second half of Sunderland’s last game away at Southampton, the Black Cats completely caved in.
The Sunderland number five’s absence was felt towards the end of the contest, especially when Joe Rothwell for Russell Martin’s men scored a quickfire double to hand the Saints a 4-2 victory and dished out yet another defeat to Mike Dodds in the interim hot-seat.
The underperforming Black Cats, who have now experienced six defeats on the trot in the Championship, will pray that Ballard isn’t out for a significant amount of time.
If the suspected hamstring knock does sideline the ex-Arsenal youngster for the foreseeable, Dodds could well look towards the youth available to him at the Stadium of Light to boldly add more bodies to the heart of defence.
The young talent who could replace Ballard
It’s not as if Dodds is afraid to give those starlets coming through at Wearside a moment to shine, showcased in 16-year-old Chris Rigg starting the interim manager’s last two games in the Championship in the middle of the park.
18-year-old centre-back Henry Fieldson could be the next to be thrust into the spotlight, with the teenage defender starring this season for the U21s.
After making a splash for the U18s by making 50 appearances, scoring two goals along the way when venturing forward from the back, Fieldson has taken to the jump up to the U21 mix swimmingly over the past few campaigns.
Fieldson has made nine appearances this season in that age bracket, with one appearance even seeing the homegrown talent slot into the XI at defensive midfield against Nottingham Forest.
Described as possessing the attributes of a “real leader” by Academy manager Robin Nicholls when putting pen to paper on a professional Sunderland contract last year, Dodds might well fancy seeing what Fieldson is made of now if he were to plunge the 18-year-old into the thick of it in the Championship.
