SUNDERLAND 1 BURY 0 BRAVE Bury are down but they won't be out of the division next season. That's the verdict of ex-Shakers star Paul Butler who reckons the small town club he left in the summer for big time Sunderland still has what it takes to live in the First Division.

"That was the hardest game we've had this season," said Butler, who was as relieved as anyone in an ominously subdued 38,000 crowd when Bury's resilience was finally broken by Michael Gray's inch-perfect cross and substitute Danny Dichio's bullet header eleven minutes from time.

"I'd been telling the lads what to expect from Bury all week and I don't think they believed me. Teams normally fall apart against us after about an hour but not them and I never expected them to. They've not changed one bit, their workrate is unbelievable.

"They'll stay up this season without any doubt, in fact I reckon they'll finish in the top half, causing a lot of problems at a lot of grounds along the way. I'm just glad they didn't get a result here because the Bury lads would have been ringing me up about it all week."

Bury paid dearly for their one and only lapse in concentration when Chris Swailes allowed Dichio a clear run onto Gray's cross. Otherwise, Swailes, Andy Woodward and Chris Lucketti had kept a tight grip on the prolific Sunderland strikeforce while Chris Billy and Dean Barrick stemmed the flow of crosses coming in. Mark Patterson, Lenny Johnrose and Nick Daws broke up the home side's approach play and, while it wasn't pretty, Bury's game plan proved once again that they are capable of competing with the best in the division.

Unbeaten Sunderland had scored 18 goals and conceded just two in six previous home league games but Niall Quinn, who spurned a glorious headed chance in each half, admitted: "We had to dig very deep for this win.

"We tried to play nice neat football in the first half but they stifled us. They made it so difficult and in the second half we were playing it a bit up and under."

Shakers strikers Tony Ellis, making a rare start, and Laurent D'Jaffo struggled to make any impression as Bury's only chance of the normal 90 minutes was an inspired dipping 30-yard volley from the authoritative Daws which clipped the top of the netting.

But their late charge for a point almost paid off when Barrick thundered in an injury time 30-yard rocket that tested Thomas Sorensen to the limit just seconds after the home keeper had almost fumbled a routine high ball into his own net.

Proud Bury boss Neil Warnock said his players were understandably depressed that all their hard work had gone unrewarded, saying: "We had to work three times harder out there than any Sunderland player so you can imagine how they were feeling.

"We had been disappointing in the last few games and we had to stand up and be counted today.

"We were playing the best team in the division at the best stadium and if we had come out and played open football we would have got beat seven or eight nil.

"We are a team of free transfers so we have to be well organised. It might not be pretty to watch but it is what we have to do.

"Chris Swailes left his man for one second and it was a goal. That's what happens against sides of this quality but I was pleased with every member of my side and I couldn't have asked for any more from them in terms of team spirit.

"Overall they deserved to win. They are a top class side and I think they will walk the division." Kiely 7, Billy 8, Woodward 8, LUCKETTI 8, Swailes 8, Barrick 8; Daws 8, Patterson 8, Johnrose 8; D'Jaffo 7, Ellis 7. Subs: Preece (for D'Jaffo 82 mns), Matthews (for Johnrose 82 mins) and Foster. Attendance: 38,049.

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