Alex Bass admits he thought his equaliser for Sunderland Under-21s would be ruled out for handball. The Black Cats shot stopper rose highest to meet a corner in the dying embers of the game, heading the ball onto the post before bundling it over the line in his follow up.
The Wearsiders' number two admitted he handled the ball, but the goal was given by the referee. “I didn’t really know what to do to be honest,” said Bass.
“I have to admit I did handball it so didn’t think it was going to be given. I’ve headed it onto the post and kind of fallen over and scooped it in. I was kind of running off in a little bit of shame and then all the boys came over and the ref has given it.”
READ MORE: Newcastle U21s 1-1 Sunderland U21s highlights and reaction
The Sunderland goalkeeper responded to a tweet dubbed the 'Hand of Cod' with a photoshop of his head on Diego Maradona's in the infamous World Cup moment. The Black Cats keeper was then called into action just seconds later of the restart to ensure a share of the spoils in Premier League 2, Division 2.
Bass said: “I don’t really remember doing a lot else other than running back to my goal. My main job is a goalkeeper and to keep the ball out of the back of the net was really important for me to keep the point.”
Sunderland gave four first-team players minutes on the pitch with Bass, Jay Matete, Niall Huggins and Abdoullah Ba all starting for Graeme Murty's side, with Jewison Bennette coming off the bench at half-time. The Black Cats have used the competition as a good opportunity to get minutes into senior players.
The Sunderland shot stopper said: "It was a great atmosphere and great credit to the fans for coming up on a Monday night. I really enjoyed it.
“It was a tough test, a proper derby game and hopefully we’ll get back to playing these more regularly.”
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