Steve Bruce vows to prove doubters wrong

Oct 2 2011 by James Hunter, Sunday Sun

STEVE BRUCE has vowed to prove his doubters wrong after watching Sunderland drag themselves back from the brink of defeat to earn a draw against West Brom.

The Black Cats recovered from going 2-0 down inside five minutes to level at 2-2 before half-time, and they went on to dominate the second half and could have won.

At 2-0 down, some fans were calling for the manager’s head, but Bruce insists such criticism only makes him more determined to succeed.

”The one thing I won’t do is shy away from it,” he said.

“I’ve been given stick all my life. It just makes my resolve all the stronger to prove the doubters wrong.

”I don’t know why I have to – Sunderland were 10th last year, which was the third-best finish in 55 years.

”I can understand the frustration because we have made a lot of new signings and with that comes expectation.

”We just need a bit of stability and time but, unfortunately, you don’t seem to get that in football these days.

”We’ve made huge changes in a small amount of time, so it was always going to be difficult.

”We’d love to have got a few more points on the board, of course, but we are determined to improve.

”We’ve got some good players here and, given time, they will be OK and we will be where we want to be.”