Sunderland 2-1 Luton Town: Impressive Black Cats claim victory in first leg of Championship play-off semi-final

Amad Diallo (left) scored a wonderful equaliser to settle any Sunderland nerves that might have existed against Luton at the Stadium of Light

Sunderland's unlikely Championship play-off adventure rolled on with an impressive semi-final first-leg victory over Luton Town.

The Black Cats only scraped into the top six on the final day of the season but were outstanding in extending their unbeaten run to 10 games and ending the Hatters' own 14-game streak.

It all started well for Luton, when Sunderland failed to clear a corner and Elijah Adebayo was on hand to thrash the rebound into the roof of the net after Alfie Doughty's point-blank strike was saved brilliantly by Anthony Patterson.

However, the home side wrested control of midfield, dominated possession, and levelled when Pelly Ruddock-Mpanzu left Patrick Roberts in a heap, Alex Pritchard touched the ball off from the free kick and Amad Diallo's stunning left-foot curler nestled into the top corner beyond a static Ethan Horvath.

There was little change to the momentum after the break, as Jack Clarke fired just wide from a Roberts centre, and the provider almost turned scorer when his cut in and low drive trickled just wide.

The goal that had been coming arrived when Clarke bent in a cross for Trai Hume to bullet a header beyond Horvath for the lead.

Luton rallied, with Sunderland continuing to pick them off on the break, and Clarke's block to deny the visitors with the last kick of the game proved crucial, as it put the Wearsiders 90 minutes from a second play-off final in as many seasons.

Confidence flows on proud day for hosts

This felt like a free hit for Sunderland - as ridiculous as it sounds - given the way they had gatecrashed the party on the final day of the season, and their lack of nerves showed with a confident display.

Not even when they went a goal down did heads drop, either on the field or in the stands, and that solidarity proved key amid a febrile atmosphere powered by 46,060 spectators.

By contrast, Luton had been planning for this for some weeks but never quite got a grip of a side that preferred swashbuckling to sitting back, and whose positivity in possession caused them huge problems.

Having got a goal by loading the box with their physicality, the Hatters were not allowed such supremacy again as Sunderland took away their supply line and possession and moved the ball sharply through the lines.

After a quiet start and a rip-snorter of a goal, Diallo seemed to have a glint in his eye and the wizardry flowed, while Clarke's relentless shuffling down the left, Pritchard's array of subtle touches, and Roberts' dazzling footwork belied the lack of a 'centre-forward' presence.

Credit must go to the makeshift backline, with Luke O'Nien, Hume and Lynden Gooch composed throughout.

Luton know they can play better, and will seek home comforts when they host the second leg at Kenilworth Road on Tuesday night [19:45 BST].

For Sunderland, it is a case of patching up their threadbare squad and hoping that Pritchard's hobble off at the end is nothing serious for the trip south.

Sunderland boss Tony Mowbray told BBC Radio Newcastle:

"I thought we started really brightly before the goal, and we talked about trying to get the crowd engaged in the game - they were here to try to see the team win a football match and try to get to a Wembley final.

"The team started really brightly, then they got the goal, but as you've seen this team don't give in and they get stronger and stronger.

"We warranted the win, we had a lot of opportunities. It's great when a plan comes together. I thought we competed really well, we've talked about the youngest team in the league and the lack of physicality, but we competed really well all over the pitch, the fans rose to that and we were like snarling dogs at times in midfield."

Luton Town boss Rob Edwards told BBC Three Counties Radio:

"It's half-time, we're right in the tie. It was a challenging game as we knew it was going to be, it was really tight as we knew it was going to be, and it was a fantastic atmosphere as we knew it was going to be.

"I thought we had the better of the first half and them the better of the second. It settled down before the goal and we had lots of control, and we were brave on the ball.

"We tried to take it and still remained a threat, and I'm really happy at half-time but in the second half we had to be better with the ball, we had it and gave it back too cheaply.

"There's still a long way to go in this, and I still believe."

• Unmasking the forgotten assailants: Examine the seven men who attempted to kill Queen Victoria

• Where were the Tudors from? Find out about the origins of the most famous ruling dynasty in British history