Sunderland's impressive form continued as a strike from James McClean secured them a 1-0 win against 10-man Stoke at a wintry Britannia Stadium.
In a contest during which snow fell throughout, a first half of few goalscoring opportunities finished with Potters defender Robert Huth getting sent off in the 45th minute - shown a straight red card following a tackle on David Meyler.
McClean then netted in the 60th minute, bursting through the hosts' defence and tucking the ball away to seal a victory which means the Black Cats have now taken 22 points from the 30 on offer in the Barclays Premier League since manager Martin O'Neill took charge of the Wearsiders.