Bent fires Sunderland to 4-0 win over Bolton

Mar 10, 2010 - 12:27 AM By GEOFF McALLISTER STATS European Football Writer=

LONDON (SE) - Darren Bent scored a hat-trick as Sunderland recorded their first Premier League win since November 21 with an emphatic 4-0 win over Bolton at the Stadium of Light on Tuesday.

Bolton came into the match on the back of successive league wins over Wolverhampton and West Ham but were never in contention from the first minute when Fraizer Campbell put Sunderland ahead.

Campbell's goal came after 41 seconds which made it the fastest Premier League goal of the season, beating Jermain Defoe's effort after 52 seconds for Tottenham against Manchester United.

Lorik Cana created the goal and former Manchester United striker Campbell lashed home his first in 21 league appearances.

Bolton never recovered although they saw plenty of possession and were vulnerable to the counter-attack.

Bent shot wide after getting clear and Bolton goalkeeper Jussi Jaaskelainen made a great save from Bent's strike partner, Kenwyne Jones.

Jack Wilshere, on loan from Arsenal, was outstanding for Bolton in midfield but Sunderland never looked like surrendering their lead and added three more after the break.

Johan Elmander came close to an equaliser in the 55th minute before another swift break from defence enabled Bent to race on to Lee Cattermole's pass to make in 2-0 in the 64th.

Any hope Bolton had of getting back into the match disappeared in the 74th minute when defender Sam Ricketts was sent off for fouling Bent in the area.

Ricketts, who was last sent off playing for Hull against Sunderland, got a second yellow card in the incident and Bent made the most of it by putting away the penalty for his hat-trick.

It was the third time Bent had scored a hat-trick and the first time in a Premier League game and it gave his club a timely boost after their barren run.

Sunderland had gone 14 matches in the top flight without a win and had slid down towards the relegation places. Their win over Bolton left them six points above the drop zone.

Sunderland manager Steve Bruce said: "It has been a long, cold winter. If you had said to me it would be like this, 14 matches without a win, I would have said no chance.

"We have had to wait a long time for this moment and we can enjoy it now.

"What we always needed was one good performance and victory to give us a lift. By the end of the match every player was wanting the ball, but a week ago they did not want to know.

"That is what happens in football. We have been through a tough, tough time but we have got a result and now we have to hope it kick-starts the rest of our season."

Beaten Bolton boss Owen Coyle said: "The third goal, if it was a foul, was outside the box and the fourth was clearly offside and while that would not have affected the result, it would have affected the score line.

"After our recent results this was a disappointment but we played well enough."