Signs of tension in the dressing room under keane's reign perhaps?
www.sunderlandecho.comCaretaker boss Ricky Sbragia has got Sunderland in a relaxed mood, despite the fact they remain in the relegation zone.
And defender Danny Collins says the fact Sbragia is easy to communicate with has also eased tension in the camp about their precarious league position.
Sunderland's board continues its search for a permanent successor to Roy Keane, who resigned on December 4 after 100 games in charge.
Ex-Spurs boss Martin Jol has been the latest to rule himself out of contention for the hot seat from a grow list at the bookmakers.
But the Black Cats are happy that the club is in a safe pair of hands with Sbragia – who says he has not applied for the job but has also not said directly that he doesn't want it – and Saturday's 4-0 win over West Brom has bought chairman Niall Quinn and his directors more time to conduct the recruitment process.
Collins insists the players have responded to Keane's departure in the only way they could, by trying to keep their minds on the games and working hard for Sbragia and each other.
He said: "It was a bit strange for the first couple of days after the gaffer left, but we're here to play football and with the position we're in we had to get focused on the matches.
"I'm not going to say anything bad about Roy Keane but maybe now he's gone, because the lads find Ricky a bit easier to communicate with, perhaps we've been able to relax a bit more in training and in and around the training ground."With the league position we're in, we need that. Ricky's good. He has a bit of crack with the lads and has lifted morale when it was needed.
"There are three or four lads in the changing room who are quite vocal and we've had a few meetings between ourselves to say a few things.
"We're putting that extra bit in training. In my personal opinion, when the gaffer (Keane) was here, lads put a bit more into training, but if he wasn't it was a bit more relaxed out there."
Quinn's decision to include Dwight Yorke as an assistant to caretaker boss Sbragia and experienced coach Neil Bailey is also paying dividends, reckons Collins.
"Yorkie's is a bit of a character has a laugh with the lads, but he's done his coaching badges and will be looking to go into that side of things in the next one or two years. I think it will work out well for him as well working alongside Ricky."Sunderland seemed have a bit more luck go for them against West Brom at the weekend.
So many times this season, the woodwork has come to the rescue of their opponents, but that changed against the Baggies when Andy Reid's effort rebounded kindly off the post for Kenwyne Jones to net his and Sunderland's second of the game.
A clean sheet – only their third of the season – was also a boost for confidence going into the festive programme, even though it came against the Premier League's lowest scorers.
Collins added: "I'm not one who goes on about luck. We're perhaps due a bit of it – one or two penalty decisions might have gone for us – but you just get on with it.
"Games come thick and fast at this time of the year and it's great if you're winning because you're on a roll and looking forward to the games. Hopefully that will be the case for us."
