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Sunderland - much improved from last season - dominated the early proceedings. Ex-Manchester United striker Fraizer Campbell went closest for the Mackems, his effort with the goal gaping was exquisitely prevented by McCann who slid and blocked expertly from nowhere.
It was an early scare for the Clarets and the only worthy piece of play we put together in the first half resulted in the opening goal. Alexander threaded a precise pass into Elliott's path and the race was on between him and Anton Ferdinand. Wade won it and Ferdinand's body check was as stupid as it was blatant. Penalty.
There can be no doubt regarding the outcome of the spot kick when you have Graham Alexander in your line up and calm as you like he burst the net straight down the middle for 1-0.
The goal only seemed to unsettle us more though and Sunderland were completely crowding us out in midfield. A mix-up between Carlisle and Bikey presented on form Darren Bent with a golden opportunity but he fluffed his volley straight at Jensen from point blank range. We still hadn't woken up and for the third time this season I found myself glancing nervously at the clock to count down to the interval, 1-0 up.
We didn't hang on again though and Sunderland deservedly equalised before the break. Andy Reid carried and carried and carried the ball at walking pace on the outskirts of our box. Bent had made a run behind Bikey and in front of the switched off Carlisle and was put through by the Irishman. He couldn't miss. 1-1 into half time.
I sincerely hoped that Coyle was addressing the obvious problems in his team talk. The key lay in the centre of midfield where we were giving them too much space and they weren't returning the favour. You couldn't deny Sunderland had some quality in their side though. Bent was the ideal centre forward - he was pacey and played right on the defender's shoulder. He'd be caught offside 9 times out of 10 but on that one occasion he'd break through and find the net. But who was I to doubt "God" anyway? Of course he addressed it and the second half was so much better.
Man of the match Jordan and the ever-impressive Mears immediately began playing higher up the pitch, meaning Sunderland had to drop deeper to deal with them as we saw much more of the ball. The midfield - headed by first half substitute Gudjonsson - began to get in their faces and force them into mistakes. The crowd sensed this too and began to make the noise that Turf Moor is becoming famous for.
The defining and pivotal moments came with the introduction of Chris Eagles and home debutant David Nugent for Fletcher and Paterson, both of whom had put in their usual shifts. Nugent looked eager to get involved instantly and he quickly found his feet, looking dangerous in the air and with tidy link up play, he wasn't short of pace either.
It was no coincidence that the two new introductions played a big part when we regained the lead. Eagles and Mears dangerously stormed up the right hand side and the latter fed Elliott, obeying his instinct of natural width. Wade's cross was inch perfect and Nugent rose like a man possessed to head in beautifully. A proper centre forward's header for a proper centre forward. I think I enjoyed that goal more than I did Blake's against United, that's how good it was.
From there on the rejuvenated Nugent and the back-to-best Eagles were running the show, supported by Elliott who is beginning to look more and more at home at this level. A misplaced pass from Kenwyne Jones saw the ball break to the former Bashley man in his own half. Not short of pace, he broke away down the middle of the pitch and jinked inside his man, Wembley-esque. He didn't panic or try any Hollywood pass, just laid the ball out calmly to Mears who passed inside to a surrounded Nugent. The amount of white shirts around him didn't put him off at all and the much-criticised striker stuck his middle finger up at his critics once again as he turned and unleashed a curling drive into the top corner.
Three goals, three wins, another three points. A hat-trick for Nugent would have been the icing on the cake but he was loving every minute of it regardless. Divine chest control and a chip over the defender's head was the next trick he treated us to as we played out the last few minutes. Sunderland were trying to kick us now and ex-Claret Phil Bardsley was lucky to only be booked for a deliberately late lunge on Gudjonsson.
We looked very much a Premier League side yesterday in the fact that our bench changed the game, we broke several times with pace in the second half and punished them, we were below par for the majority but still beat a quality side, I could go on.
Anything at Spurs would be welcome and then next month we have home games against Birmingham, Hull and Wigan with a trip down the road in between. I'm not saying they're guaranteed three points - you can take nothing for granted at this level - but it will certainly be interesting.
Three is the magic number for now, but let's make it four against Birmingham next month. Up the Clarets.