Sunderland came unstuck against Championship strugglers Plymouth Argyle as the Black Cats paid the price for failing to put away their chances. The Wearsiders dominated against Argyle from start to finish and peppered Michael Cooper's goal with shots, but could not find a finish with Jobe Bellingham and Trai Hume going closest when they hit the woodwork either side of half-time.

At the other end, Plymouth created just a handful of opportunities but, crucially, made them count in the first period as Morgan Whittaker scored with a stunning strike midway through the half, and then Finn Azaz scored the second shortly before the break. Sunderland continued to pile on the pressure in the second half but still drew a blank.

Defeat means Sunderland dropped out of the play-off places and to ninth in the table, while Plymouth remain 19th after this victory, which was only their second in nine outings. Tony Mowbray made two changes to the side that started the home win against Birmingham City before the international break, with centre-backs Dan Ballard and Luke O'Nien restored to the side after they missing out against the Blues due to suspension.

Ballard was passed fit to play at Home Park despite suffering a hamstring problem while on international duty with Northern Ireland. Plymouth boss Steven Schumacher also made two changes, in his case to the side that lost at Leeds United a fortnight ago.

Joe Edwards and Ben Waine came into the side in place of Dan Scarr and Adam Randell. Sunderland were on the front foot right from the off and had Jack Clarke been able to find a better final ball rather than playing his pass behind everyone in a red and white shirt, they might have gone in front inside five minutes.

Shortly after that, Patrick Roberts set Nazariy Rusyn away in the right-hand channel inside the box but his shot was blocked. The same combination created another opportunity second later, but this time Rusyn headed narrowly wide from a Roberts cross.

Just after the quarter-hour, O'Nien drove a shot into the turf and Plymouth keeper Michael Cooper turned it over the bar. But the Pilgrims went ahead completely against the run of play on 24 minutes, with Luke Cundle playing the ball to Whittaker on the right and he stepped inside Niall Huggins far too easily before hitting an unstoppable left-foot strike which flew past Anthony Patterson and into the left-hand side of the net.

Roberts hit a lot shot straight at Cooper as Sunderland tried to find a response. Instead Plymouth doubled their lead five minutes before the break as they capitalised on more generous defending.

This time, when possession turned over midway inside the Sunderland half, Cundle played the ball into the left-hand channel for Azaz and he got into the box, checked inside his man onto his right foot and placed his low shot beyond Patterson into the bottom right-hand corner. Bellingham was inches away from halving the deficit on the stroke of half-time when he met Clarke's cut-back at the near post, but his low sidefoot finish hit the outside of the left-hand upright and went behind.

Mowbray made a double substitution at the break, sending on Eliezer Mayenda and Adil Aouchiche in place of Rusyn and Pierre Ekwah, and Sunderland looked much more threatening in the second half. They struck the woodwork for the second time in the game soon after the restart, with Hume getting up to meet a Clarke cross but his header came off the inside of the right-hand upright and when it came to Aouchiche the angle was too tight and he could only fire into the sidenetting.

A couple of minutes later, Aouchiche flashed a volley just wide of the post. Soon after that, Clarke saw a shot from the left corner of the box fumbled by Cooper but the Plymouth defence bailed out their keeper.

Sunderland academy product Bali Mumba should have wrapped things up 15 minutes from time when Plymouth broke forward following a Black Cats corner, but he sent his shot across the face of goal and wide with only Patterson to beat. At the other end, Cooper kept a Clarke shot out with his legs, and soon after Mayenda could only steer a shot into the sidenetting from a tight angle.

And in injury-time, Ballard saw a header tipped over the bar by Cooper, denying the Wearsiders even a consolation goal.

How they lined up

Plymouth Argyle: Cooper, Edwards, Pleguezuelo, Gibson, Kesler-Hayden, Cundle (Randell 73), Houghton, Azaz (Butcher 88), Whittaker (Galloway 88), Waine (Bundu 73), Mumba. Subs not used: Hazard, Scarr, Wright, Warrington, Wright

Booked: Cundle, Kesler-Hayden, Mumba

Sunderland: Patterson, Hume, O'Nien, Ballard, Huggins (Seelt 66), Neil, Ekwah (Aouchiche 46), Roberts (Ba 66), Bellingham (Dack 66), Clarke, Rusyn (Mayenda 46). Subs not used: Bishop, Pritchard, Hemir, Triantis

Booked: O'Nien

Referee: James Bell (South Yorkshire)

Attendance: 16,457