As Tommy Watson announced himself in the red and white of Sunderland with a match-winning brace against Stoke City, Regis Le Bris insists that the goals were only part of the story.
Yet, his two finishes – one in either half with the winner coming with the clock striking 86 – is what will dominate all the post-match discussion on Wearside.
Regis Le Bris had asked his Sunderland players to step up from an attacking sense in the build-up to Stoke’s Saturday afternoon trip to the Stadium of Light. And, in the absence of Romain Mundle on the left-hand side, their 18-year-old, Horden-born homegrown hero did exactly that.
Tommy Watson’s first senior goal – bamboozling the Stoke ‘keeper as he fizzed the ball into the near post – came just seconds after Lewis Koumas had put The Potters ahead on the break.
Watson came close to doubling his tally twice before his deflected decider near the end, the nick his shot took on it’s way into the net more than warranted given just how often the teenager would put himself in those goalscoring positions.
If you don’t buy a ticket, as they say, your hopes of winning in the resulting raffle are usually pretty slim. And the Sunderland fans feel they’ve got quite the prize in young Tommy Watson.
But Le Bris, speaking following Sunderland’s first win in seven Championship games, insists that it wasn’t just Watson’s brace which leapt off the page.
The Academy of Light graduate also played with a maturity and a discipline not always seen in one so young.
Regis Le Bris hails Sunderland hero Tommy Watson after Stoke City heroics
“He deserved it because he played well,” Le Bris smiles, speaking to the media post-match.
“He worked a lot for the team out of possession and in possession as well. This position on the pitch, with the system we have right now, is very useful for him because he can express his qualities.
“He did very well. He scored twice, very important for the team and for the club as well.”
In addition to his five shots and six key passes – the best numbers from any Sunderland player in either department – Watson also completed a pretty remarkable five tackles against Stoke.
His ability to defend from the front and win back possession is, as much as his goalscoring potential, likely to earn himself a more regular place in Le Bris’ starting XI.
There were shades of Jack Clarke, meanwhile, in the way he ripped into the Stoke backline. An elegance but also a purpose to his movement.
And, 11 years after Sunderland were stunned on home soil by an 18-year-old Adnan Januzaj in the red of Manchester United, this felt like another coming of age performance from a teenage winger on Wearside. This time, one wearing Sunderland colours.
Tommy Watson reflects on dream day for the Black Cats
“I think I’ll just need a few hours to let it sink in, to be honest,” Watson beamed after his late intervention kept Sunderland within two points of table-topping Leeds United.
“I think the main thing is that we’ve picked up a well-needed three points, well-deserved three points. It gives us a little bit of momentum to kick on this three-game week, where hopefully we come away with nine points.”
Sunderland host Bristol City on Tuesday before travelling to Swansea over the weekend.
“[A game like this] has been my dream, to be honest.” Watson adds. “I couldn’t have really pictured it any better after today. I like to think I’ve took my opportunity well, but I’m just focusing on my game-by-game and looking to stay in that team.”