Stephane Sessegnon's goal has given Sunderland a 1-0 lead over Everton at half time.
The Black Cats sliced open the Everton defence with a quick counter-attack early on but Danny Graham was denied by Tim Howard.
Kevin Mirallas linked well with Seamus Coleman midway through the half but the Belgian couldn't find the target with his deflected strike from the right side of the box.
Sunderland looked dangerous from set pieces but they couldn't find their way past Howard. However, the hosts were left disappointed when Graham was denied a penalty during a goalmouth scramble.
Sessegnon broke the deadlock on the stroke of half time when he evaded a couple of defenders before curling a shot into the back of the net.
