Sunderland moved to within two points of safety on Saturday as they earned a dramatic 2-2 draw at Cardiff City in the Premier League.
Jordon Mutch opened the scoring for the hosts on five minutes before Fraizer Campbell looked to have sealed the win as he doubled their advantage with 57 minutes on the clock.
However, the Sunderland fightback began with seven minutes left to play as Steven Fletcher came off the bench to reduce the deficit.
They then snatched an equaliser deep into stoppage time when fellow substitute Jack Colback saw his deflected effort find its way into the top corner.
Read Sports Mole's minute-by-minute report below to find out how all of the action unfolded in South Wales.
Hello there and welcome to Sports Mole's live text coverage of tonight's Premier League clash between Cardiff City and Sunderland at the Cardiff City Stadium. We should have some team news through for you in a moment...
CARDIFF: Marshall; John, Caulker, Turner, Theophile-Catherine; Medel, Whittingham, Kim, Mutch, Noone; Campbell
CARDIFF SUBS: Lewis, Hudson, Cornelius, Odemwingie, Gunnarsson, Cowie, Maynard
Cardiff City, who have David Kerslake and Joe McBride in temporary charge, make three changes as Declan John, Gary Medel and Kim Bo-Kyung come into the starting XI.
SUNDERLAND: Mannone; Bardsley, Dossena, Roberge, Diakite; Cattermole, Larsson, Ki, Giaccherini; Borini, Altidore
SUNDERLAND SUBS: Cabral, Gardner, Fletcher, Celustka, Colback, Ba, Pickford
It's three changes for Sunderland as well, with Andrea Dossena, Jozy Altidore and Emanuele Giaccherini all being given the nod by manager Gus Poyet. Steven Fletcher drops to the bench.
UPDATE: There are currently four other matches being played in the Premier League and we will bring you those full-time results as soon as they come in. If you missed it earlier, West Ham United and West Bromwich Albion played out a thrilling 3-3 draw at Upton Park to get today's action underway.
Needless to say, there will be a lot of attention on Cardiff today as they try to recover from Malky Mackay's departure yesterday. Some say that his sacking was inevitable, but is not likely to stop the home fans voicing their appreciation for everything that the Scot did at the club. Expect one or two anti Vincent Tan chants as well...
There has been plenty of talk as to who will be the new manager of Cardiff, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Sven-Goran Eriksson among the favourites to take charge of the Bluebirds.
PREMIER LEAGUE FULL-TIME RESULTS:
Aston Villa 1-1 Swansea City
Hull City 6-0 Fulham
Manchester City 1-0 Crystal Palace
Norwich City 0-1 Manchester United
Those results do little to change what's at stake for Cardiff, but Fulham's hammering at Hull City has shaken things up when it comes to goal difference and Sunderland's hopes of getting off the bottom of the table. Gus Poyet's side can move up to 18th place in the table if they win this evening. Win by a couple of goals and they will exit the relegation zone.
RECENT FORM:
CARDIFF: DLDLWL
SUNDERLAND: LDLLDD
Cardiff come into this match on the back of a 3-0 mauling at home to Southampton on Boxing Day, while Sunderland earned a shock 1-0 victory away to Everton on the same day.
If you think that Sunderland will be buoyed by that result against Everton, it must be said that it was their first away win of the season. Not exactly an exemplary record, but the Black Cats are likely to be filled with confidence tonight.
HEAD TO HEAD: Cardiff City have the edge when it comes to previous meetings between the teams with 23 wins compared to Sunderland's 19. Meanwhile, there have been 14 draws.
The sides last met in the Championship during the 2006-07 season as they both picked up one win each. Cardiff beat Sunderland 2-1 at the Stadium of Light in October 2006 before the Black Cats got their revenge with a 1-0 victory in South Wales in March 2007.
REFEREE WATCH: The official for tonight's match is Chris Foy.
Interestingly enough, this is the first time that the teams have met in the top flight since March 1957 when they played out a 1-1 draw at Roker Park.
It will be very interesting to see what kind of performance Cardiff give tonight following Malky Mackay's sacking. Will it prove a hindrance, or can they use it to their advantage? If it's the latter then Sunderland could well come away with the points. However, Cardiff have disposed of some better teams than the Black Cats this season.
The players are lined up in the tunnel, ready to walk out onto the pitch inside the Cardiff City Stadium. For those who are interested, it's a brisk night in South Wales.
KICKOFF! The pre-match handshakes have been done and it will be Sunderland to get us underway. Here we go!
YELLOW CARD: Instant drama here as Jordon Mutch is booked for diving. He went down in the penalty area under a challenge from a Sunderland defender, but referee Chris Foy decided that he went down too easily. It was the right call as well.
CHANCE! This has been a very positive start from Cardiff. They come close to opening the scoring when Noone whips a wonderful cross deep into the heart of the Sunderland box. However, Mutch can only head over from close range with plenty of the goal to aim at.
GOAL! CARDIFF 1-0 SUNDERLAND (MUTCH)
Boom! Cardiff City lead and it's Jordon Mutch with a superb finish past Vito Mannone. He received the ball midway into the Sunderland half before running towards goal. He managed to get to the edge of the box and then rifled the ball past the Italian and into the net. That goal has raised the roof inside the Cardiff City Stadium.
Sunderland have hardly had a sniff so far. Cardiff have started at a ferocious pace and are pretty much pinning their opponents right back inside their own half.
Cardiff have just taken their foot off the gas in the last few minutes, but Sunderland haven't taken advantage. Gus Poyet's side are finding it difficult to play themselves into this match as the hosts remain compact and organised in the key areas.
CHANCE! Cardiff come close to adding a second as Kim's fierce long-range effort is tipped over the crossbar. There's plenty of jostling inside the box for the resulting corner, which Sunderland eventually clear.
Cardiff are continuing to look dangerous when they surge forward into the Sunderland half. Mutch and Campbell are giving the visitors all sorts of problems with their movement, while Kim and Medel are battling away in midfield when their team loses possession. In contrast, Sunderland are looking sluggish.
YELLOW CARD: Surprise, surprise. Lee Cattermole goes into the book for Sunderland after tripping Mutch. The midfielder will need to be very careful during the final 70-odd minutes off this match.
Sunderland show some signs of life as Caulker clears Larsson's cross before Cattermole fires wide from long range. Those are probably the visitors' best moments of the match so far.
CHANCE! Close again for Cardiff. Noone fires a teasing cross into the Sunderland box that Caulker manages to get his head to, but the defender glances his header straight at Mannone. The visitors defended far too deeply there and nearly paid the price.
CHANCE! Great thinking from Whittingham as he tries to catch Mannone out with a clever free kick, but Mannone was there to push the ball away from danger. It's still all Cardiff at the moment as the home side goes in search of a crucial second goal.
As expected, there have already been a fair amount of chants in favour of Malky Mackay. Vincent Tan is at the stadium, though he looks completely indifferent to the the noise coming from the stands. Must be something to do with his trousers...
CHANCE! Cardiff keep knocking at the door as Campbell misses by inches with a header. Mutch's cross was met by the striker, who could only guide his effort narrowly wide of the Sunderland goal.
MISS! How has Altidore put that wide? Kim's shot was saved by Marshall, and Altidore was there ready to tap the ball into the empty net. However, the rebound came at him quickly and he somehow stabbed it wide of goal.
CHANCE! How many opportunities do Cardiff want to score? This time Whittingham popped up at the back post before trying to cross from Campbell, but the Sunderland defence just about managed to boot the ball away to safety. Will the hosts regret missing all of these openings?
We may be less than 10 minutes away from half time, but Sunderland are starting to get themselves into this match. They've not been allowed to play so far, though a dip in intensity from Cardiff has allowed the visitors to get a footing in the game. That's sure to please Gus Poyet.
Five minutes until the break and Sunderland are looking a lot more positive. Unfortunately they haven't gone on to create any more decent chances.
SAVE! Marshall keeps out Borini to keep Cardiff ahead! The Italian arrived late on the edge of the box to hit Bardsley's cross towards goal, but Marshall was there to get down low and push the effort away from danger. Good goalkeeping.
Just the one added minute at the end of the first half...
HALF TIME: CARDIFF 1-0 SUNDERLAND
Referee Chris Foy blows the half-time whistle and it's Cardiff who lead Sunderland 1-0 thanks to Jordon Mutch's goal on five minutes.
That was a brilliant first half from a Cardiff perspective as the hosts dominated for large spells. Sunderland managed to fight back towards the end of the 45 minutes, though Gus Poyet is sure to be having a few words with his players right now.
Cardiff managed to create so many chances during that half, but they could well come to regret their wastefulness in front of goal during the second half if Sunderland put up more of a fight.
As it stands, Cardiff will move up to 14th place in the table, while Sunderland will stay rooted to the bottom. You can take a look at the projected standings here.
UPDATE: There have been five other Premier League matches today, so here some the results...
PREMIER LEAGUE FULL-TIME RESULTS:
Aston Villa 1-1 Swansea City
Hull City 6-0 Fulham
Manchester City 1-0 Crystal Palace
Norwich City 0-1 Manchester United
West Ham United 3-3 West Bromwich Albion
SECOND HALF UNDERWAY! The players are back out and it will be Cardiff to kick off the second period. Meanwhile, Sunderland have made a change at the break as Steven Fletcher enters the action in place of Fabio Borini.
The good news for Sunderland is that Cardiff haven't started the second half with the same frantic pace that they did in the first. It's been very even so far.
CHANCE! A Cardiff corner from the right falls to Campbell in the box, but the striker is surrounded by bodies and can't get his shot away before Mannone pounces on the ball.
This is probably Sunderland's best spell in the match. The visitors are camped out in the Cardiff half as they pile on the pressure in search of an equaliser. However, the Cardiff defence is doing enough to keep them out.
GOAL! CARDIFF 2-0 SUNDERLAND (CAMPBELL)
You can put that down to the curse of the commentator. Fraizer Campbell scores against his former club to put Cardiff on their way to three vital points. Mutch did well down the left to work some space before crossing, and there was Campbell in the box to convert from close range with not a Sunderland defender in sight.
YELLOW CARDS: Two bookings in quick succession now as Kim Bo-Kyung gets cautioned for kicking the ball away before Phil Bardsley goes into the book for a cynical trip on Campbell.
CHANCE! Sunderland nearly pull one back through Cattermole, but the midfielder hit his shot over the crossbar following Larsson's short corner. The Black Cats need a goal soon if they want to get anything out of this match.
Another effort on goal for the visitors as Ki hits an effort straight at Marshall. Meanwhile, there's news emerging from the Cardiff City Stadium that Fabio Borini has been taken to hospital after collapsing. The Italian striker was substituted at half time due to illness.
YELLOW CARD: Fraizer Campbell is the latest name to go into the book after catching Lee Cattermole when the pair were challenging for the ball.
Altidore does well to work some space on the edge of the Cardiff penalty area, but his effort is a tame one that Marshall keeps hold of. Still, it's better from Sunderland in terms of trying to battle their way back into this match.
SUBSTITUTION: Cardiff make a change now as Craig Noone comes off for Don Cowie. Noone has been exceptional for the hosts today thanks to his pace and persistence down the flanks.
CHANCE! Cardiff come close to getting a third goal of the night as Turner heads over from a corner on the left. Meanwhile, Sunderland make two changes as Craig Gardner and Jack Colback replace Lee Cattermole and Seb Larsson.
Sunderland have been much improved during this second half, but time really is running out for them now. They've managed to create a few chances tonight, though some poor finishing and decision-makings looks to have cost them. Still, a goal in the next few minutes could set up a grand finale.
SUBSTITUTION: Here comes another change for Cardiff as Kim Bo-Kyung is replaced by Aron Gunnarsson. Just over 10 minutes of normal time remaining at the Cardiff City Stadium.
SUBSTITUTION: Cardiff make their final change of the evening as Andreas Cornelius is introduced in place of Fraizer Campbell.
GOAL! CARDIFF 2-1 SUNDERLAND (FLETCHER)
Sunderland have a lifeline as Steven Fletcher finds the net with a real poacher's finish. Giaccherini's cross from the left cut open the Cardiff defence, and there was Fletcher to poke the ball past Marshall from close range. Game on!
The mood inside the ground has totally changed thanks to that goal from Fletcher. There is now a real sense of apprehension among the home fans as Sunderland try to earn a share of the spoils with around five minutes of normal time remaining. Can Gus Poyet's side snatch an equaliser?
Sunderland threaten through Gardner after the ball was laid off to him on the edge of the box, but the substitute fires high over the crossbar with a poor effort.
CHANCE! Close again for Sunderland! The ball fell to Colback, who was about 20 yards from goal, but the youngster flashed a low shot inches wide of the goal. Marshall looked beaten there.
CHANCE! Sunderland are really going for it here. Fletcher pops up into the penalty area to receive a cross before hitting his shot straight at Marshall on the angle. Nervy times if you're a Cardiff fan.
FIVE MINUTES added time...
SAVE! Great stop from Marshall as he pushes away Roberge's stinging volley. That one looked like it was going to creep in at the near post.
WIDE! That could be that. Giaccherini receives the ball on the edge of the area, but he can only curl his shot wide.
GOAL! CARDIFF 2-2 SUNDERLAND (COLBACK)
What can you say?! Incredible scenes at the Cardiff City Stadium as Jack Colback surely snatches a point for Sunderland in the dying second of the match! The substitute hooked a hopeful shot towards goal inside a congested box that found its way past Marshall and into the top corner. Unbelievable.
FULL TIME: CARDIFF 2-2 SUNDERLAND
The full-time whistle goes to bring an end to a quite incredible match. Sunderland looked dead and buried with 10 minutes to go as Cardiff led 2-0, but late goals from Steven Fletcher and Jack Colback earned the visitors a share of the spoils against the odds.
Anyway, that's all from me but don't forget that you can keep up to date with reports and reaction from all of today's games in the Premier League right here on Sports Mole. Thanks for your company and we hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend. Goodbye!
