- Gray nets hat trick
- Barnes adds PK
- Defoe ruins clean sheet
Andre Gray and Burnley emphatically defeated Sunderland to move nine points clear of the drop zone with a 4-1 win at Turf Moor on Saturday.
Ashley Barnes added a penalty as Burnley moved to 23 points.
Jermain Defoe scored a consolation goal for Sunderland, which remains 18th with 14 points.
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Burnley had some early chances, with Ashley Barnes tempting goal even before his mate atop the 4-4-2 found the back of the goal.
Gray hit his shot through Vito Mannone, whose arm merely got a piece of the ball after John O'Shea and Papy Djilobodji both went for a 50-50 long ball with Barnes, allowing Gray unfettered access to the Sunderland goal.
Gray made it 2-0 after the break, busting through Djilobodji’s pullback to move around Mannone and push a long pass home. It wasn’t long before he sealed his hat trick, Burnley snaring the ball off a Steven Pienaar slip and Gray stroking home on the break.
Sebastian Larsson chopped down Canadian international Scott Arfield in the box, and Barnes converted the PK to make it 4-0.
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Defoe pulled one back for Sunderland in the 71st minute off an inch-perfect feed from Adnan Januzaj.