Golf is Lee Cattermole’s second love, but today his only focus will be on putting right Sunderland’s below-par start to the season, writes Stuart Rayner.

HE is the youngest footballer to captain Middlesbrough or Wigan Athletic, but some judges think England Under-21 international Lee Cattermole has more natural talent as a golfer.

With a four handicap and an occasional tendency to “go mad” for it, the 23-year-old Sunderland midfielder loves spending his down-time playing or watching the sport.

It might not be able to match golf for shocks in an era when Charl Schwartzel and Keegan Bradley hold two of the Majors, but Premier League football can still throw up surprises.

Cattermole was involved in last season’s biggest, when the Black Cats recorded a stunning 3-0 win at reigning champions Chelsea. Having started the campaign in outstanding form, the shell-shocked visitors were never the same.

“It was a massive performance, it’s definitely up there in my career,” Cattermole recalls. “It was a massive result on the day and a bit of a shock to everyone.

“We were never under any pressure, we were so comfortable.

“The first 10 minutes were how it’s going to be at Stamford Bridge, but after that we just got our foot in the game. Every pass we made seemed to go to our player and we opened them up. It could have been more.”

November’s was a defining match in Steve Bruce’s Stadium of Light career. So soon after a 5-1 humbling at Newcastle United, it showed a capacity to respond to adversity. Even now, Bruce often refers to it.

It seems sure to come up in this afternoon’s team-talk. At 1-0, the margin of defeat in August’s derby was much less brutal, but it settled all too snuggly into a pattern which saw them win none of their first four matches. It leaves them hoping for another shot in the arm from a Chelsea game – this time at home.

“It was a nice way to bounce back after the Newcastle game and that’s what we’re looking to do now after a good point at Swansea,” says Cattermole.

“After last season’s derby we beat Stoke at home under a lot of pressure. We played Tottenham in the week and didn’t play so well first half but in the second we were much better. We took the second half from Tottenham straight to Chelsea, and turned them over. We went from there really. We had a decent season.”