Jones eyes swift response

Billy Jones believes Friday’s 3-1 defeat to Hull City will be forgotten if Sunderland bounce back by beating Aston Villa on Sunday.

Jones returned from hamstring problems to make his first appearance since October 4 against Hull.

However, the former West Brom full-back was unable to prevent Gus Poyet’s side from suffering a disappointing loss, as Hull roared back following Adam Johnson’s early opener.

Sunderland sit 14th ahead of Sunday’s trip to Villa, the side immediately above them in the Premier League table, and Jones is eager to play his part as the north-east club seek to respond.

“The games are coming thick and fast at the moment, and if we can go to Villa and get a positive result then [the Hull game] can be forgotten about,” Jones told Sunderland’s official website.

“We’re concentrating on turning round that result and getting a positive one at Villa Park.

“As a collective we’re proud of the clean sheets we’ve had recently and that solid base – we’re all disappointed with how open we were against Hull.

“Villa have [Christian] Benteke back and he’s a threat when he’s fit and firing, and they’ve got pace in the team. It’s going to be a tough game but we know what we need to do.”

Reflecting on his own return to action, Jones added: “It was nice to be back involved but a shame about the result – I really felt positive about the game.”