Fellow north east team Darlington was Sunderland's first pre-season friendly, Sunderland won the game 2–0 with goals from Ross Wallace and Anthony Stokes at The Darlington Arena. This was followed up by a shock defeat to Scunthorpe United on 21 July where they were beaten 1–0. Sunderland went on a tour of Ireland, where they would play Bohemians, Cork City and Galway United. They beat Bohemians 1–0 on 28 July thanks to a Stern John goal, but were held to a 1–1 draw at Cork City as Liam Miller scored the Sunderland goal. Their final game of the tour against Galway United ended as a 4–0 win for Sunderland, with goals from Michael Chopra, Kieran Richardson, David Connolly and Stern John. Juventus travelled to the Stadium of Light to commemorate its ten-year anniversary. The game ended 1–1 as Daryl Murphy scored, but the Italian side scored with two minutes remaining to draw the game.