Get through Fleetwood and Coventry, then there's a run of easy games.
So went the thinking from many last week as the Black Cats prepared for two key encounters against promotion rivals.
There was no doubt that the matches against in-form play-off contenders Fleetwood and league leaders Coventry would be a stern test of Sunderland's own excellent form since the turn of the year.
And even though they only managed to pick up one point from the six on offer, the Wearsiders remain on course to book a place in the play-offs at the very least.
Automatic promotion remains the very real goal, of course, and with just four points separating Phil Parkinson's side from second-placed Rotherham, it's all to play for.
The common consensus is that Sunderland now have a run of easier fixtures between now and the end of the season, with only the home match against Peterborough and the final-day showdown at Rotherham standing out as potential 'six-pointers'.
But anyone who thinks Saturday's Stadium of Light clash with Gillingham will be a routine home win in the vein of Bristol Rovers or Rochdale should think again.
While Parkinson has rightly taken the plaudits for his Sunderland turnaround, Gills boss Steve Evans has overseen a transformation of a similar nature of his Priestfield side.
Before Saturday's 2-1 defeat to AFC Wimbledon - courtesy of an injury-time winner - Gillingham had lost just one in their previous 17 League One games.
That run saw them pick up 32 points, a total bettered only by top two Coventry and Rotherham, and equalled by Sunderland, who had played a game less over the same time period.
They have the third best defensive record in the division, with just 32 goals conceded from their 34 matches so far. Sunderland (28) and Coventry (30) are the only sides to better that.
While they sit in 11th place in the table, the play-offs are still in reach for Evans and Co, with a seven-point gap to make up on sixth-placed Oxford as things stand. Only two teams have lost less than the Kent side, suggesting if they can turn some draws into wins, they will be a force to be reckoned with.
They are very much a side whose sum is greater than its parts. Top goalscorer Alex Jakubiak was loaned out to St Mirren in January, leaving the likes of Brandon Hendon, Olly Lee and former Sunderland youngster Mikael Mandron to share out the goal burden. Defender Connor Ogilvie has four.
Sunderland know all about Gillingham of course, having faced them three times already this campaign. They haven't beaten them yet, after two FA Cup clashes and the league game in the south east.
The Black Cats are odds-on favourites to win on Saturday, as they should be. But this could prove to be just as much a test of their credentials as their last two fixtures.
