Along with his team-mates and manager Rob Edwards, the man currently wearing the captain’s armband was hugely disappointed by the controversial award of a late penalty for the Black Cats’ equaliser.

It meant Town left the Stadium of Light with seven points from the week, rather than nine that a third straight 1-0 win would have yielded, and asked whether that should have been the case, Lockyer replied: “We should be leaving here with nine points from the week, if I’m honest.

“I wish I could tell you exactly how I feel, but everyone knows you’re not allowed to do that nowadays, so yes, if you haven’t seen it, please watch it back. If I say any more, I run the risk of getting in serious trouble, which is a shame because the lads put in a massive effort.

“It was one of those days today where we weren’t at it 100 per cent, there were a few leggy boys there. It’s been a really tough period, with a lot of games and when we get in those positions, going 1-0 up, we tend to hang on really unless something happens. So yes, it’s hugely disappointing. I’ve seen it back. Everyone’s seen it back.”

He went on: “We’ve been in good form and it would have been amazing to win all these 1-0 – that’d have been nice, wouldn’t it? But it wasn’t to be and it should have been three points, but let’s hope it doesn’t cost us come the end of the season, because that would be hugely disappointing.

“Let’s hope it’s a good point in the end and not two dropped because it’s a tough place to come, and there was a few leggy boys today. It’s good now. I really think having this international break has come at a good time for us.”

Lockyer was full of praise for his team-mates’ work-rate and desire, and although he is heading off to join up with Wales, while others including Ethan Horvath, Amari’i Bell and Joe Taylor join up with their national set-ups, he believes two weeks’ break will be good for the squad.

“Yes [it has come at a good time], when you’ve got the lads putting in the effort that they do every week, we’ve got the GPS data coming back for the games from the sports science lads and I don’t know how some of the boys do it,” he said. “I know I’ve got one of the cushiest jobs in the middle of a three, but even I was struggling today!

“So, a lot of travelling, a lot of games, heavy legs and not an easy place to come, and when that crowd got going, it was really tough. So let’s take the positives from it and all that. It’d have been nice to go into this break now off the back of a win, and I feel that we should have and we did enough to, but sometimes you don’t always get what you deserve in football.

“After they scored we were never going to go up the other end and score again, so it was just about seeing it out for the draw then and thanking our fans for coming down, because it’s a long old way.

“Even my old man came to this one – it’s five-and-a-half hours from Cardiff – so shout out to Big Steve for doing that! Well done, Dad! He’s got to stay up here for work, so not just for football, but everyone who has travelled, it was fantastic.

“Seeing them up there in the heavens, it was quite far away but we could still hear them, and come the end when their fans were right on us, we could hear them getting right behind us as well, albeit a little bit nervous at times. So massive thanks to them because it’s a long old journey."