Sunderland defender Trai Hume says Preston North End's time-wasting tactics helped spur the Black Cats on to grab their equaliser in Tuesday's 1-1 draw.
Several North End players went to ground following Emil Riis' opening strike, with the crowd growing increasingly frustrated.
However, Hume says that the stop-start second half helped lift the energy in the ground and led to Romaine Mundle's late leveller.
"You kind of expect it but they did go to the extreme. They had about four or five players that went down," Hume told BBC Radio Newcastle.
"The fans got up from it and we pushed on and ended up getting the equaliser so it kind of helped us in a way.