Reid Helps Sunderland's Learner Drivers Steer Clear of Relegation

Roy Keane likens his Sunder land side to an improving learner driver with cause for cautious optimism about passing their test in May. Since starting weekly lessons last August there have been moments of despair but, these days, the instructor is not looking quite so nervous and has reason to believe that clutch control could soon be perfected.

"It's a bit like driving lessons. We're getting more and more right and we now need to do all the good things at the same time to pass the test," explained Keane, whose hopes of avoiding relegation were boosted by a fourth consecutive home league win which leaves Sunder land four points clear of the drop zone and three ahead of Wigan.

Much as a novice motorist is prone to jarring gear changes, Keane's team have struggled to control the tempo of games and seemed unsure when, or how, to slow things down this season but on Saturday assistance arrived in the unlikely shape of Andy Reid.

When the decidedly tubby Ireland midfielder, recruited from Charlton Athletic for £4m, stepped off the substitutes bench to begin warming up he looked more like a member of the public who had won a competition to be part of Sunder land's match day squad than a Premier League footballer.

Appearances though can be deceptive and, with his first touch, Reid controlled an awkward ball adroitly before spotting Daryl Murphy accelerating down the right wing and providing him with an inch-perfect cross field pass. All that remained was for Murphy to cut inside on his left foot and unleash a 25-yard shot which crashed in off the underside of the bar.

Having taken a first-half lead courtesy of Dickson Etuhu's header from Dean Whitehead's free-kick, Sunder land found themselves 2-0 ahead on a day when a combination of misses, the woodwork and some fine saves from Craig Gordon thwarted a sporadically menacing Wigan.

Steve Bruce's side were further frustrated by Reid, who used his experience and nous to retain possession and introduce team-mates to short passing triangles.

"The Premier League is fast and furious but there's a time and a place to put your foot on the ball," explained Keane. "Some players get sucked into the hustle and bustle but the good ones know when to stand back. Andy put his foot on the ball, slowed things down and played some nice one-twos which was exactly what we needed."

A keen guitarist and singer-songwriter, Reid frequently encouraged his former Tottenham Hot spur and then Charlton team-mates to engage in musical soirées.

Robbie Keane is no longer around to accompany him on the banjo but Reid has brought his guitar to Wearside where the Sunder land manager trusts he will prove a relaxing influence off the pitch and an unlikely catalyst on it. "Andy has something we haven't got," said Keane. "The standard Premier League midfielder is now 6ft or more tall and very strong. I can't make Andy 6ft 2in but he's got quality and the rest is up to him. Let's not kid ourselves, you've got to be as fit as possible to play Premier League football."

Following a bright start with Nottingham Forest, fitness issues, battles with his weight and debilitating injuries stymied Reid's progress at Spurs but he denies that less than uber professionalism has undone him. "The stuff about lack of fitness comes from people who haven't worked with me and don't know what I'm all about," he said.

As with Reid, Jason Koumas's Prozone statistics can sometimes suggest an economy of effort but he, too, reads nuances lingering between the lines of games and spots passes few others see. Yet if Wigan looked infinitely more cohesive with Koumas off the bench and in their midfield during the second half, Bruce believed they were undone much more by bad luck than any initial lack of managerial judgment.

"We won 3-0 in the FA Cup here last month but we've played twice as well today and lost," he said. "I think we'll stay up, though - and so will Sunder land." Perhaps but mutual survival may yet depend on Bruce and Keane ignoring Prozone and offering Koumas and Reid midfield string- pulling scope.

Naturally a striker, he impressed out of position on first the left wing and then the right before scoring a contender for goal of the season.

Best moment His goal. An unstoppable long-range shot past Chris Kirkland, going in off the underside of the bar