HAVING been involved in the relegation battle for the first 36 games of the season, Roy Keane is adamant his Sunderland players will not be handing Bolton an unfair advantage now their Premier League status has been secured.

The Black Cats travel to the Reebok Stadium this afternoon for a game that lost much of its significance from a red-andwhite perspective when Daryl Murphy headed home a stoppage- time winner against Middlesbrough last weekend.

Murphy's winner made Sunderland safe, something that cannot be said for their opponents this afternoon.

Bolton are currently just one point above the drop zone, with their final game of the season coming against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. A win in today's game is therefore vital, but Keane insists Sunderland are in no mood to do Gary Megson's side any favours.

"I laugh at people who say we have nothing to play for," said the Black Cats boss. "There's always something at stake in a game.

"People might say that Bolton need the points more than us, but we've only won two away games all season and that's something we have to improve on.

"Since the age of nine, I've gone into every game I've been involved in wanting to win, and believing I would. I'm sure the lads feel the same and, if any of them don't, they'll pay for it.

"I'm going to be looking at my players very carefully at Bolton and seeing how they react. If I think for one minute that any of them have started packing their bags for the summer, they won't even be travelling to the game."

It is telling that, while Avram Grant has felt the need to question Alan Curbishley's motivation for beating Manchester United this weekend, none of Bolton's relegation rivals have felt the need to speculate about Keane's approach to today's game.

The Irishman has retained much of the drive and singlemindedness that spurred him to seven Premier League titles during his time at Old Trafford, and even the thought of slackening off is enough to provoke a reaction.

"There's no thought of taking our eye off the ball," he explained.

"Bolton are fighting for their lives, but so are plenty of other teams, so we will definitely be picking our best team. It's nice not to be involved in the relegation battle, but we have to be fair to every team in the league."

To that end, Keane will resist the temptation to blood some of the youngsters who have taken Sunderland's youth team to the semi-finals of both the FA Youth Cup and the Academy play-offs this season. Jonny Evans will return to the starting line-up after missing the last two games.