TWENTY-FOUR hours after Sunderland confirmed that Oasis would be playing at the Stadium of Light next June, Black Cats striker David Healy spent yesterday preparing to return to Fulham for the first time since ending an unsuccessful spell at Craven Cottage.

So as Roy Keane reflected on the Northern Irishman’s failure to transfer his international form to west London, it was fitting that his general message was: “Don’t look back in anger”.

After waiting more than seven years to get a crack at Premier League football, it must be hard for Healy to look at the last 15 months as anything other than a series of missed opportunities.

All but unstoppable on the international stage, with his 69 caps having brought a magnificent 35 goals, the 29-yearold has been anything but prolific on the domestic stage.

Last season, his first in the top-flight, brought just four goals in 30 appearances for Fulham, while the current campaign, following his £1.2m move to Wearside, has been even worse.

Healy is yet to make a single Premier League start for the Black Cats – his only goal came as a substitute in August’s Carling Cup win over Nottingham Forest – and while Wednesday night’s goal against San Marino confirmed his well-being, he remains a peripheral figure at the Stadium of Light.

His international reputation is in inverse proportion to his standing in the domestic game, but as he considers handing Healy a rare starting spot this afternoon, Keane feels it would be wrong to brand the striker a failure whenever he sheds his Northern Ireland shirt.

“I think a lot of strikers would be happy with David Healy’s goal record in league football,” said the Sunderland boss. “It’s not as though he’s only ever scored goals in internationals.

“His goalscoring record in the league is very good but, like all of our strikers, David knows there are areas of his game he needs to improve on.

“I think he could have been fitter when he came to us, but he’s gradually got stronger and he’ll definitely do a job for us. His two games with Northern Ireland will have done him a world of good, and his goalscoring record for Northern Ireland should never be under-estimated. It’s an absolutely amazing achievement.”

Healy’s failure to establish himself at the Stadium of Light is a continuation of a downward trend that began when he left Preston for Leeds in October 2004, but this season’s struggles have also reflected the strength of attacking resources at Keane’s disposal.

Djibril Cisse and El-Hadji Diouf also arrived on Wearside this summer, supplementing a forward line that already boasted the likes of Kenwyne Jones, Michael Chopra, Daryl Murphy and Anthony Stokes.

With Jones due to make his comeback from injury in a reserves game against Wigan on Wednesday, there is a general assumption that a forward line pairing the Trinidad & Tobago international with Cisse is Keane’s preferred long-term option.

But as the Black Cats boss has proved time and time again in the past, it is wrong to make too many assumptions when it comes to Sunderland’s starting XI.

“A lot of people are presuming that I’m thinking about playing Kenwyne and Djibril, but it’s very, very dangerous to presume anything with me,” said Keane. “David is one of a number of good attacking options, and he’ll have an important part to play.

“People automatically think that Kenwyne is going to come in and form a dream partnership with Djibril. It certainly looks that way on paper – you could see Kenwyne being a handful and winning a lot of headers and Djibril picking up the pieces behind him – but it might not work that way in practice.

“Sometimes you might have two taller strikers up front, but sometimes you might want to go with a big man and a small man, and if you’re looking for someone to play off a front man, David and Michael (Chopra) could be ideal.”

Chopra has been included in this afternoon’s squad despite interest from QPR, but Stokes will not be involved in today’s game at Craven Cottage after he joined Sheffield United on loan until January.

The Republic of Ireland international has made just three substitute appearances this season, and while he scored a dramatic late double in last month’s Carling Cup win over Northampton, he has not done enough to hold down a starting spot.

“Anthony needs a run of games,” said Keane. “I spoke with him before he went away with Ireland’s B squad and put the move to him, and he said he would have a think. I had a good chat with him again (on Thursday) and he’s gone down there (Sheffield United) until January.

“The potential is there, but potential is one thing, actually doing it is another. In defence of the lad, his best position is through the middle, but he’s not done enough to claim that position in my team yet.”

Other managers might insist that their loan players are selected every week, but Keane feels it would be wrong to make demands of Sheffield United boss Kevin Blackwell before he has had an opportunity to see Stokes in action.

“I don’t think we’re in a position to say, ‘If he’s going down there, he has to play’,”

he said. “The manager might look at him and say, ‘Well he’s been here for training, but his attitude has stunk’. Stokesy has to go down there and earn his place in the team.”