Wilko convinced of Black Cats' survival

The Black Cats go into today's clash with North-East rivals Middlesbrough with many fans already resigned to life in the Nationwide League.

But Wilkinson is convinced Sunderland will not be one of the trio of clubs who will drop down a division, despite propping up the Premiership with 11 games to go.

Victory over Boro today at the Stadium of Light will see the Wearsiders climb at least one place in the top-flight, but they are currently six points adrift of fourth from bottom Bolton and seven short of Birmingham.

The precarious position is not fazing Wilkinson though, and he is convinced Sunderland do not even come into the relegation equation.

"I don't see it as being three from five clubs," he said. "I see it as being three from four because we are already out of it in my mind. All I can deal with is our fixtures and our games.

"Thankfully, our fixtures do include games against teams who are around us, which makes them better. We play Bolton in three weeks time. After that we won't have to worry about Bolton's results.

"I'm convinced we're going to get out of it, and I'm not bothered who else gets out of it."

He added: "I'm not some lunatic going against history. There is historical precedent and precedent plays an important part in all our lives in all sorts of ways.

"There was a Sunderland team in 1982 in the same position as us. There have been teams in the last ten years in the Football League and the Premiership in a similar position. It has happened. So why shouldn't we be the ones to join that happy band?"

If Wilkinson cannot pull off a masterstroke and keep Sunderland among England's elite, then it is understood the club will lose at least £25m.

But Wilkinson will have been in management 21 years this summer and he tries not to examine what losing Premiership status would do to Sunderland.

He said: "I know what relegation would mean because I have been in the business a long time.

"It isn't something I think about because where would I go? Should I start working it out to the last pound? How many spectators we would lose? Whether we would have to sell one of the washers or a tractor?

"I know what it would mean in the larger sense. Period. After that, thinking about it will not increase my ability to deal with the problems we have. Every time we play a League game I have to sit down and evaluate what is left. I knew that after the Watford game we would have 12 weeks.

"There's an international break in there and there's a blank Saturday, but it is quite a span of time, 12 weeks."

Despite his undoubted confidence, Wilkinson will have to draw on all of his tactical acumen if his wish is to be granted.

A relegation scrap is a far cry from his finest moment, when he guided Leeds to the old First Division championship back in 1992.

At Elland Road that season, Wilkinson had to ensure his side - with the fiery Gordon Strachan as his skipper - stayed focused on the job in hand, lifting the title.

Now, 11 years on, the 59-year-old is determined to make his class of 2003 stay as equally focused.

"It's exactly the same sort of nerve, except our recent experiences which govern our expectations are different," he said. "At Leeds, our previous experiences which governed our expectations were of winning football matches. That generates its own self-belief.

"Times like this test your ability to dig down deep into yourselves and dismiss the fears, the doubts. To go back to the golfing analogy, I could have said to the players at Leeds 'trust the swing that has got you where you are now'. Now I'm saying 'you need to change the swing'. It can be done and you can be successful, but it's difficult."

Wilkinson took over from Peter Reid in October and his side have claimed only two League victories since his arrival.

While today's opponents Boro spent millions in the January sales, the Sunderland boss has had to largely make do with the playing staff he inherited from Reid.

But he insists his lack of transfer activity, due to a lack of funding, has been the only thing he has done differently to his days at Leeds, Hillsborough and Notts County.

"I have looked at the situation and I have asked myself, have I done anything differently? Has the situation changed dramatically since the last time?" he said.

"The answer is no. The only thing I can throw in is that one of the ingredients in turning things around is changing the players. In past situations, I have changed some of the players.

"But there's nothing I can do about that and I knew that at the time. I knew I had to bake a cake without an egg."

He added: "I can understand the fans' frustrations, I can understand where the fans are coming from. But I can't try any harder, people at the club can't try any harder.

"We are doing our level best to deal with the situation. We know that the fans have been hugely influential in this club's success in recent years.

"This club has not been turned around in the recent past by a benefactor

"It has not been turned around by huge borrowing. It has been turned around by the people working at the club and on the backs of the people who have turned up to watch the team.

"I'm not frustrated, I came here with specific terms of reference. One of them was that there was no money. Even if I am frustrated, I can't express it. That would be childish."

Wilkinson has warned his players that they all have to prove they are worth retaining next season.

He said: "Of course you tell them that they are playing for their own futures."

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