SUNDERLAND super-sub Grant Leadbitter last night hailed Dwight Yorke's input into the Black Cats' surge to the Championship summit, and claimed the veteran midfielder's "calming influence" had enabled him to convert Monday's last-gasp winner at Southampton.

Leadbitter's 87th-minute strike at St Mary's could yet prove to be the decisive moment in Sunderland's season, as it took Roy Keane's men five points clear of the play-off places, thereby transferring their ultimate destiny into their own hands for the very first time.

The manner of the 21-year-old's winner was reminiscent of Yorke in his Champions League winning pomp, with a nerveless curling finish complementing a steely run towards the edge of the 18-yard box.

When Keane signed Yorke from Sydney FC in January, he insisted that the veteran's experience and leadership would prove crucial in developing some of the youngsters he had inherited at the Stadium of Light.

And with the Trinidad & Tobago international's composure having long been one of his greatest strengths, Leadbitter feels his team-mate's laid-back insouciance is having a major impact on his own efforts at the heart of the Sunderland midfield.

"Dwight has been a massive influence on me, both on and off the pitch," said the Fencehouses-born youngster, who had been on the field less than 20 minutes when he netted. "When you see that you've got Dwight Yorke in the team, you have to be happy.

"He's got that character about him that rubs off on the younger players. He's been fantastic with me and he's really helped me along.

"He's a calming influence around the pitch and that's really rubbed off on me. I'm playing with a lot more confidence thanks to Dwight and I'm calmer now in certain situations."

Those situations certainly include the moments when Leadbitter finds himself with an opportunity in front of goal, as Monday's match-winner took the midfielder's tally for the season to an impressive six.

The boyhood Black Cats fan was still to break his duck at the start of the current campaign, but despite the presence of the likes of Carlos Edwards, Ross Wallace, Dean Whitehead and Tobias Hysen, he has emerged as Sunderland's leading midfield goalscorer this season.

"I've got a lot of confidence to score goals at the moment," he admitted. "But a lot of that has been instilled into me from the gaffer.

"I feel confident that I've added a goalscoring touch to my game, and I hope that people see me as a goal threat from midfield now.

"I'm really pleased with the way things are going this season, but you want to better yourself day in, day out. It doesn't stop here because the next game is always the most important one."

That next game comes on Saturday as Sunderland look to take another giant step towards the Premiership by completing the double over QPR.

Leadbitter was on target when the Black Cats recorded a workmanlike 2-1 win at Loftus Road last November but, with John Gregory's side desperate for the points themselves as they look to avoid relegation to League One, the youngster has insisted there is no chance of his team-mates becoming complacent as they look to extend their 16-game unbeaten run.

"I think anyone who looks at it will say we've got the best squad in the league," he said. "But that won't count for anything if we don't keep this going.

"There's a lot of self-belief there at the moment - there has to be when you're on such a long run of games unbeaten - but tomorrow's another day and Saturday's certainly a different game.

"Nobody's under any illusions about the QPR match because they're fighting for their lives and that's bound to make them dangerous.

"We know how much a win would mean to us, and it's all about keeping our nerve between now and the end of the season."