WHEN Niall Quinn walked out onto the hallowed turf of Wembley in Sunderland colours back in 1998, he would have had his head on the pillow dreaming about firing the Black Cats into the Premier League.

He found the net three times on the day, twice during the game and one during the penalty shootout but it wasn't to be on the day of a thrilling 4-4 draw which Charlton Athletic won on penalties.

Sunderland's current frontman Ross Stewart will no doubt be doing the very same thing on Friday night when he gets some much needed shut-eye. In many respects, he and Quinn bare a lot of similarities in the way they play.

“Luckily for Sunderland, he’s twice as fast as I ever was!" joked the former Sunderland Chairman and manager when asked the question.

The Scotsman has been the main point of attack for Sunderland this season scoring 25 goals to fire the Black Cats into the play-offs. It's been seen as his breakthrough season in England following his move from Ross County eighteen months ago and his contribution hasn't gone unnoticed having been named in the League One Team of the Season.

Competition for the striker's signature as the club approach the final year of his contract may well be rife. But Quinn has been in those shoes before as the leading Sunderland man in attack. Tomorrow's game against Wycombe Wanderers in the League One play-off final carries so much importance for the club but may well be the same for Stewart's future.

The Irishman Quinn has loved what he's seen from the frontman. “I was talking about him the other night and I was saying he would have really stood out in our time" he said.

“Because of the way he plays with his back to goal, he’s a focal point of the team at times, he brings people into play, he works so hard off the ball, he’s got all the right attributes but he’s also got pace. He can really let loose and get into his stride.

“He’s a huge part of this Sunderland team. He’s a guy with a big future ahead of him.

"Another reason why a Sunderland victory would probably secure his services in a better league for more time down the road."

The Northern Echo: Niall Quinn in action for Sunderland during his playing days.Niall Quinn in action for Sunderland during his playing days. It's old cliche in football that strikers are guilty of looking out for themselves and that they tend to stick together. On Match of the Day, you'll often find the likes of Alan Shearer and Dion Dublin analysing the performances of strikers and Quinn is no stranger to that when he watches his beloved team.

He continued: “I would go as far as to say when I watch Sunderland now, I don’t get to watch all the games live but I see what I see, I just look for him in many respects. As the ball is getting built up or it’s going through on the wing, I’m looking and I’m going ‘where is he? What’s he doing? What’s his next move?’.

“He’s making all the right noises and I think he is a smashing footballer. We are going to hear an awful lot more about him but I’d love it if it was his day (in the play-off final). It would cap off a great year for him if he was the man who made the difference at the weekend."

The man who's 'disco pants are the best' has been at Wembley all week previewing their promotion showdown with Wycombe and will be in attendance for the game this weekend. Emotions will be running high for him as well as he rallies on Stewart and company at the home of English football.

"You don't want to sit next to me or in front me! I'll be headbutting and I'll jumping and I'll be kicking the ball! I'm glad we have a manager that is cool and won't be as nervous as everybody else. Not just in the terraces and the seats."

Quinn might not be wearing his disco pants on Saturday but he sounds confident that Stewart could be wearing his scoring boots.