KEVIN Nolan is quite literally taking a leaf out of Roy Keane’s book in order to make himself a better team player.

The Wanderers skipper played a starring midfield role on Saturday as Wanderers piled more pressure on the Black Cats boss by plunging his side into the relegation zone with an impressive 4-1 victory.

He is still yet to score this season – something that has never happened in any of the eight seasons since he became a first team regular at the Reebok.

But after studying the case of Manchester United legend Keane, he is not placing undue pressure on himself to deliver in front of goal.

“I have really enjoyed this season, I think I have brought my game on a lot more than just goals,” Nolan said at the Stadium of Light.

“I have read a few books about older players and have just finished one about the big man here, Roy Keane.

“He said in the book that when he was younger, all he wanted to do was score goals but when he went to United, Bryan Robson pulled him and said he had to start giving more to the team. It rang a bell with me because Gary did that to me when he first came here. He sat down with me just before the Arsenal game and just made me a bit more aware of the job he wanted me to do.

“I have had some chances but I am just happy with the way I am playing. If I can do it half as well as Roy did, I’ll be doing something right.

“It shows as well – results make it more perfect, but I can see good things for this club again and playing with a bit more of a smile of my face.”

You can’t help but subscribe to the feelgood factor around the Reebok at the moment, with four victories from their last five games, Wanderers are one of the Premier League’s form sides.

Nolan explained that the fear of a repeat of last season’s struggles against relegation have helped galvanise Gary Megson’s side this time around.

“It’s nice people are finally sitting up and taking notice of us again,” he said.

“Last year was tough, but we came through it. The lads all remember that and everyone who was involved does not want to get in that sticky patch again.

“We have got some great talent here and a lot of English lads. We stick together win, lose or draw and have a few good days out to make sure the spirit stays fantastic.

“If we keep going the way we are, I’m sure we can get in that top 10 this season and then who knows after that?”

It is also a very different working environment for the manager, who just last month was enduring torrents of abuse from the terraces.

The jeering has now turned to serenading with the 17 coach-loads of Wanderers fans singing his name at the Stadium of Light.

Nolan hopes the current run of form will help to convince some of Megson’s critics to give him more time to stamp his own mark on the football club.

“Gary is slowly changing this here and hopefully we are going back in the right direction,” he said. “It might take some time, we know Sam built a great legacy here, but we have to give Gary enough time to do the same thing.”