MEMORIES of a previous Sunderland survival success flooded back as Sam Allardyce admitted the "new manager" syndrome could have a major bearing on Saturday's relegation duel at the Stadium of Light.

The Wanderers' boss recalled how eight years ago he delighted in seeing his mate Peter Reid save the Black Cats' skins and reckons chairman Bob Murray is thinking Mick McCarthy can emulate the feat.

"When he (Murray) took Reidy on, Sunderland needed three wins in their last seven games to avoid being relegated to the Second Division," he said. "And they did it.

"I think what's happened this week has a bit of that about it."

Monday's dismissal of Howard Wilkinson - the man Murray appointed after sacking Reid in October - and the appointment of former Republic of Ireland boss McCarthy has transformed the mood on Wearside, where even the most loyal fans were resigned to relegation.

Allardyce, desperate to see Wanderers pull clear of the bottom three, is hoping it does not lead to a change of fortune on the field.

"We'll only know at five to five if Mick McCarthy has made a huge difference to Sunderland or not," he said. "It was always going to be a difficult one for us. We don't have a good record up there anyway - we lost 1-0 there last season played very poorly on the night in the FA Cup tie in January - and this makes it more difficult for us. Mick coming in will probably change the mood of the supporters who will probably support him when he first comes in.

"We just have to make sure that at the end of the game Sunderland are no closer to us than they are now."

Determined though he is to make it an unhappy debut for McCarthy, the Bolton boss does not believe Sunderland - seven points worse off at the bottom of the table - are already doomed.

"As difficult a task as it is, you never, ever give up as a manager or as a player," he suggested. "You always think positively until it is mathematically impossible. They've got fixtures coming up against teams in and around the bottom - ourselves, West Ham and West Brom - and if they do get victories in those games it makes a big difference.

"We are still in the thick of it and we have to try and get out of it as quickly as possible. We need three wins out of four, like we had last year, just to start with. If we get that we can take it on from there.

"Even three out of four may not be good enough but at least we want to be travelling back from the North East with smiles on our faces."