LONDON (AFP) - Sunderland effectively ensured they will be playing Premier League football again next season with an impressive 3-1 win at Fulham, who will now need a most unlikely turnaround in their form and fortunes to avoid relegation.
Goals from Danny Collins, Michael Chopra and Kenwyne Jones secured a rare away win for Roy Keane's side and lifted them 10 points clear of the drop zone.
Fulham, for whom David Healy found the net, were left second from bottom, six points adrift of Birmingham, the side occupying the last survival slot, with five matches to play.
Fulham boss Roy Hodgson had identified this as a must-win encounter and he would have been encouraged to see the first chance of the match fall to one of his players, Brian McBride.
But the big American forward failed to get any real venom into his header from a Jimmy Bullard cross and Craig Gordon was able to save comfortably.
Simon Davies then struck a long-range effort high over the bar before Bullard gave Gordon another straightforward save to make from a similar distance.
Gradually Sunderland came into the contest however and a Collins header from Andy Reid's free-kick found the back of the net only to be ruled out by referee Mark Halsey for a foul.
Phil Bardsley then sent a drive whistling inches over and a Daryl Murphy shot was deflected wide.
McBride squandered another chance when, from a good position inside the box, he lifted his shot over the bar and Fulham were made to pay when Collins gave the visitors the lead right on the stroke of half-time, heading home from Darryl Murphy's cross.
Keane introduced Chopra after the break and that proved to be an inspired move when the forward moved on to Jones's flick-on and beat Kasey Kellar with a deft lob on the volley.
Northern Ireland striker Healy came off the bench and pulled a goal back with a stunning 25-yarder.
But that proved to be just a blip in the overall pattern of play and Jones finally got a reward for his running when he brought down a Dean Whitehead cross and fired into the bottom corner to make absolutely sure of the points.
