SUNDERLAND goalkeeper Joe Murphy never had a lead role at West Brom, but did experience the cruelty and overwhelming excitement of Premiership life during his time at The Hawthorns, writes Paul Fraser.

In three years with the Baggies he made just three league starts and spent the majority of last season on loan at Walsall.

However, before he left for the Saddlers, he witnessed West Brom's initial struggle to come to terms with Premier League life, which cost Gary Megson his job.

Megson was the man who took Murphy to the West Midlands from Tranmere but was not there when he returned from his temporary switch to the Bescot Stadium.

West Brom failed to win any of their opening eight games last season - including a shock defeat to Colchester United in the Carling Cup. Murphy was farmed out on loan on October 7 and 19 days later Megson was sacked.

"I remember going to Walsall and Megson was still the manager," said Murphy, now on a year's contract at Sunderland but unlikely to be on the bench to face his former employers today.

"Before I left we just couldn't seem to get any points on the board. But Gary Megson had brought a lot of the players to the club and they all seemed to enjoy it - that didn't mean anything though and results cost him his job."

Even after Megson - who led his side to Championship glory ahead of Sunderland the season before - had left, West Brom's abysmal start to life in the Premiership continued.

They claimed just one win from their first 23 games but, under the tutelage of Megson's successor Bryan Robson, they somehow managed to survive on the final day of last season when they beat Portsmouth 2-0 on home soil.

"My loan had come to an end at Walsall and when I went back I found myself on the bench for that game," said Murphy, who was substitute that day because of an injury to Russell Hoult. "It was a fantastic experience to stay up like that. I did not feel I had played my part, but to be involved in the celebrations was fantastic."

West Brom's incredible escapologist heroics highlights why there should be no reason to panic yet at Sunderland.

The Black Cats have lost their opening five games back in the Premiership and today's visit of fourth-bottom West Brom offers Mick McCarthy his best chance to date of claiming his first three points as a manager in the division.

And Murphy said: "Losing game after game does start to play on players' minds. There's no hiding from that. It was tough during those first couple of months at West Brom last season, but I am not feeling that yet at Sunderland."

Murphy is yet to make an appearance for Sunderland and expected that to be the case. But he is not ready to accept being third choice behind Kelvin Davis and Ben Alnwick.

"I knew when I agreed to come here I wasn't going to be a regular," said the 24-year-old. "It was explained to me what my position would be. I'm not disappointed but things can change very quickly."

Read more about Sunderland here.