LUKE O'Nien says Sunderland can follow their own example as they look to bounce back from last week's Stoke hammering and keep their Championship play-off hopes alive.

The Black Cats were on the receiving end of some heavy defeats in League One last term, losing 4-0 to Portsmouth, 5-1 to Rotherham, 3-0 to Sheffield Wednesday and 6-0 to Bolton - but recovered to win promotion through the play-offs.

Sunderland have enjoyed an impressive first season back in the second tier and have been in the reckoning for a top six finish for much of the campaign, but those hopes have been dented with three successive defeats, including a 5-1 thumping at the hands of former boss Alex Neil last week.

O'Nien, though, says Sunderland turned heavy defeats into positives last season and now need to do the same as they look to get back on track away to in-form Norwich City on Sunday.

"It (Stoke) was disappointing and tough for us to take but we've watched it back, we're working hard this week, we're learning from it, we're growing as a team and making sure we come back a better team," said the versatile O'Nien.

"We had some big losses last year and we turned them into positives, we learnt from them and went on a good run. Success leaves clues and it’s important we learn from last year.

"We've got a really good group, we're still a very good team. We got it wrong (against Stoke) but now it's important we build on what we've done well this season, learn from the other day and put in a better performance."

Despite the recent blip, Sunderland are just six points shy of the top six, and O'Nien is looking at the bigger picture.

He told the club website: "If someone had said we'll be close to the play-offs in our debut season at this stage, we'd have been very excited.

"There's disappointment after the last few games but, putting things in perspective, we're still in a good place.

"If you stop and pause where we were last year, it's crazy to think where we are now. I'm really impressed with a lot of the players. Players like Dan Neil, who has stepped up a league, is one of the first names on the team sheet and is delivering week in, week out. If you look at the boys who've come from abroad, they've moved away from home, it's very difficult for them, they're learning the language and working hard.

"We now need to finish the season strong, maybe we can aim for as strong as last year, you have to aim high.  We have a good run of games coming up and every game we go into aiming to win."

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O'Nien says Sunderland are out to right two wrongs against Norwich. They're looking to respond after the Stoke display and are also fuelled by the 1-0 home defeat to the Canaries in August.

He said: "There's no doubt we'll be up for it. I remember playing them very clearly at home. It was a really good game, we set up really well. 

"We know what quality they possess but we'll have a game plan, we'll work extra hard and we're giving ourselves the best chance by preparing as well as we can. We have the added fuel of feeling we dropped points at home against them when we deserved, in my opinion, the three points."