HE was a rising Academy starlet when Sunderland went down in 2003 and part of Mick McCarthy’s crop that dropped out of the Premier League three years later, so no wonder Grant Leadbitter is wary of that trend continuing in 2009.

Saturday’s point at Bolton has given Wearside the lift that was required in the final two matches of the relegation run-in.

While there is the belief that top-flight football will still be at the Stadium of Light next season, Leadbitter is not about to take anything for granted before Monday’s trip to Portsmouth.

He remembers the two previous relegation campaigns and the problems they brought, with wage deferrals, job losses and financial cutbacks all experienced.

Having learned that American Ellis Short is ready to take over full control of the club from the Drumaville consortium, Leadbitter wants to make sure Sunderland are in the best possible shape ahead of the new campaign – and that means staying up.

“When you first get back up the first few seasons are all about consolidating your position,” said Leadbitter.

“In fact, you have to do that for the first four, five or six years. It’s not about the first two years, it doesn’t matter how you’re doing, you’ve just got to stay in it, make sure you’re an established Premier League team and over the last ten years Sunderland haven’t done that.

“They’ve been up and down yo-yoing and it hasn’t been good as a fan, a player or anyone connected with the club.

“It’s massive, absolutely massive that we keep Sunderland in the Premier League.

“Massive for the fans, the owner, the chairman, not just for those people, it’s also massive for the people at the club who you don’t really know about.

“When we went down in 2003 there were cuts – the cleaners, the chefs, I remember Al the bus driver losing his job.

“I was at the club. I might have only been young but I remember those things. It wasn’t a good feeling.

“As a player who experienced it, it is in the back of your mind, you don’t want it to happen again but it’s about this team, this year, sticking together with the staff and doing well.”

Sunderland were five points clear of the three relegation places before last night’s Tyne-Tees derby, and have the best chance to stay up of all three of the region’s top-flight clubs.

But while Sunderland are clearly his only real concern, Leadbitter is stunned that the North-East’s three biggest clubs are still threatened with Championship football at this stage of the season.

“It’s not good. The passion that everyone has for their football in the North-East, it’s incredible to think that the three clubs are in this position,”

said the midfielder who was brought up in Fence Houses.

“Two of the three clubs are going to go down. Blackburn are out of it and we just have to make sure we’re not one of them.

“The point we got at Bolton could keep us up but we just have to concentrate on ourselves.

We don’t play until next Monday so we will know exactly how things stand.

“It’s quite strange that we don’t play until Monday but I would still like to think that the whole situation is in our hands. We have the points on the board.”

■ Sunderland’s championship-winning under 18 side will take on Tottenham in the semi-final of the Premier Academy League play-offs at the Stadium of Light tomorrow, 7pm. Admission is £3 for adults and £1 for under 16s, with cash turnstiles 1-8 in the West Stand open from 6pm.

■ Darren Fletcher will miss the Champions League final after UEFA rejected Manchester United’s protest against his red card.

■ Greg Halford’s towering second-half header booked Sheffield United a date at Wembley for their fourth play-off final in 12 years. The midfielder, on a season-long loan from Sunderland, rose to steer David Cotterill’s cross into the top corner on the hour-mark to settle a typically nerve-jangling Championship semi-final second leg against Preston and earn a 2- 1 aggregate win.