Luke O’Nien made his 300th appearance for Sunderland against Sheffield Wednesday on Friday evening.

Former Sunderland striker Martin Smith has hailed Luke O’Nien for his “massive achievement” after the Black Cats stalwart made his 300th appearance in red and white against Sheffield Wednesday on Friday evening.

The 30-year-old arrived at the Stadium of Light from Wycombe Wanderers in 2018, and has since established himself as a first team regular and a fan favourite on Wearside. Despite fulfilling a number of on-field roles during his time in the North East, in recent seasons O’Nien has carved out a position for himself at the heart of defence, and so far this term, has featured in all but one of Sunderland’s Championship outings thus far.

And reflecting on his time at the club, Smith has praised the affable star for both his versatility and his application. Speaking on BBC Radio Newcastle, the pundit said: “He [O’Nien] came in as a centre midfielder and he's played nearly everywhere else. I think just playing that amount of games shows that you're fit, you're reliable - and he's never let anybody down.

“I mean, it's a massive achievement. I think especially in this day and age, players tend to move on quite regularly, so to still be there and probably [be there] for another couple of years, you would think, it's a great achievement.”

He continued “It’s no disrespect, but I think he's got the most out of everything he's got. He's left nothing behind, and he looks into his game and every fine detail - you can see that in him.”

Smith also went on to address O’Nien’s debut for the Black Cats - a match in which he was hooked after 45 minutes, and that the player himself has admitted wasn’t his finest hour. The pundit continued: “He came to Sunderland and that first game... It was probably an eye-opener for him coming from Wycombe to a massive club like Sunderland, playing in front of a full house. It's only understandable that you're going to be caught out but to bounce back from it and have the career he's had... Hopefully he does get to [make] that Premier League appearance with us.”

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Discussing Regis Le Bris’ obvious fondness for including O’Nien in his plans, Smith added: “The manager obviously wants him in the team... And sometimes from the outside you don't see what individuals bring on a day-to-day basis, and what the manager sees of having somebody in the team. You've just got to trust the manager. He sees what he brings, maybe not in terms of performance all the time, but what he does and brings to everybody else.

“The manager obviously sees that and he just wants him in the team for what he brings and what he knows. Managers know they can trust certain players to carry out the orders, to pass on with the team, drag the team forward, and he must be one of them that the manager sees that.”

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