The dust has finally settled on what was a dramatic evening at the Stadium Of Light.

Fleetwood Town came close to pulling off a classic away day display against promotion favourites Sunderland, however a late blow proved costly as they were ultimately held to a 1-1 draw.

Joey Barton's side appeared to be good value for the three points for the majority of the game before Max Power's dramatic late equaliser burst the bubble for the North West side.

Fleetwood could have moved into the play-off spots with a victory over the Black Cats, but instead they'll need to regroup and go again as we enter the home straight of the League One season.

If they're to secure promotion to the Championship, one player who will need to be on his game is Barrie McKay.

The forward is currently on loan from Swansea City and has established himself as a key player for Fleetwood Town during their recent impressive patch.

It's been nine games since Barton's side last tasted defeat, with the club enjoying five wins on the spin before that late comeback at the Stadium Of Light.

McKay has been key to that, and his performance against Sunderland showed why.

In the latest in the FLW Spotlight series, we take a detailed look at the forward's performance against the Black Cats and why he could be a central figure to Fleetwood Town as they look to make history.

He may be a relatively new arrival at Highbury Stadium, but Barrie McKay is already making an impact.

The 25-year-old has made five appearances for Joey Barton's side since linking up with the club at the end of January and has already established himself as a key player.

In that time Fleetwood Town have won four and drawn one of their five games - a run of form which has really seen them establish themselves as promotion contenders.

Based on his performance in the last outing against Sunderland, it's not hard to see why he's been so impressive.

As well as scoring Fleetwood's goal on the night, McKay was a hugely effective member of Barton's free-flowing attacking unit.

In his 78 minutes on the pitch the 25-year-old had three shots with all of them being efforts on target.

He also enjoyed three successful dribbles as he looked to move the team forward down the flank, while also winning three offensive duels against Sunderland's solid back line.

Fleetwood were very impressive on the ball at the Stadium Of Light and McKay was a big part of this as he looked to move the play forward.

A forward pass accuracy of 100% showed exactly why he was so effective and why he's more than simply a goalscorer.

If Barrie McKay can maintain those kinds of numbers in the coming weeks it'd be foolish to rule Fleetwood Town out of the promotion race as they're certainly a side who appear to be on the cusp of being the club's most successful ever side.