Black Cats make Actim impact

Sunderland duo Danny Higginbotham and Danny Collins were rewarded for their weekend performances with a place in the team of the week in the Actim Index, the official player ratings system of the Barclays Premier League.

Higginbotham earned 32 points in the late 3-2 win over Middlesbrough, the second-best score for a defender this week, to take him up 17 places to 177th overall.

Collins chipped in with 23 points to move up to 117th and within 20 points of a place in the top 20.

Kenwyne Jones remains the club`s highest-ranked player in 79th place with 321 points, goalkeeper Craig Gordon the only other Black Cat in the top 100 in 90th position.

Analysis of all Premier League games is taking place throughout the season and the players in the Actim Index Team of the Week are:

Name Team Position Weekly Score

Brad Friedel, Blackburn Rovers, Goalkeeper, 18
Gael Clichy, Arsenal, Defender, 39
Danny Higginbotham, Sunderland, Defender, 32
Emmanuel Eboue, Arsenal, Defender, 27
Dany Collins, Sunderland, Defender, 23
Danny Murphy, Fulham, Midfielder, 47
Michael Ballack, Chelsea, Midfielder, 38
Mark Noble, West Ham United, Midfielder, 30
Geremi, Newcastle United, Midfielder, 28
Emmanuel Adebayor, Arsenal, Striker, 63
Diomansy Kamara, Fulham, Striker, 40

The Actim Index is calculated using a unique mathematical formula that rates each player`s contribution be it goals, shots, passes, dribbles, tackles, crosses, saves, clearances, blocks, interceptions, assists, clean sheets, time on the pitch or number of points gained by the team with marks deducted for red and yellow cards.