Now we're a Premiership force - Sam

Delighted to have consolidated a mid-table position with a resounding 2-0 victory over Spurs, the Reebok boss believes his players have cast off their reputation as perennial survival fighters.

"That's the basis we should start from next season," he said. "Not 'Can we avoid relegation?' but 'Can we go on from here?'"

Allardyce subscribes to the theory that there are now three clearly defined divisions within the Premier League and says Wanderers should no longer be considered in the bottom group.

"The bottom division is, first and foremost, the three teams that come up plus the ones who struggle either with injuries or an early-season dip in form -- like Tottenham and Leeds United.

"In the middle there are a lot of teams competing against each other to try to get into the top half, which is what we are aiming for, then you've got Newcastle, Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal ... and anybody else who can break into that group by having a good season."

A 10-point haul from their last five games has allayed any lingering fears that Wanderers might get dragged into the survival scrap.

They currently stand on 44 points, look comfortable in 12th place and are looking good enough and confident enough to finish in the top 10.

They looked relaxed as they dominated Spurs, claiming their first league double for two seasons with goals from Ivan Campo and Henrik Pedersen.

But not before showing a work ethic that suggests they have no intention of easing up.

"The relaxed part of the game came when we were in control and in possession of the ball," Allardyce said, praising his players for one of their most convincing wins of the season.

"When the body is relaxed you will make the right decisions and pass the ball better but, when we didn't have the ball, the workrate was there. We closed the opposition down.

"That allowed us to keep the ball for long periods and, when that happened, the less workrate we needed and the more we enjoyed the game.

"In the end it was a comfortable and well-deserved victory.

"The attitude and the workrate of the players at this stage of the season can't be equalled by anybody.

"Prozone (the computerised player and match analysis system) has proved that over the last few weeks.

"The only down side was the Middlesbrough game when the players weren't as fresh as we thought they would be.

"But since then the workrate has been in place and that is 50 per cent of the job.

"We closed Spurs down and didn't let them get into any of their fluent passing movement.

"We destroyed their midfield then played our own football very effectively, playing through midfield when we could, playing off the front men when we needed to and playing down the sides to stretch their back four.

"We got off to a great start with a great finish from Ivan Campo and when we didn't get the second I was a little worried that we may not play as well in the second half.

"But they kept it up and, although we let the game get a little bit open, we had the man in form -- Henrik Pedersen -- who was able to capitalise on a defender's mistake and get his fourth goal in five games.

"The clean sheet was very important.

"Strangely enough, the Spurs front line is pure quality but they had only scored once in their last four away games and that gave our defenders a little bit of encouragement in knowing that, if they did their jobs properly, Tottenham would struggle.

"That proved to be the case because I can't remember them having a clear-cut chance."

For all the comforts of a mid-table position, Allardyce's anxiety levels were still high as he embarked on another European scouting mission this week.

"I'm worried about next year already," he said.

"I can't relax too much because I've got to think about who I want to offer contracts to here and what I've got to go out and get.

"I've got lots to think about, including planning pre-season, which is crucial.

"But at least I can do that, now that we are safe."