The striker notched a well-taken hat-trick for the second string midweek as Bolton Wanderers Reserves were seen off 6-1 at Hetton's Eppleton Colliery Welfare Ground.

But he refused to believe that those goals would fire him into Steve Bruce's first-team plans as anything other than a stopgap.

And the honest and open O'Donovan is moving forward with plans to kick-start his career elsewhere.

The Irish striker told the Gazette: "I'd love to be involved more in Sunderland's first team, but everyone has been fine with me and I can't complain.

"The first team is playing good football and getting some great results, and it's maybe time to hold my hand up and say my time here is done.

"I haven't been involved with the first team now for maybe a year and a half, so maybe it's time to move on, but January's only a couple of months away so we'll wait and see what happens.

"I want to be a footballer, whether it's at Sunderland or elsewhere, I just want to remind people that I can be a decent player when I get a decent run of games."

The 24-year-old is in the final year of a three-year contract at Sunderland having been signed by fellow Corkman Roy Keane in 2007 for a fee believed to be in the region of £500,000.

Keane took a punt on O'Donovan when Sunderland visited his home town on pre-season tour.

The Cork striker, who was hours away from a move to Fulham before answering Keane's call was, at the time, the leading scorer in his home country's top league.

But it has never really worked out for the young striker in England, and after being on the fringe of the first team for the first season of his contract, he has spent most of his time on loan.

He said: "It's hard coming from the League of Ireland into Premier League football, and at the time Roy Keane didn't have the luxury of putting me in for 10 games in a row to see how I would develop.

"I understand that, but that's a long time ago and I want to move on now. I know I may have to leave Sunderland soon.

"But I want to do myself as much justice as I can when I'm here, and look to play well and impress people who might be watching.

"Since I've come to Sunderland I've hardly played back-to-back games, and I am someone who needs to play a lot of games.

"The hat-trick has been a long time coming, it has been a while since I had a game like that, but then it has been a long time since I've felt as fit as I did for that game.

"I haven't been involved in the first team for a while, so getting games like this help and getting the sort of coaching I've had from Keith Bertschin, our Reserve team coach has really benefited me."

Sunderland's Reserve game was watched by a host of scouts and O'Donovan, who has previously had loans spells at Dundee United, Blackpool and this season Southend United, is hoping he can find the right sort of club to suit his style.

He said: "I had to have an operation at Blackpool last year at a time when I was just starting to enjoy my football again.

"I came down with appendicitis and that set me back a long way.

"This season I had a brief loan spell at Southend United, but in recent weeks I've started to feel as good as I have done in a long time.

"Playing alongside David Healy was great for me, and just playing with the Reserves in the last few games has been enjoyable – feeling part of a team again.

"I just want to play. I'm trying to find a club where I fit.

"I'm not your typical centre forward, and a lot of places I've gone to I've started at centre-forward and ended up playing on the wing.

"I'm not the biggest and strongest striker when it comes to the way that some teams play, but I have other strengths, which I think some teams would capitalise on – I'm sharp in front of goal at my best, and I've got decent movement.

"If I get decent service, I've got a good chance of hitting the target, and those are the abilities which I've got to develop to help me progress.

"It hasn't worked out as I would have hoped had Sunderland, but I've got no complaints because I've been treated wel,l and I've been proud to be associated with the club."