The Irishman looked on as his team turned in a dreadful opening 45 minutes to trail 1-0 to Simon Davies' free-kick.

And the visitors' lead could have been greater had David Healy not fired wide of an open goal.

However, Keane's half-time team talk was rewarded with a spirited fightback. Kenwyne Jones headed home his fourth goal for the club and his third in as many games four minutes from time to claim a draw.

Indeed, had keeper Antti Niemi not blocked substitute Anthony Stokes' injury-time shot, the Black Cats might have ended their three-game losing run in the Barclays Premier League with a victory, something which could not have been further from their thoughts at the break.

Asked if he was relieved to have got a point or disappointed not to have won the game despite Greg Halford's second dismissal of the season, Keane said: "I'm not sure.

"I'm a bit confused at the moment. I don't know if I'm happy or sad or frustrated.

"But it's funny, when you are a goal down at home with 10 or 15 minutes to go and you are down to 10 men, we will probably look back and say it was a point gained rather than two dropped.

"It was vital we got something out of the game. It would have been fantastic to have nicked it at the end, but the players earned the right.

"They keep going - the fans were different class today, they kept them going.

"It was a strange day."

Sunderland, almost for the first time during Keane's reign, were booed off the pitch at half-time by a crowd of 39,392.

However, they re-emerged in much more determined fashion and the equaliser when it arrived had been coming for some time.

Jones, who had not trained all week because of an injury, climbed high to power home Grant Leadbitter's cross and further justify the £6million Keane paid Southampton for his services during the summer.

Keane said: "He was outstanding, today, Kenwyne. You get days like this in football when it is not quite going your way, but that's when the top people step up to the plate.

"Listen, lots of players have bad days, but they are still brave and they still show for it and they still put their bodies on the line, and today the players did that in the second half.

"I keep saying you have got to stay in the game - against Blackburn a couple of weeks ago, we didn't stay in the game, we gave away a second goal and it is always hard to come back.

"But at 1-0 today, Sunderland were always going to get chances with the law of averages.

"Kenwyne, especially when we were down to 10 men and he had not trained all week and he was up front on his own, he was outstanding.

"He is a really good team player, and that's what I admire about him."

Fulham boss Lawrie Sanchez left the north-east once again bemoaning his side's inability to hang on to a lead.

He said: "We are extremely disappointed. There was only one team should have won the game and one team who looked as if they were going to win the game.

"Ultimately, we were done five minutes from the end, which is disappointing having dominated.

"But for Antti's save at the end, we could have gone home losers, which would have been a gross injustice.

"But that's football, that's the way it is."