Why the Sunderland v Magpies Clash Signifies Everything

The Newcastle manager was technically on safe ground as he sounded the bell.

The Newcastle United manager had just set the 2023 Great North Run under way to loud cheers in the centre of the city.

But he had failed to anticipate those Black Cats runners who were less than pleased to see him as they sped past.

"The biggest stick I've ever had," he said this week. "I got verbally attacked by 50% of the people there."

This is far from an inter-city rivalry. These North East neighbours have won only one major domestic trophy between them in the past 50 years, and Sunday's game signals the first time they will meet in the Premier League for almost ten years.

But few fixtures halt an area quite like the Tyne-Wear derby as former Sunderland manager Peter Reid knows better than most.

"These are football crackers," he said. "Let's just say, there is a little bit more needle up there."

A fixture like no other

Nikos Dabizas also knows what can happen when these worlds collide.

A huge picture in the former Newcastle defender's home acts as a daily reminder.

It shows the Greek ecstatic, shirtless and surrounded by his elated team-mates, after scoring the winner in front of the traveling support at the Stadium of Light in 2002.

This was a fixture that definitely made an impression on him.

"It's the passion of the fans," he said. "This feeling that goes from generation to generation. This heritage makes this game so special."

So what is at the root of the intense rivalry between two one-club cities less than 15 miles apart?

Well, as far as a Sunderland season ticket holder is concerned, it transcends football itself.

"You can go back to the English Civil War with Newcastle siding with the monarchy and the other side backing the parliament," he said. "It's all historical and economic factors.

"Newcastle receive the funding, Newcastle have the metropolitan status, Newcastle are the ones people always talk about when it comes to the North East. Sunderland are always shadowed."

But it is far from one-sided.

A former player's father was even "swarmed" by delirious Newcastle supporters after his son scored a match-winning free-kick in a 1-0 victory at the Stadium of Light in 2011.

That is how much it mattered to the Geordies.

"I needed a little bit of time afterwards to grasp the importance of it," the player said.

"It made my life a lot easier. I was allowed to make the odd mistake when playing, simply because of that goal.

"Even now when I visit up to St James' Park and you've got dads telling their kids, 'See this lad? He scored the winner against the Mackems'."

A derby win can even further elevate the standing of an already beloved figure.

A former Newcastle manager had recently delivered promotion back to the Premier League when he took charge of his first derby in 2010.

There may have only officially been three points at stake, but he quickly understood the "extra weight" of this game because people in the North East "breathe their football".

He said: "There are some derbies where you are not quite sure why they are derbies. This one, you do.

"These represent two huge clubs - close from each other - with their own character.

"In effect, they are the two most important games of the season so you are conscious that the last thing you want to do is to lose, especially in your own stadium."

'The world will know the North East is back on the map'

That manager had nothing to fear.

His side ended up thrashing Sunderland 5-1 at St James' Park in 2010, but Newcastle have only won a single derby in the Premier League since then.

In fact, Sunderland have triumphed in six of the last seven meetings in the top flight.

A former Sunderland manager oversaw half of those victories, having swiftly realised that the fixture was "much bigger" than many outsiders thought.

"After family, the club is the most important thing to the people of this city," he said.

"The passion is such that the result of the club can alter the atmosphere of the city so imagine the result of the derby? You can feel it.

"They told me on the first day. 'Please stay up, but you must beat Newcastle'. I remain unsure if it was more important to stay up or to beat Newcastle."

Sunderland, like Newcastle before them, eventually succumbed to the drop in 2017, and spent eight years away from the top flight.

So a division divided these rivals when they last met in the domestic cup nearly two years ago.

And the difference was stark.

The combined cost of Sunderland's starting line-up that day was a mere fraction of the £40m Newcastle had spent on a single player.

The most experienced individual in the hosts' starting line-up was a clear margin ahead of others, at just 30 years of age.

"It's unlikely the fans really expected, deep down, that we were going to win that game," a former midfielder said. "But now it's different."

In numerous ways.

Only two players are likely to be the only holdovers from that 3-0 defeat in Sunday's lineup following the inspired arrivals of several new signings.

Sunderland also have a different manager, of course.

Not only has he led Sunderland to promotion - his fearless side have gone toe-to-toe with some the best teams in the top flight.

In fact, the reigning champions are the only team in the current top six to have defeated Sunderland this season, while his side are also undefeated on home soil.

Such an impressive start to the campaign means Sunderland go into Sunday's game a point ahead of Newcastle in the table.

So it is all set up to be a gripping afternoon when these rivals renew hostilities at the Stadium of Light.

"On Sunday, the world will know the North East is back on the map with top games again," a former player added.