NEWCASTLE ended their 13-year wait to beat bitter rivals Sunderland as Alexander Isak’s double inspired a 3-0 win in the FA Cup third round on Saturday.
In the first Tyne and Wear derby since 2016, Eddie Howe’s side put their bitter local rivals to the sword thanks to Dan Ballard’s first-half own goal and Isak’s brace after the break at the Stadium of Light.
Newcastle had lost six of their previous seven clashes with Sunderland, but their composed display neutered the fired-up Black Cats and delivered a first derby success since a 1-0 victory in 2011.
After four successive defeats in all competitions, Howe hoped the derby would be a “season-changing” moment to salve the wounds from their Champions League exit and poor Premier League form.
Whether vanquishing second-tier opponents will prove transformative remains to be seen, but for now local pride was all that mattered to the 6,000 Newcastle fans who waved their black and white scarves in delight at the final whistle.
While the northeast rivalry might lack the glamour of the Manchester and north London derbies, there is no questioning the rivalry between clubs separated by just 14 miles.
Encapsulating the enmity was a bizarre incident this week when Sunderland were forced to apologise to furious fans after a stadium bar was redecorated with Newcastle colours in the corporate hospitality section of the visitors’ support.
Newcastle’s fans were taken to the stadium on buses in a huge police convoy, then given their tickets to the match, in a bid to avoid the violent scenes that have marred previous encounters.
Howe had enlisted the help of the few Geordies in Newcastle’s squad to tell the rest of his globally assembled squad just how important the derby is.
The message clearly hit home as Newcastle dominated a frenetic encounter.
