Six Memorable Tyne-Wear Derby Matches
For the first time since 2016, Vertu Motors-backed Sunderland will take on fierce rivals Newcastle United this weekend in the third round of the FA Cup.
Sunderland go into the game having had the upper hand in the Tyne-Wear derby in recent times having been unbeaten in nine games since a 1-0 loss at the Stadium of Light back in 2011.
Those nine games included a run of six successive wins in the Premier League from 2013 through to 2015 – which set a new record for most consecutive victories in the fixture.
Ahead of the big game this weekend, we take a look at six memorable games from recent years...
16 May 1990:
The 1989-90 season was Sunderland’s second back in the old Division 2 having been promoted as Division 3 champions and meant battle was resumed with Newcastle for the first time in four years – with their rivals having been relegated from Division 1 the previous season.
The two games during the regular season would see the points shared, and when the final round of fixtures were complete, both sides secured a place in the end of season play-offs.
The first leg of the semi-final between the pair would end in a goalless draw at Roker Park, with Paul Hardyman seeing an injury time penalty to win the game saved by John Burridge. To add insult to injury, he would then be sent off for a foul on the prone ‘keeper afterwards and was ruled out of the second leg.
That second leg was held just three days later at St James’ Park and it was Sunderland who emerged victorious with a first win at the ground since the 1970s. Eric Gates drove home the opener in the first half to silence the Gallowgate end before Marco Gabbiadini added a late second – leading to Newcastle fans invading the pitch and causing a 20 minute delay.
When the action resumed, Sunderland played out the final four minutes to earn a place at Wembley and although beaten by Swindon Town, would ultimately be promoted back to the top flight when their opponents were found guilty of financial breaches by the Football League and demoted by the authorities.
25 August 1999:
Having been relegated at the end of the 1996/97 season, Sunderland would spend two seasons bidding to return to the Premier League – which they did as dominant champions in the summer of 1999.
Having been beaten away by both Chelsea and Leeds, the third away game of the season saw the Black Cats head to St James’ Park looking to end a six-game winless run in the fixture.
Newcastle were under pressure after three defeats in the opening four games with manager Ruud Gullit dropping star striker Alan Shearer in a move than angered the home crowd.
Despite that, it was Newcastle who took the lead through Kieron Dyer in the first half but Sunderland roared back after the break – equalising through a trademark header from Niall Quinn.
Gullit threw on Shearer as the fans started to turn but it was Sunderland who grabbed the winner thanks to Kevin Phillips to leave the away fans celebrating at the final whistle.
The defeat would ultimately lead to Gullit losing his job.
25 October 2008:
Heading into the first derby of the 2008/09 season, Sunderland were hoping to end a winless run against their rivals going back to November 2000 and still chasing a first derby win at the Stadium of Light at the sixth attempt.
In fact, Sunderland hadn’t beaten their rivals at home since 1980, but that long run would finally come to an end after an impressive performance from Roy Keane’s side.
Djibril Cisse turned in the opening goal on 19 minutes when he managed to get on the end of a mishit shot from Steed Malbranque to beat Shay Given, only for Newcastle to draw level ten minutes later thanks to a header from Shola Ameobi.
Both sides missed chances before El-Hadji Diouf was fouled on the edge of the box with 15 minutes left to play.
Kieran Richardson stepped up to smash home a left footed drive that left Given with no chance and sent the home fans into raptures, with celebrations running long into the night.
14 April 2013:
Heading towards the latter stages of the 2012/13 season, Sunderland were in trouble on the fringes of the relegation zone, with Martin O’Neill dismissed as manager following a 1-0 loss to Manchester United and a run of eight games without a victory.
Charismatic Italian Paulo Di Canio came in to replace him and his second game in charge would be a trip to St James’ Park – where Sunderland hadn’t tasted victory for 13 years.
Sunderland hadn’t beaten Newcastle full stop since 2008, but Di Canio’s side ended that winless run in emphatic fashion with a stunning performance that kickstarted the current unbeaten run.
Stephane Sessegnon gave Sunderland a first half lead to silence a raucous home crowd and whilst Newcastle came back strongly to force goalkeeper Simon Mignolet into a number of saves, the Black Cats went two up when Adam Johnson curled a shot into the top corner.
David Vaughan added a late third to leave the Sunderland fans cheering at the final whistle after a biggest derby win since the 1970s. Di Canio’s enthusiastic celebration of all three goals, and at the final whistle, would be amongst the most iconic moments of the season.
1 February 2014:
With Di Canio having departed after a poor start to the season, Sunderland had beaten Newcastle at home in October to move off the bottom of the table and a narrow win over Stoke meant that Gus Poyet’s team headed into the reverse fixture in February having climbed out of the relegation zone following a run of one defeat in eight.
For the second season in a row, Sunderland put their bitter rivals to the sword in the match, taking the lead in the opening 20 minutes when Fabio Borini scored from the penalty spot.
Four minutes later, Johnson scored his sixth goal in four games to double the advantage and Jack Colback then rounded things off in the second half when he strode forwards from midfield and swept home the third goal.
As well as giving the Sunderland fans plenty of reason to celebrate, the result also earned a place in the record books as it allowed the team to secure three derby wins in a row for the first time in more than 90 years.
5 April 2015:
The 2014/15 season had proven to be a challenging one for Sunderland, and a run of one win in twelve games in the New Year left the team sitting just one point above the relegation zone and ultimately cost Poyet his job.
New manager Dick Advocaat took charge for the first time in a defeat away at West Ham but his first home game was the derby against a Newcastle side in free-fall under John Carver and slipping down the table.
Sunderland would be in control throughout the game and a stunning volley from Jermain Defoe on the stroke of half-time proved to be decisive as Advocaat secured his first win in charge.
It would prove to be the catalyst for a late-season run that allowed the Dutchman to lead his side to safety.