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Eddie Howe was technically on safe ground as he rang the bell.

The Magpies manager had just got 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 not so thrilled to see him as they sped past.

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

This is not an inter-city rivalry. These North East neighbours have won only one significant title 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 hardly any fixtures bring a region to a standstill quite like the Tyne-Wear derby as former Black Cats manager Peter Reid understands better than most.

"These are football crackers," he said. "Let's just say, there is a touch of extra needle up there."

A fixture like no other

Nikos Dabizas also is aware of what can happen when these worlds collide.

A huge framed photograph in the ex- Newcastle centre-back's home serves as a daily reminder.

It captures the Greek ecstatic, bare chested and among 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. "It's something that goes from father to son. This heritage makes this game so unique."

So what is at the core 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 Sunderland siding with the government," he said. "It's all political and economical factors.

"Newcastle get the investment, Newcastle have the metropolitan status, Newcastle are the ones people always talk about when it comes to the North East. The other side are always shadowed."

But it is far from one-sided.

A former player's father was even "mobbed" by joyous 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 meant to the home fans.

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

"It eased my life a lot easier. I was allowed to make the odd mistake when playing, purely 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 reputation of an already popular 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 technically been three points at stake, but he quickly recognised the "added responsibility" of this game because people in the North East "live for their football".

He said: "There are some derbies where you are unsure why they are derbies. This one, you do.

"These are two massive clubs - close from each other - with their own character.

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

A region reignited

That manager need not have worried.

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 contests in the top flight.

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

"After family, the club is the most vital thing to the people of Sunderland," he said.

"It's so intense that the result of the club can change the mood of the city so imagine the result of the derby? You can sense 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."

The club, like Newcastle before them, eventually slipped through the drop in 2017, and spent eight years away from the top flight.

So a division separated these rivals when they last met in the FA Cup nearly two years ago.

And the difference was pronounced.

The combined cost of Sunderland's starting line-up that day was a tiny portion of the £40m Newcastle had invested in 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 believed, deep down, that we were going to win that game," a former midfielder said. "But now it's changed."

In so many ways.

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

Sunderland also have a new 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 unbeaten on their own ground.

Such an strong 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.