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The Newcastle manager found himself on safe ground as he rang the bell.

The Magpies head coach had just got the 2023 Great North Run started to rapturous applause in the centre of the city.

But he had failed to anticipate those Sunderland-supporting runners who were less than pleased to see him as they whizzed past.

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

This is not an ordinary rivalry. These North East neighbours have won only one significant title between them in the past 50 years, and Sunday's game marks the first time they will meet in the top division for almost ten years.

But few fixtures bring a region to a standstill quite like the Tyne-Wear derby as former Sunderland 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

A former Newcastle defender also knows what can happen when these worlds collide.

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

It captures the Greek ecstatic, bare chested and among his jubilant team-mates, after scoring the winner in front of the away fans at the Stadium of Light in 2002.

This was a fixture that certainly left its mark on him.

"The key is the passion of the fans," he said. "It's something that goes from generation to generation. This tradition makes this game so special."

So what is at the core of the intense rivalry between two football-mad towns less than 15 miles apart?

Well, as far as a Sunderland loyal fan is concerned, it goes beyond football itself.

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

"Newcastle receive the investment, Newcastle have the big city, Newcastle are the ones people always talk about when it comes to the North East. Sunderland are always overshadowed."

But it is not at all one-sided.

A former player's father was even "mobbed" by joyous Newcastle supporters after his son scored a decisive 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 realise the importance of it," the player said.

"It made my life a lot simpler. I was allowed to make the occasional mistake when playing, purely because of that goal.

"I still go 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 boost the standing 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 understood the "added responsibility" of this game because people in the North East "breathe 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 - not far away from each other - with their own character.

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

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

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, The Wearside club have triumphed in six of the last seven meetings in the top flight.

A former Sunderland manager masterminded half of those victories, having quickly realised that the fixture was "more significant" than many outsiders thought.

"Beyond 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 sense it.

"I was informed 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 succumbed to the drop in 2017, and spent eight years outside 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 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.

"I don't think the fans really believed, deep down, that we were going to win that game," a former midfielder said. "But now it's different."

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 inspired arrivals of several new signings.

Sunderland also have a different manager, of course.

Not only has he led Sunderland to promotion - his bold side have competed evenly against some the best teams in the top flight.

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

Such an impressive start to the campaign means Sunderland go into Sunday's game a point clear 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.