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Eddie Howe found himself on safe ground as he rang the bell.

The Newcastle United 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 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 marks the first time they will meet in the Premier League for nearly a decade.

But hardly any fixtures halt an area 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 little bit more needle up there."

'The two biggest games of the season'

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

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

It captures the Greek wild-eyed, 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 definitely left its mark on him.

"The key is the passion of the fans," he said. "This feeling that goes from generation to generation. This heritage makes this game so unique."

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

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

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

"Newcastle receive 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 delirious 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 grasp the significance of it," the player said.

"It made my life a lot easier. I was allowed to make the occasional 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 boost 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 recognised the "extra weight" 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 are.

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

"In effect, they are the two most important games of the season so you are aware 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, The Wearside club have triumphed in six of the last seven contests 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 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 consider the result of the derby? You can feel 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 FA Cup nearly two years ago.

And the contrast was pronounced.

The combined cost of Sunderland's starting line-up that day was a tiny portion 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.

"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 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 beaten Sunderland this season, while his side are also unbeaten on home soil.

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 face off again at the Stadium of Light.

"On Sunday, the world will know the North East is relevant again with elite fixtures again," a former player added.