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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 started to loud cheers in the centre of the city.

But he had failed to anticipate those Sunderland-supporting runners who were not so thrilled to see him as they whizzed 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 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 few fixtures bring a region to a standstill quite like the North East derby as former Sunderland manager Peter Reid knows 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'

A former Newcastle defender also is aware of what can happen when these worlds collide.

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

It captures the Greek ecstatic, shirtless and surrounded by 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 left its mark on him.

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

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

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

"You can trace it to the English Civil War with Newcastle siding with the monarchy and the other side backing the parliament," he said. "It's rooted in political and economic 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 not at all 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 mattered to the Geordies.

"I needed a while afterwards to realise the significance of it," the player said.

"It made my life a lot easier. I was forgiven to make the occasional mistake when playing, simply 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 our rivals'."

A derby win can even boost the reputation of an already popular figure.

A former Newcastle manager had not long 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 understood the "extra weight" 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 represent 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 conscious that the last thing you want to do is to lose, especially in your own stadium."

A region reignited

That manager had nothing to fear.

His side ended up thrashing Sunderland 5-1 at St James' Park in 2010, but Newcastle have only won a solitary derby in the Premier League since then.

In fact, The Wearside club have been victorious in six of the last seven meetings in the top flight.

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

"Beyond family, the club is the most vital 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 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 still don't know if it was more important to stay up or to beat Newcastle."

Sunderland, like Newcastle before them, eventually succumbed to the relegation trapdoor in 2017, and spent eight years away from the top flight.

So a division separated these rivals when they last met in the domestic 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 spent on a single player.

The most experienced individual in the hosts' starting line-up was a considerable distance ahead of others, at just 30 years of age.

"It's unlikely the fans really expected, deep down, that we were going to win that game," a former midfielder said. "But now it's different."

In numerous ways.

Only two players are likely to be the only survivors 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 fearless 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 undefeated on their own ground.

Such an impressive 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.

"Come Sunday, the world will know the North East is back on the map with top games again," a former player added.