Sunderland Recreate Famous Newcastle Group Snapshot After Pivotal Derby Triumph.

An altered coaching staff and a largely changed squad – but those involved at Sunderland had a long memory.

Back in 2024, after Newcastle's thumping 3-0 win at the Stadium of Light in an FA Cup tie, the rivals commemorated the moment with a full squad photograph on the pitch.

Now, the roles were reversed.

Nick Woltemade's own goal proved sufficient to hand Sunderland a long-awaited win over their rivals in the inaugural Premier League Tyne-Wear derby since 2016 – prompting the hosts to recreate Newcastle's celebratory snapshot at full-time.

“Consistently original, imaginative, versatile,” said with a grin Black Cats manager Regis le Bris when questioned about who came up with the gesture.

Defender Dan Ballard, who scored an own goal in that cup defeat, was the only Sunderland player to feature from the beginning in both games.

He revealed how he desperately wanted to avenge the loss, stating: “It's indescribable. It was heartbreaking for the players and for the fans. We felt we had let them down, so we're overjoyed with this win.”

“That experience hardened us. We came in with more quality in this team, strong personalities, we stuck in there, fought really hard and I thought we merited the win.”

‘Local clashes are must-wins, by any means necessary’

Sitting in seventh Sunderland are experiencing a superb return to the top flight post promotion via the play-offs last season.

The Black Cats have a tally of 26 points in 16 games, their highest total at this stage of a Premier League campaign since 2000-01.

They are still unbeaten in the league at the Stadium of Light, which had an incredible atmosphere for most of Sunday afternoon.

“In local rivalry matches, the result is everything, the performance secondary,” said captain Granit Xhaka. “This team deserves much more – where we are in the league is incredible and we're working really hard.”

Sunderland are also unbeaten in their last 10 league games against Newcastle, their best-ever streak without defeat against the Magpies.

Newcastle's last league win over Sunderland was over a decade ago.

Manager Regis le Bris said he was “delighted and satisfied” with the performance.

“It was a derby and we were under pressure to deliver of our fans,” he continued. “This win is well deserved, we were disciplined and the lads were superb.”

“It's positive for the region, the club, the fans. We knew before it was a special game, but we have to refocus immediately as we have another difficult test in Brighton in one week.”