Sunderland Stage Notorious Newcastle Team Photo In the Wake of ‘Special’ Derby Win.

New leadership and an almost completely different team – but the club at Sunderland wasn't going to forget.

Nearly two years ago, after Newcastle's thumping 3-0 win at the Stadium of Light in an FA Cup tie, the rivals marked the occasion with a group photo on the pitch.

Now, the roles were flipped.

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

“Consistently original, imaginative, versatile,” smiled Black Cats manager Regis le Bris when asked about who proposed the idea.

Defender Dan Ballard, who conceded an own goal in that previous encounter, was the only Sunderland player to feature from the beginning in each of the games.

He disclosed how he was determined to rectify the loss, stating: “Words can't express it. It was so painful for the players and for the fans. We felt we had let them down, so we're delighted with this win.”

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

‘Rivalry games demand victory, regardless of the performance’

Sitting in seventh Sunderland are enjoying a outstanding return to the top flight following promotion via the play-offs last season.

The Black Cats have 26 points on the board in 16 games, their best return at this stage of a Premier League campaign since 2000-01.

They are still unbeaten in the league at the Stadium of Light, which was filled with 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 amazing and we're working really hard.”

Sunderland are also unbeaten in their last 10 league games against Newcastle, their longest such run without defeat against the Magpies.

Newcastle's last league win over Sunderland was all the way back in 2011.

Manager Regis le Bris said he was “extremely pleased” with the result.

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

“It's good for the area, the club, the fans. We knew before it was a unique game, but we have to turn the page as we have another tough challenge in Brighton in one week.”