Kieran Richardson's stunning free-kick gave Sunderland their first home derby victory over Newcastle in 28 years.
Sunderland end home derby hoodoo against bitter rivals
Kieran Richardson's stunning free-kick gave Sunderland their first home derby victory over Newcastle in 28 years.
The former Manchester United midfielder lashed home an unstoppable effort which left Shay Given grasping at thin air in the 75th minute after Nicky Butt's cynical trip on El-Hadji Diouf right on the edge of the box.
Djibril Cisse had earlier fired the home side in front in the 20th minute when he was in the right place to stab home Steed Malbranque's scuffed cross-shot after the midfielder cut in from the left.
The lead was short-lived with Shola Ameobi climbing to powerfully head home Geremi's floated free-kick to the delight of the 3,000 travelling fans from Tyneside.
Joey Barton's presence on the touchline provoked some unsavoury scenes with the substitute forced to warm up in the technical area, before coming on for Butt in the 85th minute.
But it was left to Richardson, who had a similar free-kick ruled out at Fulham last weekend, to have the final say in a pulsating Wear-Tyne derby at a windswept Stadium of Light.
Ameobi, who had not scored in two years before Monday's draw with Manchester City, might have doubled his tally 13 minutes after the break.
But Sunderland could have won by a greater margin as substitute Kenwyne Jones headed just over and Cisse hit the inside of the post in front of a passionate sell-out crowd of 47,936.
Control
For 20 minutes or more, the home fans revelled in seeing their side assume total control as they mastered the blustery conditions and took the game to their opponents.
In a first half of few chances, Steven Taylor had to take the ball off Dean Whitehead's toe as he prepared to shoot, and was then grateful to see Cisse wrong-footed by his mis-kick as he attempted to clear Diouf's cross.
However, with Sunderland in the ascendancy, the opening goal arrived with 20 minutes gone when Malbranque, whose link up with full-back Pascal Chimbonda down the right caused all sorts of problems for the Magpies, drilled the ball across goal for Cisse to slide in and divert it past Shay Given.
But Newcastle gradually worked their way back into the game. Danny Collins and Anton Ferdinand had to make good blocks from Damien Duff and Obafemi Martins as the visitors finally made an impression in enemy territory.
However, it was man of the moment Ameobi who got his side back on terms, rising unopposed to power a 30th-minute header past keeper Marton Fulop, earning a rare start in place of the injured Craig Gordon.
If anything, the visitors held the upper hand as the half drew to a close and Fulop, who had looked less than certain under a series of high balls, made a solid 43rd-minute save from Duff after he had exchanged passes with Martins and powered his way into the box.
Volley
Cisse sent an overhead kick over the bar, but Martins smashed a left-footed volley just wide with the visitors continuing to make a fist of it.
With Duff and Geremi having switched wings at the break in an effort to curb Chimbonda's influence, the Magpies looked to have a better balance, although they were presented with a different problem with 57 minutes gone.
It was then that Roy Keane decided that the time was right to introduce Jones as a replacement, although it was Ameobi who almost gave his side the lead seconds later.
Martins broke from halfway and slid the ball into his strike partner's path but, after cutting inside, he sent his left-footed shot high over the bar.
After Barton's run-in with the home fans, Given had to block Cisse's scuffed shot and then watch Richardson's volley fly wide as Sunderland responded.
But the midfielder finally got his goal with 15 minutes remaining when, after Butt had tripped Diouf on the edge of the box, he smashed the resulting free-kick into the top corner.
Jones might have sealed the win two minutes later with a header which flew agonisingly over the bar, and Cisse smashed a long-range shot against the post, but despite a late flurry from the visitors, the points were safe.
| Sunderland |
Team Statistics |
Newcastle United |
| 2 |
Goals |
1 |
| 1 |
1st Half Goals |
1 |
| 3 |
Shots on Target |
2 |
| 11 |
Shots off Target |
5 |
| 0 |
Blocked Shots |
5 |
| 2 |
Corners |
4 |
| 13 |
Fouls |
16 |
| 1 |
Offsides |
0 |
| 1 |
Yellow Cards |
2 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 77.6 |
Passing Success |
64 |
| 23 |
Tackles |
26 |
| 87 |
Tackles Success |
76.9 |
| 55.5 |
Possession |
44.5 |
| 53.7 |
Territorial Advantage |
46.3 |
|
