Sunderland 1-1 Newcastle

65 mins: Kenwyn Jones sends a shot fizzing inches wide of the left upright. He should have scored.

63 mins: GOAL! Sunhderland 1-1 Newcastle James Milner equalises with a low cross from the left that somehow eludes all Sunder land's players, all Newcastle's players and sneaks in at the far post. Unbelievable.

62 mins: Free-kick for Sunder land just inside the Newcastle half after Smith clatters Jones. The ball finds its way to Carlos Edwards, who tries a potshot. He doesn't get hold of it properly and sends his effort wide.

61 mins: Newcastle substitution: Faye off, Beye on. Steven Taylor moves into center-back.

58 mins: Newcastle attack after Chopra carelessly loses possession in his own half. Milner sends a cross into the box and the ball breaks to Joey Barton, who shoots. The ball is takes a deflection off a defender and Newcastle's players appeal for handball. Again, no penalty is forthcoming.

55 mins: Having been fast asleep for the goal, Newcastle's players have finally woken up - we should have a cracking last 35 minutes. Milner goes down in the Sunder land box after running into the back of Carlos Edwards and appeals for a penalty, but none is forthcoming.

50 mins: GOAL! Sunder land 1-0 Newcastle Great goal from Danny Higginbotham, who sprints from the back and does very well to steer a header in at the far post from a Lead bitter cross on the byline, halfway between the corner flag and the goal. Sunder land had won a corner and took it quickly while Newcastle's defenders slumbered.

49 mins: With his back to goal, Mark Viduka picks up a long throw from Steven Taylor on the byline, turns well and dinks a cross in. Michael Owen flings himself at the ball but misses, but there's nobody else there to capitalize.

48 mins: Free-kick for Sunder land wide on the left. Ross Wallace over hits it and Newcastle clear.

46 mins: Abdoulaye Faye does well to beat Kenwyn Jones to a breaking ball on the edge of the Newcastle penalty area after David Rozehnal had missed a defensive header and left Newcastle goalkeeper Harper exposed. Moments later, Jones heads a Ross Wallace dink goal wards, but aims for the near post, which Harper has covered.

45 mins: Tip. Tap. Hoof. Sunder land get the second half-started, immediately conceding a throw-in deep in Newcastle territory.

Half-time Joey Barton complains to the officials about some perceived slight, before several Sunder land players get involved too. It's something and nothing.

44 mins: With his back to goal, Michael Chopra picks up the ball about five yards outside the Newcastle penalty area, turns and shoots, bringing an amazing save out of Steve Harper. How are Sunder land not in front yet? They're murdering Newcastle here.

43 mins: Obligatory Gary Naylor email: "Things used to be so straightforward," he writes. "Having grudgingly admired Roy
Keane's football whilst despising his bully-boy antics, I'm finding it hard to adjust to his managerial persona, which comes across as balanced
and reasonable, even (gulp) charming. Thank God for Big Sam in the other corner - it's always easy to hate him."

40 min: A leaden-footed first touch from Danny Collins on the left wing results in Newcastle winning a throw-in as deep as is possible inside their own half without getting a goal-kick. If Collins had his wits about him he'd have noticed a gaping expanse of green he could have annexed before sending a cross into three men in red and white who were waiting in the Newcastle penalty area.

38 mins: Corner-kick for Sunderland, won by Lead bitter off Rozehnal. It's swung in from the right and Harper punches clear.

36 mins: Chasing a loose ball, Faye and Jones tangle on the edge of the Newcastle box and the Newcastle defender gets booked, somewhat harshly. Carlos Edwards thumps the resulting free-kick straight into the Newcastle wall. Another poor dead-ball delivery.

31 mins: Great intercepting tackle from Sunder land defender Ross Wallace, who slides in to dispossess Joey Barton as the Newcastle "winger" pelted head-down down the right. Sunder land clear and proceed to pepper the Newcastle goal, with Harper beating Chopra to a loose ball on the edge of the six-yard box, then Smith blocking Leadbitter's follow-up. Moments later, Lead bitter heads over the bar when he should have scored. Sunder land should have scored at least one by now. It's a very entertaining game of football.

30 mins: Free-kick for Sunder land, out on the left wing. Ian Harte lofts the ball into the mixer, but Abdoulaye Faye does well to get in front of Jones and head clear.

27 mins: On the edge of the Newcastle penalty area, Kenwyn Jones, who is unmarkable in the air, knocks down a long ball to Michael Chopra. The Sunder land striker makes room for a shot, but sends his effort zooming over the bar. Moments later in the Sunder land penalty area, Michael Owen ferrets his way through a thicket of Sunder land players, tries a shot from a ridiculously narrow angle and wins a corner, from which nothing comes. The set-piece delivery from both teams has been dismal so far.

Sunder land substitution: Danny Collins on for Nyron Nosworthy, who has twanged a hamstring.

23 mins: Michael Chopra gets the first yellow card of the day after putting a stop to Charles N'Zogbia's gallop with a lunge from behind. Worse tackles by players from both sides went unpunished in the opening 20 minutes.

21 mins: A promising attack by Sunder land, set up by Ian Harte, comes to nothing when an attempted Ronaldinho and Lionel Messi impersonation by Kenwyn Jones and Carlos Edwards just outside the Newcastle penalty area goes as wrong as you'd expect.

20 mins: Sunder land corner. Ross Wallace swings it in from the right, but fails to clear the defender on the near post. Newcastle clear, courtesy of skipper Michael Owen.

18 mins: Great intervention by Abdoulaye Faye, who beats Michael Chopra to a 50-50 ball out by the right touchline and puts it into Row Z. If Chopra had won possession and looked up, he'd have seen Michael Chopra unmarked in the middle, screaming for a pass.

17 mins: "As a Rokerite, I have to say for the region its so important S'land win to kick-start the season," writes Jimbo. "Newcastle can afford to lose this and still be the mid-table side we know they are. S'land have to pick up home points. This is a good place to start the season."

14 mins: Ross Wallace balloons an excellent chance over the bar. Completely unmarked at the far post, he first-time volleys a brilliant Carlos Edwards cross from the right high and wide, when he had all the time in the world to take a touch and pick his spot. With his head in his hands, he turns his back to goal, runs back towards the halfway line to think about what he's just done.

11 mins: Ross Wallace wins a free-kick for Sunder land, wide on the left. With aerial assault-merchant Kenwyn Jones waiting in the box, Carlos Edwards sends an atrocious free-kcik high and wide. That's terrible - a fact Edwards acknowledges with a wave of apology to his team-mates. To be fair to Edwards, he's bound to be a bit ring-rusty after being out injured for so long.

9 mins: From inside his own half, Rozehnal dinks a pass up the left flank, which Charles N'Zogbia flicks on. An infringement by Owen results in a free-kick for Sunder land.

6 mins: Ping! Ping! Ping! Ping! There's some pinball in the Newcastle penalty area after a Sunder land corner, but the ball is eventually cleared involuntarily by Steven Taylor, who takes a pile driver from - I think - Grant Leadbitter in the face. He'll be seeing stars after that.

3 mins: There's plenty of meaty challenges going in from both sides early doors. Oh yes. Joey Barton gets penalized for a two-footed lunge, resulting in a free-kick for Sunder land about 35 yards out, slightly to the left of goal. Leadbitter drives it straight into the ball. Sunder land are playing a 4-4-2, while Newcastle have lined out with Joey Barton playing on the right of midfield, while Alan Smith is playing very depep, just in front of the back four.

2 mins: Free-kick for Sunder land on the left wing, which is sent in towards the D on the edge of the Newcastle penalty area. Kenwyn Jones flicks it on and Carlos Edwards goes in to challenge Steve Harper in the Newcastle goal for the 50-50 ball with his foot high. Free-kick for Newcastle.

1 min: Newcastle, in powder-blue shirts, shorts and socks, kick off. Sunder land's supporters are in fine voice.

Pre-match niceties Click-clack! Click-clack! Click-clack! To the stirring strains of Sergei Prokofiev's Dance Of The Knights, the teams emerge from the Stadium of Light tunnel, with players on both sides looking as tense as you might expect prior to a local derby of such magnitude. Both sides need the points and - even more importantly - there's local bragging rights up for grabs too. Interestingly, Newcastle's "reclusive" owner Mike Ashley is in the away end with Newcastle's supporters wearing his Newcastle replica shirt. He's probably the only Newcastle fan in there wearing a shirt.

Team news we've plucked from the wires

Sunder land boss Roy Keane throws winger Carlos Edwards straight back into the heat of the 127th Wear-Tyne league derby on his return from injury.
The Trinidad and Tobago international, who has not played a senior game since tearing his hamstring at Birmingham on August 15, is joined in the starting line-up by defender Paul McShane on his return from suspension, Ross Wallace and former Newcastle striker Michael Chopra.

Magpies manager Sam Allardyce recalls striker Mark Viduka after his calf injury and asks Emre, who scored the winner in the reverse fixture two seasons ago, to replace suspended midfielder Nicky Butt. There's also a return at the back for Czech international David Rozehnal in place of Claudio Cacapa, who endured a nightmare in last weekend's 4-1 home defeat by Portsmouth.

The teams

Sunder land: Gordon, McShane, Nosworthy, Higginbotham, Harte,
Edwards, Leadbitter, Etuhu, Wallace, Chopra, Jones. Subs: Ward,
Stokes, Miller, Collins, Connolly.

Newcastle: Harper, Taylor, Faye, Rozehnal, N'Zogbia, Milner,
Smith, Barton, Emre, Owen, Viduka. Subs: Forster, Jose Enrique,
Martins, Geremi, Beye.
Referee: Martin Atkinson (W Yorkshire)

Kick-off is at 12.45pm. While you're waiting, here's an article comparing and contrasting the management styles of Roy Keane and Big Sam. And an interview with one of Sunder land's myriad Irishmen, Anthony Stokes, in which the 19-year-old explains why turning up late to catch the bus for an away trip to Barnsley is a mistake he'll only make once.