Author Alan Candlish was taken by his father to see Sunderland and Newcastle on alternate weeks and he says he was taught: “whether you are a Mackem or a Magpie, football is in your blood.”

The rivalry between Sunderland and Newcastle is as intense as ever. The pure hatred that both clubs feel for each other goes back to the age of the Dinosaurs and Alan Candlish has decided to delve into history to bring you the history between the two clubs.

We will naturally find this book interesting due to the fact we are madly in love with Sunderland and deeply hate Newcastle, and I imagine the book will go down well up the road to as our feelings will be reversed by the peasants bathing in the River Tyne. However this is a book that can be enjoyed by any football fan as the passion and tension generated in derby games, can still be felt in games over 50 years ago due to the author’s detailed research and genuine love of the game.

This is the most detailed history of Sunderland v Newcastle derbies and it features every single game played between the two with match reports and stats to back up each game, regardless of it being in the league, cup or a back garden kick about.

The book will make you proud but at the same time disgust you as victories and defeats for The Lads continue to change sides, making this book an emotional rollercoaster. For me the main highlights of the book are the obvious ‘2-1 twice’ games were we arrived on the Tyne twice to claim the points and prove lightning does strike twice.

However these are just distant memories and the more we rely on these results, the more embarrassing it will become for us as we have yet to beat them since. Therefore once we win promotion and get back were we belong, I presume Keane and Co will do the business and give us something to smile about.

Anyways this book is perfect for settling a long going argument in your local as a quick flick through to your required game will give you all the information you need. I imagine this book took a lot of time and effort to produce and credit must go to Alan Candlish for doing it, cheers for the memories mate and hopefully there will be another one out in ten years or so, all featuring derby delight for those in red and white.

James Henderson

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