Newcastle battle into FA Cup fourth round after derby win at Sunderland

Alexander Isak's double cemented a first derby victory over Sunderland since 2011 as Eddie Howe finally won an FA Cup tie as Newcastle boss at the third attempt.

Perhaps fittingly at the end of a week during which the Black Cats scored a PR own goal by allowing a bar at the Stadium of Light to be decorated in Magpies colours, much of the damage in a 3-0 defeat was self-inflicted.

Northern Ireland international Dan Ballard put the ball into his own net and conceded a late penalty after Pierre Ekwah's error had served up the second for Isak.

Newcastle arrived on Wearside without a victory in nine attempts - a run which included six successive wins for their arch-rivals - in a fixture which had not been played since March 2016, and with Howe under a measure of pressure after a sequence of seven defeats in eight outings in all competitions.

In the event, they won at a canter with the Championship promotion hopefuls, and in particular dangerman Jack Clarke, who was well handled by Kieran Trippier, only really making their presence felt after the game was effectively over.

The visitors, who had gone out of the cup at the same stage to League One sides Cambridge and Sheffield Wednesday in the last two seasons, started on the front foot and Black Cats keeper Anthony Patterson had to make a second-minute save from Sean Longstaff's header after he had met Miguel Almiron's cross.

But for all their early possession, they were unable to make the pressure count and Trippier's deflected 14th-minute free-kick, which was claimed comfortably by Patterson, was as close as either side came in the opening stages.

Longstaff lifted a 22nd-minute shot over after Almiron and Trippier had combined once again down the right, but with Bruno Guimaraes,