Reid went into the game knowing it was one he could not afford to lose after months in the spotlight, but his side were comprehensively beaten in a contest which was never a classic but compelling all the same.

Craig Bellamy fired the home side in front inside two minutes when he raced away from the Sunderland defence to beat goalkeeper Thomas Sorensen with ease and Shearer compounded their misery six minutes before the break with a beautifully struck low drive to send the bulk of a crowd of 52,181 into raptures.

Reid had demanded greater passion and commitment from his players ahead of a game which meant so much to them for so many reasons, and although they battled throughout, they rarely looked like recovering from their early setback.

In the end a Newcastle side who worked just as hard without ever scaling the heights of which they are capable ran out comfortable winners to ease themselves out of the bottom three with their first Premiership win over the Black Cats at St James' Park.

Unlike Ruud Gullit three years previously, neither Reid nor Robson was in any danger of underestimating the importance of the 123rd Tyne-Wear derby, although they left the pitch at half-time experiencing starkly contrasting emotions.

The former England boss entered the dressing room with a two-goal cushion to provide the foundation for his team talk while Reid, having seen his players compete on an even keel for much of the first 45 minutes, somehow had to find the words to inspire an unlikely fightback.

Things could hardly have got off to a worse start for the visitors when, with less than two minutes on the clock, Shearer and Kieron Dyer unlocked the door for Bellamy to race away from the floundering Sunderland defence to slot the ball neatly past Sorensen and into the bottom corner.

To their credit they battled their way back into the game as the impressive Claudio Reyna took full advantage of the presence of Gavin McCann and Jason McAteer alongside him to drive his side forward, but with only Tore Andre Flo ahead of him clear openings were few and far between.

Indeed the visitors' only real chances came from set pieces, defender Phil Babb and Flo twice missing the target with headers from Reyna corners, although Flo almost claimed a bizarre equaliser when a Shay Given clearance came back off his arms and ran towards goal before the goalkeeper managed to retrieve the ball in the nick of time.

Without a genuine goal threat, Sunderland's task always looked a tough one, but the degree of difficulty increased markedly six minutes before the break.

Shearer, who later had to have treatment after his head wound opened up again, was brought down by McAteer on the edge of the visitors' box and when Nolberto Solano tapped the free-kick to him, the former England skipper unleashed an unstoppable drive which tore past Sorensen into the back of the net.

Reid played what he hoped would be his trump card at the break when he sent on Niall Quinn for McAteer, and although that gave his side a better shape and an increased presence in attack, they were never really able to mount any sustained pressure on the United rearguard.

Reyna forced one good save from Given and Flo ballooned another effort high over the bar, but as the game wore on Newcastle entered the comfort zone.

Bellamy's pace and the movement of Dyer were causing the Wearsiders all kinds of problems, although Robson's side struggled to make the most of their possession.

Dyer squandered a good opportunity to increase the lead when he mis-kicked after running on to a Solano pass and Bellamy was booked for diving after Matt Piper bundled him to the ground as he prepared to shoot.

But it was not until the 75th minute that Sorensen was tested again as Bellamy let fly from the edge of the box after being set up by substitute Jermaine Jenas.

Sunderland's challenge wilted and died as Newcastle closed the game down, attacking at will but never really troubling Sorensen until the final minute when Andy Griffin forced a full-length save from the Dane.

The final whistle sparked the start of celebrations which will go on long into the night on Tyneside as Reid's future continues to be the subject of intense speculation.