Mary McAteer vows to 'make Sunderland proud' ahead of record-breaking women's derby clash vs Newcastle United

Sunderland Women’s forward Mary McAteer has insisted that the Black Cats are eager to make the city proud when they face Newcastle United on Sunday.

The Wear-Tyne Derby is proving to be a hotly-anticipated affair, with the expectation being that the Stadium of Light will play host to a record-breaking crowd for a Barclays Women’s Championship fixture. At the time of writing, some 12,000 tickets have been sold for the contest, comfortably surpassing the 11,137 who watched Sheffield United host London City at Bramall Lane in late 2022.

And while McAteer is fully aware of the scale of the spectacle and the challenge facing Sunderland this weekend, the 20-year-old has reiterated the Black Cats’ belief that they can get one over on their local rivals.

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Speaking in a press conference, she said: “Obviously, it's a huge game and we want to make Sunderland proud... I think a derby is one of those beautiful games where I think it's hard to say who is an underdog because at the end of the day, it's who is up for it more - who's willing to fight, who's willing to put in that hard graft.

“And on either day, I think either team can win this game, and there are so many different scripts that can play out. So I think for us, it's just focusing on ourselves. We know what we can do well. We'll obviously analyse them and see where their weaknesses are, but we're just focusing on it like any other game. We're doing our meetings, analysis, training on the grass like we know we need to do, and that's how we're going to exploit them.”

Addressing the prospect of playing at the Stadium of Light in front of a bumper crowd, the Wales international added: “I'm really excited. Personally, it's the first time I'll be playing at the Stadium of Light. It's a lovely stadium, it's a great pitch, and I think you see how the men fill it and how amazing the supporters are. And along with our supporters, I think it's a real club that everyone in the city gets behind.

“I think it's a great opportunity to play at the stadium. I do love playing at Eppleton. I think it's got a sort of gritty feel - I don't know if that makes sense - but we love playing there. Like we say behind closed doors and in the media, we want to make that our fortress. But at the end of the day, we want to do that with the stadium as well, because we will have more fixtures there this season.

“We've still got the same supporters, and like I said, it'll be great to fill out the stadium with 12,000, hopefully - just really make it feel like a derby. I remember we played Newcastle in a pre-season friendly last season at Eppleton. It was filled out and the atmosphere was incredible - and that was for a pre-season game! So for a league game, I think it'll just be 10 times better.”