SUNDERLAND have their hands on the Friendship Trophy after beating Norwich 1-0 at Carrow Road.
The three points lift the Black Cats up to tenth in the Championship and they also claim the bragging rights in perhaps the most wholesome rivalry in football.
ReutersSunderland retain the Friendship Trophy after Abdoullah Ba scored in a 1-0 win[/caption]
The cup was created after the two sides met in the 1985 League Cup final
Twitter / @SkyFootballThe game was a little less friendly than usual as Jacob Sorensen put his hand around Luke O’Nien’s throat[/caption]
The cup was created after Sunderland and Norwich met in the 1985 League Cup final.
The Canaries won the match 1-0 but Sunderland fans stayed behind to applaud the opposition on their lap of honour.
After the game both sets of supporters exchanged scarves and well wishes – at a time when football fan violence was at its worse.
Norwich fans also returned the same respect they were shown after losing to Sunderland in an FA Cup semi-final in 1992.
There is a strong rapport between the two sets of fans that still exists today, and is exemplified by the Friendship Trophy.
The silverware goes to whichever team wins on aggregate over the home and away league matches.
But since Norwich beat Sunderland 1-0 earlier in the season, this series has ended in a draw.
And that means Sunderland retain the trophy as they were victors the last time the clubs faced each other in 2017-18.
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The two sides have met 29 times since the cup was created and both clubs have won six series each, while two have ended in draws.
However there was not exactly a friendly atmosphere in the latest edition of the competition as Norwich midfielder Jacob Sorensen put his hand around Luke O’Nien’s throat after the Sunderland star wound him up by trying to kiss him.