An agonising own-goal by Demba Ba in the 85th minute saw Sunderland draw level with a 10-man Newcastle in the North-East derby on Sunday.
In the kind of frenzied atmosphere expected from the local fixture, Newcastle got off to a brilliant start when Yohan Cabaye scored in the third minute for the visitors to the Stadium of Light.
Newcastle celebrate their early goal
A shot from Ba was turned away by the feet of Sunderland keeper, Simon Mignolet, only for Cabaye to drive home the opening goal.
Newcastle's luck changed when Cheick Tiote was sent off for a high challenge on Sunderland striker Steven Fletcher midway through the first half.
Tiote reacts to his red card
Sunderland failed to fully make the most of their advantage and struggled to make opportunities.
Adam Johnson largely failed to make an impact as close marking from Newcastle scuppered all but one potential chance which he curled wide.
An acrobatic attempt from Ba almost saw the Magpies double their lead just before half-time as his bicycle kick from eight yards went wide.
Newcastle lost Fabricio Coloccini to cramp in the second half, a crucial blow as his excellent defending was largely responsible Sunderland's inability to score.
Newcastle kept their slender lead right up until four minutes from time when John O'Shea's header was deflected by Ba, past a helpless Tim Krull and into the net.
O'Shea's header eventually made its way into the net
Magpies manager Alan Pardew seemed pleased with the result as he acknowledged fans at the final whistle.
Pardew salutes fans after the match
Speaking after the match he told Sky Sports: 'It was a magnificent effort. We said to the players before the game how important it was to the fans, we've now shown how important it is to us.
'Playing an hour with 10 men, if we could have just seen it out it would have been one of the greatest victories ever here. But it's a great point and I'm very proud of my players.'