THERE will be a North-East derby in the FA Cup fourth round after Sunderland and Middlesbrough were paired together in last night’s draw.

The Wear-Tees derby will take place at the Stadium of Light on the weekend of January 28 after the Black Cats and Boro booked their fourthround spots with wins over Peterborough and Shrewsbury respectively.

Newcastle must travel to either Championship Brighton or non-league Wrexham, who will replay after their initial tie finished 1-1 at the Amex Stadium on Saturday.

Nationally, the game between Liverpool and Manchester United will hog the headlines in the wake of the racism row that exploded between the two clubs after Luis Suarez received an eight-match ban for racially abusing Patrice Evra earlier this season.

However, in the region, the meeting of Sunderland and Middlesbrough is sure to dominate the fourth-round build-up, with the two sides not having met since goals from Afonso Alves and Kenwyne Jones produced a 1-1 draw at the Riverside in January 2009.

“It’s a tough one, but we’re at home” said Sunderland boss Martin O’Neill, in the wake of his side’s 2-0 win at Peterborough’s London Road yesterday. “And I wonder what Lee Cattermole thinks.”

Stockton-born Cattermole, the Sunderland captain, made more than 90 appearances for Middlesbrough before leaving Teesside in the summer of 2008.

As well as the meeting between Liverpool and Manchester United, there will also be a super-charged atmosphere if QPR entertain Chelsea a matter of days before John Terry is due to attend court after being accused of racially abusing Anton Ferdinand. QPR must first win a replay against MK Dons.