And let's not forget, Carver was sat with Pardew for all of those derby disasters.
If he requires any further motivation as he plots how best to engineer a much-needed Stadium of Light success, he need only dredge up the memory Paolo Di Canio humiliating Newcastle at St James' Park.
John Carver: “When Paolo (Di Canio) was sliding on his knees, I’ve never been so agitated in my life.
“I wanted to take the law into my own hands that day because of what I was watching in our stadium.
“It was very, very difficult to take, but you have to take it on the chin and accept it. From that day on, though, that is something that really motivates and drives me to try to get the right result.
“This is our own stadium, our own home, and it was embarrassing. It was an embarrassing performance, and I was embarrassed to be part of that. I was embarrassed about the way we played that day, although him doing that pissed me off, I’ve got to be honest.
“A derby defeat can make or break a manager.
“I’d like to think some of the stuff I’ve done is already on the way to making me, but in the eyes of the fans, if you win a derby game, it’s massive. I’m not saying everything else is forgotten, but it certainly helps your case.
“Listen, if I come off and it’s not been a football match, but we win 1-0, I’ll be delighted with that. We had a good football match last week (against Arsenal) and got nothing for it. At the end of the day, it’s all about getting the win.
“In the last four games, Sunderland have outworked us, and that’s not a good stat to have.
“I’ll be making sure that doesn’t happen again and using a whip if I have to.”