NIALL QUINN has encouraged Sunderland fans not to be too harsh on Jack Colback when the Newcastle United midfielder faces the club he turned his back on for the first time.

Colback is in line to be at the centre of the Magpies midfield on Sunday afternoon against a Black Cats team which he scored for during a 3-0 win at St James’ Park in February.

The 25-year-old, pictured putting his finger to his mouth as a celebration after his goal, infuriated Sunderland in the summer, opting to join his boyhood club when Sunderland claimed they had done everything they could do prevent a player who had been with them since the age of eight from leaving for nothing.

His decision is likely to lead to a barrage of abuse from travelling supporters, although former Sunderland chairman Quinn thinks supporters should perhaps go easy.

“I’m not in the club anymore but it (Colback’s departure) hurt me,” said Quinn. “Jack would have been a prized possession of the academy and it just hurts to see it happen that way, but it’s the rules, it’s football. So there is no ill feeling towards Jack.

“Good luck to him, it would be difficult if he had played 10-12 years and headed off towards the end of his career but he was just becoming the player that we hoped he would.

“He has done great at Newcastle. He is a very important part of their team. The derby ... he is not the type of player to court derision from the fans, he was such a hard working, fair, tidy individual, disciplined player, he was your ‘Mr Dependable’ at Sunderland.

“I wouldn’t be inclined to encourage people to boo him (Colback) or whatever, he found himself in a situation where him and his agent bailed out. Some of the diehard fans might not take the same approach. You would hope that anyone who does give him a bit remembers that (last season’s derby goal).”

Colback has been a key player for Alan Pardew this season and his performances have helped lift Newcastle climb into the top ten.

Quinn was chairman at the Stadium of Light when Colback returned from a season-long loan at Ipswich before making his Premier League debut for Sunderland in May 2010. He never really established himself as an automatic choice in the middle on Wearside.

And Quinn thinks Gus Poyet would still love to have him. He said: “I felt for him (Poyet), losing Colback was a bit of a blow. I imagine that it was impossible to keep him, that they would have done everything to try to keep him but I felt that was a blow.

“If you sign someone in his place, which he did, then you are hoping that he settles in, but Jack had been a really strong, solid player for two or three years.

“Luckily the Academy isn’t built to make Newcastle stronger! We got the right money for Jordan (Henderson) which makes the whole thing worthwhile, but that should happen with all your young players if you develop them.”