Tomorrow's hosts are currently one point off the Town in the third tier, but have a game in hand – so should Town win at the Stadium of Light, even a victory for the Mackems in their spare game would mean they still can't overtake the Hatters.
It should also prove an emotional affair for the Hatters boss, who heads back to his hometown club for the first time as a manager.
The circumstances of why Harford has taken over on an interim basis are well publicised, but he finds himself in charge of a team that are currently on a 16-game unbeaten run and five points off Portsmouth who sit in first.
Town boast the best goalscoring record in the league with 49 goals scored in 26 games, but their defensive record is particularly strong as well, having kept five clean sheets in their last seven games.
Sunderland have picked up two wins from their last five games, suffering only their second defeat of the season in that time, as they slipped to a 3-1 away loss at Pompey – although Jack Ross' side were playing with ten men for nearly the entirety of the second half.
Like the Hatters, the Black Cats are yet to be beaten at home this season, having won seven and drawn five of their 12 League One games.
The Stadium of Light has also seen a lot of goals this campaign, averaging three goals per game in third-tier fixtures there so far.
To read Mick Harford's and Gary Sweet's quotes from yesterday's press conference, after the former England striker was appointed interim manager, please click here.
WHO?
The Black Cats were plying their trade in the Premier League less than two-years ago, so unsurprisingly started this campaign as firm favourites for the League One title.
Their first season in the third tier since 1989, the club's on-field issues were as well reported as their off-field problems, but with Stewart Donald taking over from Ellis Short, his appointment Jack Ross has overseen a squad overhaul as they look to stop the rot and climb back up the EFL pyramid.
WHEN AND WHERE?
Tomorrow's game takes place at Stadium of Light. Kick-off is at 3pm.
TICKET INFORMATION
Around 3,000 supporters are making the journey to the Stadium of Light for the game, so make sure you're there to cheer on Mick Harford's side. Tickets are on sale until 1pm from the Luton Town Ticket Office, arrangements can be made for them to be collected at Sunderland.
MAN IN THE MIDDLE?
Tomorrow's game will be overseen by Lee Probert, who typically takes charge of Premier League fixtures. In total, he has dished out 55 yellow cards and four red cards this season.
PLAYED BEFORE?
Our last meeting was earlier on this season at Kenilworth Road, when Matty Pearson's equaliser saw the Town take a share of the spoils in a 1-1 draw. In total we have beaten them on 14 occasions, drawn 12 and lost 32 times.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
The main blow-by-blow account of the action from the Stadium of Light will be provided via the Match Centre on the club website, which you can access by clicking here. (*Please note that the club's Live Text will appear only by accessing through an internet browser, users of the Luton Town FC app will receive updates from Opta...the EFL Digital team assure us they are working on a fix to get club updates onto the app)
The main moments from the game will appear on the Hatters' social media feeds:
Twitter – @LutonTownFacebook – www.facebook.com/LutonTown/Instagram – www.instagram.com/ltfc_official/
And of course Simon Pitts will be on hand to provide commentary for iFollow Hatters which you can subscribe to by clicking here.
