- N U F C -

2006-05-20T18:54:00.000+08:00

I am thoroughly ashamed to say that I felt lazy to blog about my favourite footie team.

Well, I wanted to see how Glenn Roeder did as a caretaker manager, and boy oh boy must I admit that he did us all proud.

Not only did he manage to lift the morales of the players, he brought us to Europe (via Inter-toto) winning more than 9 matches though there was a mean streak of 4 losses in a row, thankfully he decided to bench Boumsong, and that proved to be the key factor.

Now, I'm just waiting for the World Cup to start, and also, of course, I want to see the players that Roeder will want to get, as well as which players does he want to offload. I do hope that Milner stays though.

Orite, till then... =)

2006-02-06T00:47:00.000+08:00

Finally... a win has come back... to Gallowgate! Newcastle finally won after such a long winless streak, and Shearer (now Assisting Glenn Roeder as Assistant Manager) finally broke Wor Jackie's club record with his 201st goal for Newcastle. Portsmouth rarely looked like a Russian powerhouse (as compared to Chelsea) and I for one am glad for that.

With 14 games to go, I do hope that Newcastle can climb up the tables faster than you can say Greame Souness, and get us that coverted Europe spot.

Hooray for the Magpies!

2006-01-28T23:01:00.000+08:00

So.... Newcastle won 2-0 away at Cheltenham Town. Was it easy? NO!

I digress.

They played a sad sad game, with the two Dumble Dee pairing of B and B at centreback really caught my eye, once again.

That being said, I will not say anything further about the game except that I am happy that Parker, Emre are back in the team.

2006-01-28T17:16:00.000+08:00

Happy Chinese New Year Folks! I hope that during my absence, Newcastle will prove the critics wrong by winning away to Cheltenham. Go Magpies Go!!

2005-12-19T09:37:00.000+08:00

West Ham 2 - 4 Newcastle at Upton Park

England striker Michael Owen scored a superb hat-trick to lead Newcastle to a 4-2 win at West Ham and give Graeme Souness something to celebrate on his 50th Premiership game in charge of the Magpies.

Owen notched his first treble for the club since his £16million arrival on Tyneside from Real Madrid last summer, while Newcastle legend Alan Shearer moved to within just one goal of equalling Jackie Milburn's all-time record of 200 when he struck the Magpies' third.

The kick-off at Upton Park had been delayed for half-an-hour due to a road accident close to the stadium, but Owen was quicker off the mark than the home defence when he latched on to Shearer's headed pass to dink the ball over the advancing Roy Carroll.

The home side briefly threatened to make a game of it when they levelled the scores in the 19th minute thanks to an own goal from Nolberto Solano.

Titus Bramble, attempting to clear Marlon Harewood's right-wing cross into the six-yard box, succeeded only in finding Solano's shins and the ball rebounded into the net.

Solano's own goal sparked West Ham into life and a mazy run by Yossi Benayoun ended abruptly when he appeared to be brought down by Jean-Alain Boumsong inside the penalty area. However, referee Phil Dowd waved away their spot-kick appeals.

In the 28th minute, a fine run by Matthew Etherington almost brought some reward for the enthusiastic Bobby Zamora as the former Spurs pair linked up to create an goalscoring opportunity that brought the best out of Shay Given.

The Republic of Ireland international was forced to dive to his right to keep out Zamora's powerful effort on the turn.

But Newcastle were always a threat going forward and in the 40th minute a clever move almost brought them a second goal.

A long ball from Ramage was knocked into the path of Scott Parker by Shearer, but the former Chelsea midfielder saw his 20-yard effort flash past the left-hand upright.

However, Parker's effort was merely a portent of what was to come two minutes before the interval when Owen struck again to re-establish their lead.

The second half began in a sloppy fashion, with both sides preferring to give the ball away at every opportunity rather than use it to good effect.

In the 51st minute Shola Ameobi stopped Benayoun on the edge of the penalty area with a deliberate foul that brought the Newcastle player a yellow card.

West Ham were again unable to make the most of their advantage and Benayoun's effort was blocked by United's defensive wall.
In the 55th minute West Ham were almost level for a second time when Robbie Elliott made a hash of an attempted clearance to leave Harewood with a clear scoring chance.

But the West Ham striker's effort was brilliantly saved by Given as the home side increased the pressure on the Geordies.

Seconds later the ball rebounded to West Ham midfielder Carl Fletcher whose 25-yard drive beat the outstretched Given, only for the right-hand upright to come to the Newcastle 'keeper's rescue.

Newcastle had a further escape immediately afterwards when a cross from Zamora fell to the feet of defender James Collins, but his goalbound effort was hooked off the line by Shearer.

In the 61st minute Benayoun was replaced by David Bellion as West Ham manager Alan Pardew searched for an alternative method of puncturing the Newcastle defence for a second time.

Shearer scored Newcastle's third in the 65th minute with his first-ever goal at Upton Park and one which takes him within one of equalling Jackie Milburn's all-time record of 200 for the club.
The goal, courtesy of a slide rule pass from Owen, looked to have ended West Ham's interest, but they bargained without the unpredictability of Ameobi.

He inexplicably handled the ball in the 73rd minute to allow Harewood to slot home the resultant spot-kick and give the home side a lifeline.

Only a fine save by Carroll prevented Owen from completing his hat-trick in the 85th minute when he did well to stop the England man's header from dipping into the roof of the net.

However, a counter-attack in the final seconds of injury time saw Owen score his third from a pass by Amady Faye.

My 2-cents worth : Finally! A good string of results! Though I am pretty disappointed with the performance of Shola Ameobi (again), the duo of Shearer and Owen did it for me.. thankfully.

2005-12-13T00:16:00.000+08:00

Newcastle 1 - 0 Arsenal at St James' Park

Nolberto Solano chose the perfect moment to score his first goal since returning to Newcastle to condemn 10-man Arsenal to a second successive Barclays Premiership defeat.

The Peruvian struck with just eight minutes remaining to hand under-pressure manager Graeme Souness a 1-0 victory, a first win in five attempts, as Gilberto was sent off for two bookable offences.

That the home side created little in attack until the dying minutes of the first half - when the outstanding Scott Parker sent a dangerous ball across the face of goal and Michael Owen danced his way into a promising position before being muscled out of it - was a concern, but the fact is they had their hands full elsewhere.

The rearguard was pierced only once, though, on 27 minutes, when Thierry Henry's volley from Freddie Ljungberg's cross was heading for the top corner, only for Shay Given to pull off a stunning save to keep it out.

Souness' side, buoyed by their resilience in the opening 45 minutes, returned after the break and set about the visitors from the off.

Newcastle's momentum increased further on 57 minutes when Gilberto, who had earlier been booked for a foul on Shola Ameobi, caught Jean-Alain Boumsong with a mis-timed challenge and was dismissed.

But there was to be a twist in the tale.

Shearer battled well to return the ball to Solano on the right edge of the penalty area with eight minutes remaining and the Peruvian needed no second invitation to blast a blistering low drive across Jens Lehmann and into the bottom corner to set St James' Park alight.

Owen might have made it 2-0 on 86 minutes, but one goal proved enough despite a frantic finish in five agonising minutes of added time.

My take: Finally! Newcastle breaks the duck against Arsenal... but it's at home! Let's see them beat them away in the future.

2005-12-05T12:25:00.000+08:00

Newcastle drew with Aston Villa....... at HOME.

I shall no longer post personal thoughts and match reports, to spite Newcastle, until they wake up and win. But, when will they win?

2005-12-02T11:31:00.000+08:00

Wigan 1 - 0 Newcastle at JJB Stadium

Well, I would have loved to write out a nice entry about how Newcastle finally overcame Wigan...

BUT THAT IS NOT TO BE! And Emre got injured in the process! (thus I will not blog the match out, cept for the fact that Wigan had 70% possession in the 2nd half)

There goes our Carling Cup dreams. Bah. May as well lose to Grimsby, bah! Souness blasted his players for the poor performance, and I totally agree with the man. If they don't buck up soon, they will soon be without a manager again.

2005-11-29T00:18:00.000+08:00

Everton 1 - 0 Newcastle at Goodison Park

Everton climbed out of the bottom three with a 1-0 win over Newcastle which followed a week of recriminations and threats from manager David Moyes of dire action in the transfer window if things did not improve.

Having lost 4-0 at West Brom last weekend, Everton needed to rediscover their combative style.

And in a game in which referee Howard Webb let far too much go but still booked six players it was a header 54 seconds into the second period from defender Joseph Yobo that secured victory for the Toffees.

Newcastle were poor up front and Alan Shearer had their best chance midway through the first half when he rounded keeper Nigel Martyn only to see James Beattie clear off the line.

Newcastle should have had a penalty when Shola Ameobi cracked in a 10-yard shot that Phil Neville clearly deflected around the post with his arm.

Webb then booked Titus Bramble for pulling down James McFadden and, when the free-kick was lifted into the box, Tim Cahill and Celestine Babayaro were involved in a nasty exchange with the Everton man claiming he had been hit in the face.

Everton were ahead shortly after the restart. Mikel Arteta's cross swung into the six-yard box and Yobo rose to plant a header past Given for only his third goal for the club.

An Emre free-kick was beaten away and, when Ameobi fired the ball back into the box, Scott Parker lifted a volley over the bar as Newcastle at last started to mount a genuine challenge.

Beattie should have settled the issue when Simon Davies found him unmarked in the box, but the striker blasted his effort high over the bar from 15 yards.

There was still time for Given to somehow keep out two efforts from Cahill.

My 2 cents worth - Newcastle is fucking lucky to have Shay Given in their side. They had better start doing something, if not my dear Irishman's gonna have to find greener pastures.

That string of saves at the end really did it for me. How could they choose Yobo as M.O.M? Well, that's what I had that commentator tell me ... but TNP said that Given was the M.O.M. Well, whatever it is ...

2005-11-24T14:00:00.000+08:00

Chelsea 3 – 0 Newcastle at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea delivered the perfect response to their critics with an emphatic second-half display that crushed stubborn Newcastle 3-0 at Stamford Bridge.

Newcastle had matched the reigning champions for effort and endeavour in a goalless opening half, but strikes from Joe Cole and Hernan Crespo inside four minutes ensured that Chelsea restored their nine-point advantage at the top of the Barclays Premiership.

Damien Duff completed the scoring right on the final whistle when his shot was deflected over the luckless Shay Given.

The home side were lucky to escape what appeared to be a valid penalty appeal in the fifth minute when John Terry felled Lee Bowyer, but referee Rob Halsey turned down the appeals.

Chelsea survived a second penalty scare in between when Asier Del Horno appeared to handle inside the area as Newcastle gave the champions a few restless moments.

Ricardo Carvalho had missed the best chance of the first half, before Cole put the Londoners in front two minutes into the second half.

Titus Bramble gave the ball away to Eidur Gudjohnsen and the Icelandic striker, playing in a midfield role behind Crespo, slotted the ball into the path of Cole, who ran on to despatch a right-foot shot into the corner of the net for his fourth of the season.

Frank Lampard, equalling David James's record of 159 consecutive appearances in the top flight, provided a trademark pass into Crespo's path after Michael Essien had won the ball in midfield.

The Argentinian checked his run before turning to fire the ball into the top corner to deliver the perfect response to those critics who claim he is unhappy at the club.

Chelsea had the last word when Duff burst into the penalty area and his shot was deflected over Given for the third.

To sum things up … we’re back to the bottom half of the table. Bah. But, what do you expect? Ameobi the lone striker up? Why didn’t the gaffer give Michael Chopra a chance to shine?

2005-10-31T12:35:00.000+08:00

WBA 0 - 3 Newcastle at The Hawthorns

Match report from www.soccernet.com.

Michael Owen again showed his liking for The Hawthorns with a two-goal salvo as Newcastle toppled West Brom 3-0 and continued their revival by climbing into the Premiership top-10.

Owen scored four goals on his last appearance on the ground in a Liverpool shirt in April 2003 in a 6-0 win.

The England striker had a similar number of opportunities on this occasion, twice being denied by Baggies keeper Tomasz Kuszczak and having a header cleared off the line by Junichi Inamoto.

But this was a lot closer affair until the closing stages than that mauling of Albion two and a half years ago and the home side also had several good opportunities in a game which opened up after a scrappy first 45 minutes.

Scott Parker was impressive in the centre of midfield for the Magpies, who further reduced the pressure on manager Graeme Souness after the wins over Sunderland and Grimsby in the Carling Cup.

But it was Owen who again showed why Souness was persuaded to splash out £17million for his services and if he continues this form Newcastle will soon be challenging for a European spot.

Newcastle were probably flattered by the final scoreline but it was a lesson in deadly finishing for Albion to digest and learn from with a defeat which keeps them too close to the relegation zone for comfort.

Inamoto was given a rapturous round of applause when his name was announced before kick-off in what was his first home Premiership start for West Brom.

Newcastle had the first opportunity after three minutes with Shola Ameobi bursting into the box but his left-footed effort was blocked by Albion central defender Darren Moore at the expense of a corner.

Owen had his first attempt at goal after 14 minutes after midfielder Parker had cut the ball back from the byline but Moore was able to block his first-time attempt.

Newcastle, their confidence lifted by those two successive wins, started to come into the game more. Riccardo Scimeca brought down Charles N'Zogbia just outside the Albion box and Nolberto Solano's floated free-kick was glanced wide by Peter Ramage.

Solano almost played in Owen with a chip over the top of the Baggies defence but it ran away from the England striker and, when the ball came back into the danger area a shot from Emre was deflected through to Kuszczak.

It was 37 minutes before either keeper made a worthwhile save and it Kuszczak who did well to deny Owen and keep his side on level terms.

N'Zogbia played in the former Real Madrid star but Kuszczak came out to smother his shot. Owen was quick to react to the rebound but no-one was able to apply a touch to his ball back across goal.

Jean-Alain Boumsong had a good opportunity for the Magpies as he moved into the Albion area to meet a cross from Parker but he directed his header wide when he should have at least tested Kuszczak.

West Brom's best chance of the half fell to central defender Curtis Davies four minutes before the interval but although the former Luton player timed his run well to meet an inswinging centre from Earnshaw he powered his header just past the post.

The second half got off to an explosive start with Owen scoring his third goal in five matches for Newcastle in superb fashion after just 20 seconds.

Emre (was it Emre, or N'Zogbia?) supplied the cross from left flank and Owen reacted first at the near post to send an unstoppable volley past Kuszczak from eight yards.

Albion were stung into life and Earnshaw failed to make any contact with a low cross from Greening at the near post.

Given then produced an excellent save to deny Earnshaw at point-blank range after Inamoto's pile-driver had been blocked and deflected into his path.

But Newcastle nearly doubled their lead when a header from Owen at the back post was headed off the line by Inamoto.

Ameobi became the ~~first~~ only player to be yellow-carded after 59 minutes for persistent fouling with his latest offence against Davies.

Albion were now looking a lot more dangerous and Earnshaw sent a low swerving drive just past the post after good play by Darren Carter and Kanu.

The game was a much more livelier affair and Kuszczak came out of his area to block an Owen shot with his chest and at the other end Given finger-tipped Earnshaw's curling effort around the post.

Ameobi was replaced after 66 minutes by Alan Shearer and he had a hand in the goal which wrapped up the points with 13 minutes left.

Shearer found fellow substitute Kieron Dyer on the right flank and his low cross was converted by the alert Owen.

It was a similar move which led to Newcastle striking again three minutes later. Owen fed the

overlapping Ramage and this time Shearer slid in at the near post to make no mistake.

My 2 cents worth

Watched the game on ESPN this morning, sacrificing my sleep just to catch ma team in action. Thankfully, my run of having to watch a Newcastle game in which we have won this season continued, with this 3-nil drubbing of WBA.

Seriously, the first half was a stalemate.

Michael Owen in particular was wasteful in goal, missing a clear cut chance to open up the scoresheet.

I was surprised to see Boumsong with the captain's armband in place of Shearer, who looked horrid with that stitched up lip. I would see this as a vote of confidence for Boumsong, after consistantly playing badly. Luckily for him, against WBA he was up against Kanu (this dood has not scored in a longgggggggggg time) and Robert Earnshaw, and not the likes or RVN, Henry or Drogba.

Solano is still trying to find his place in the side, but he showed a few good passes to be fair. N'Zogbia was class to bring in that cross for Owen, as was Owen for making that move turn to gold.

The central midfield pairing of Parker and Emre was once again outstanding, to say the least. Steven Taylor showed maturity at the center of defence, and in my case, this lad really has a long career here at Newcastle, though there were shouts of handball for his chest down in the second half.

The introduction of Geordie legend Shearer as well as the recently returned Dyer proved to be pivotal in swinging the game their way.

First off, it was Shearer finding Dyer at the side, who flicked the ball over to Owen for him to score his 2nd goal of the match. Then, Shearer's class stood when he scored the 3rd goal.

All in all, I must say something. I would rather have Newcastle play to a 1-0 victory, but stamping their class against the opposition, rather than have them win 3-0, but giving me a heart attack everytime their opponents take to their side of the field.

Also, thank Gawd for Shay Given. *smiles*

2005-10-28T17:06:00.000+08:00

Just in case you're wondering, why is my weblog for Newcastle sort of, in tatters ... well, that's because it is.

I have not had much time to set this up, thus the lack of match reports player transfers etc etc.

But hopefully, it will all change ... soon. *smiles*

2005-10-27T12:45:00.000+08:00

Grimsby 0 - 1 Newcastle at Blundell Park

I didn't get to watch the this Carling Cup match, but thankfully, I didn't waste my time, though I would have loved to see how Whittle elbowed Shearer to give him that cut.

Alan Shearer had the last laugh against tenacious Grimsby as he struck an 80th-minute winner to send Newcastle through to the Carling Cup fourth round with a 1-0 win.

Shearer required three stitches in his lip at half-time after being elbowed in a challenge with Mariners skipper Justin Whittle.

But he seized his single chance to sweep the winner past Steve Mildenhall just when it looked like the League Two side were going to take the tie into extra-time.

Michael Chopra took advantage of a slip by Grimsby left-back Tom Newey to race in and square the ball for the former England man who needed no second invitation to fire the ball home.

Newcastle had shaded a tough and mostly scrappy clash played in slippery conditions but it was harsh on the Mariners for whom defender Rob Jones missed two late chances to equalise and earn that extra half-hour.

The Mariners had every reason to fancy their chances having disposed of Tottenham in the last round and they made a bright start roared on by a 9,000 capacity crowd in packed Blundell Park.

Michael Reddy took advantage of early hesitation in the Magpies defence to have two early chances, the second of which required visiting keeper Shay Given to boot clear under pressure.

But Newcastle should have taken the lead in the 17th minute when Charles N'Zogbia's left-foot shot from just inside the box clattered the base of Mildenhall's right-hand post.

Gary Jones cued up a chance for the home side in the 21st minute but as he shaped to shoot Scott Parker nicked the ball off his toes and booted clear.

But the home side continued to hold their own against their illustrious opponents and fashioned two Newey free-kicks which caused the visitors problems.

Newcastle's final ball continued to let them down with Shearer seeing a shooting chance hooked off his toes by the lively Jean-Paul Kalala and N'Zogbia also making a hash of a cross when the former England skipper was unmarked in the box.

Instead the Mariners ended the half in style with another dangerous attack from Calvin Andrew while Shearer left the pitch with a bloody lip complaining bitterly of the elbow to referee Mark Halsey.

The home side started the second half brightly with Kalala squaring to Cohen who saw his low shot blocked by a forest of legs in the Newcastle box.

Scott Parker showed a glimmer of real skill in an otherwise scrappy affair when he dribbled neatly towards the home goal on the hour before playing through Shearer, only for Whittle to nick the ball off the striker's toes.

Mildenhall's moment of madness almost cost his side dear as he bizarrely attempted to punch away a Nolberto Solano corner and almost succeeded in knocking the ball into his own net.

But the clearest chance of the half was created by N'Zogbia in the 63rd minute when he got behind the Grimsby defence on the left and hit a cross which flashed across the face of goal in front of the stretching Chopra.

The lively Reddy was presented with a half-chance in the 72nd minute when Mildenhall's massive goal kick dropped to him just inside the Newcastle box but the striker could not connect properly and sent the ball sailing over the bar.

Shearer seized upon an unlucky mistake by Grimsby left-back Newey to finally give the Premiership side the lead 10 minutes from time.

Chopra nipped in on the right after Newey slipped chasing back on the greasy surface and he squared for the front man to produce a trademark clinical finish and move his side within sight of victory.

Jones missed two late equalising chances when he sent a firm header just wide of target then miscued a simple shot when the ball fell unexpectedly to him on the edge of the box.

2005-10-24T13:42:00.000+08:00

Newcastle United 3 - 2 Sunderland at St James' Park

It’s always a thrill to watch a derby match between Newcastle and Middlesborough/Sunderland, and boy did I nearly have a heart attack from watching the match yesterday against Sunderland.

Moments after kick off, Emre was felled by Whitebread, earning the first yellow card of the game. Emre would continue to be the target man for most of the match. On the other end, Scott Parker was unfortunate to be yellow carded by Rob Styles for a foul which wasn’t.

After a fierce intense midfield battle between the two sides for 33 minutes, Ameobi started the fireworks with a well struck header to the bottom left of Kevin Davis’s goal, but just after the re-start, Lawrence squared a perfect shot to give the Black Cats the equaliser. However, just two minutes after that, Ameobi once again scored with a header into the exact same corner as he did earlier. But, the defence struggled, and Elliot made the most out of it to score a wonderfully taken goal to level things out.

This 8 minutes almost gave me a heart attack.

Anyways, the 2nd half started with Sunderland very much in control, and they were playing with desire, unlike Newcastle. But, in the 63rd minute, Ameobi was felled by his former teammate Caldwell. Emre, Solano and Shearer all stood around the ball, and Emre was the one who struck the ball … sweetly if I may add … into the goal, with Davies full stretched.

Taylor was unfortunate not to carry on his 2 goal England U-21 heroics with a goal off another Emre pass, and Newcastle were lucky to get all 3 points after Elliot struck the crossbar with his attempt at goal, which btw would have been a superb goal if he did score.

How many times have I seen the opposition strike the goal post at St. James’s Park? Countless!

My man of the match would have been Emre, as was the club sponsor’s choice. And if I had to choose a weak link of the match, it would have been Boumsong. The way he played really made Steven Taylor stand out. He was slow to the ball, and gave away so many passes.

Another point to highlight would be the heartening fact that I saw Owen celebrating with his daughter when Emre scored. Who said the lad didn’t have passion for the club?

Hope that Newcastle can continue to score more goals with the midfield getting fit again.

2005-09-30T17:35:00.000+08:00

My beloved Newcastle is steadily climbing up the league table, below Wigan (Wigan?!), thanks to 2 successive clean sheets against Blackburn and Man City. I guess the talismatic Shearer did the job again, spurring the team to perform well.

N'Zogbia proved once again that he is the man to succeed Laurent Robert, and with Luque as well as Emre out injured, he has grasped the chance with both hands.

Michael Owen, what can I say? He's starting to repay the fans and the club by doing what he's been doing best; score goals. Although I have doubts if this speedy fella can last till 32, I hope that he gives his all for these few years.

I hope that the rearguard of Babayaro, Carr, Boumsong, Bramble, Taylor and Moore (once available) will be enough against the likes of Henry, Drogba or the horse-faced RVN.

I could, complete this post by filling in more details, but alas, it's time to leave this God-forsaken place, so for now, I hope that Newcastle beats the crap out of Portsmouth this week at Fratton Park! Cheers!

2005-09-26T09:30:00.000+08:00

Newcastle United 1 - 0 Manchester City at St James' Park

Did not manage to catch the game on TV, so here's the match report courtesy of www.soccernet.com.

Michael Owen's second Newcastle goal handed his side a first Barclays Premiership victory at St James' Park in eight attempts as Manchester City lost for the third time in a week.

The England striker slotted the only goal of the game past international team-mate David James on 18 minutes to complete a good week for the Magpies and manager Graeme Souness.

Owen might have collected a hat-trick on a day when his side, despite still missing Kieron Dyer, Emre, Nolberto Solano and Albert Luque, turned in a much-improved display until nerves started to take effect late in the game with a disappointing City mounting a fightback.

But a makeshift midfield and a much-criticised defence, in which the returning Titus Bramble was excellent, did their jobs to the letter to ensure that the points stayed on Tyneside.

The corresponding fixture last season finished 4-3 to the home side, but there is little doubt that Souness will have been much happier this time around as his side kept a clean sheet despite a torrid conclusion to the game and created plenty of chances of their own.

For once, the players left the pitch on the final whistle to cheers from the bulk of a crowd of 52,280 with three points banked for the first time since Liverpool left the North-East empty-handed on March 5.

Owen guaranteed the Newcastle fans goals on the day he arrived on Tyneside and with the exception of his debut against Fulham, he has been as good as his word.

However, he walked off the pitch at half-time kicking himself that he had only found the back of the net once after being presented with a series of glorious chances.

The one he did take, he did so with his customary aplomb, running on to Lee Bowyer's through-ball and stabbing a shot past James before Richard Dunne could get to him to send the home crowd into raptures.

When he set off in pursuit of Alan Shearer's defence-splitting pass 22 minutes later, few inside St James' Park expected anything other than to see the net bulge once again.

When it did not, courtesy of James' block, the disbelief inside the stadium was mirrored in the expression on the England striker's face, although it did not disturb him for too long.

A minute before the break he took aim from an improbable angle and smashed a shot across the face of goal with the keeper beaten to serve a further reminder of his eye for goal.

Owen's display was the main feature of an improved collective performance by Newcastle who, buoyed by last weekend's 3-0 victory at Blackburn, looked something like their former selves.

With Scott Parker back from suspension to provide the cover for the back four and teenager Charles N'Zogbia giving Nedum Onouha a stern examination down the left, they had a shape and a pace to their play which they have lacked at times this season.

That said, they might have been behind with just seven minutes gone when Antoine Sibierski escaped his marker with little difficulty to meet a Joey Barton free-kick on the edge of the six-yard box and it took a superb reaction save from Shay Given to keep the ball out.

But City rarely threatened before the break and were at full stretch at the back too often for Stuart Pearce's liking.

The second half began in decidedly scrappy fashion, with Newcastle struggling for their rhythm and City working hard, but to little real effect.

Given had to clear hurriedly under pressure from Darius Vassell after Jean-Alain Boumsong's wayward back-pass had left him with work to do, but the Magpies stepped up a gear and might have increased their lead twice within minutes.

Owen was almost gifted a free shot at goal when Dunne and James got in a tangle on the edge of their own penalty area, but the keeper redeemed himself for his part in the confusion by coming from his line seconds later to collect Bowyer's low cross with Owen ready to pounce at the far post.

In the meantime, Dunne had headed a Barton corner over to remind the home side that the points were far from secure, and Pearce attempted to add fresh impetus on the hour when he replaced midfielder Kiki Musampa with Stephen Ireland.

It took a well-timed challenge by Bramble to prevent the newcomer's 68th-minute cross from reaching Barton in front of goal, and with the visitors enjoying their best period in the game, Souness decided to try to shore things up by withdrawing Bowyer and sending on the more defensively-minded Amdy Faye in his place.City hammered away as the clock ran down and Dunne flashed another header across the face of goal six minutes from time.

But with finger-nails being chewed all around, substitute Shola Ameobi should have cemented the win with the final kick of the game after being set up by Owen, but he dragged his left foot effort across James and wide.

• Souness pleased with Owen, Parker

Newcastle boss Graeme Souness tipped £6.5million signing Scott Parker to force his way into the England team after seeing him help his side clinch a second successive Barclays Premiership victory. Parker lined up in the holding role, and that is a job his manager believes he can do for his country as the debate over the Steven Gerrard-Frank Lampard pairing rages on.

'I'm not quite sure because he's a bit of an all-rounder,' said Souness when asked what Parker's best position is. 'Ultimately, that's where he'll play and I think in the very near future, he will end up playing for England there because he's a player who would complement the Lampards and Gerrards.'

However, it was Owen who again snatched the headlines on a day when he might have collected a hat-trick and once again delivered on his promise to pay off his £17million fee by providing goals in abundance.

'He is like any other player, he needs games under his belt,' he said. 'But we have not had that, we have not had people running away from back fours and getting in one-on-ones with goalkeepers.

'I was very pleased with the first half. I thought we played some good football, passed it, kept it well and got our goal.

'I would have liked, obviously, to see Michael finish the second one, but we had three, maybe four, one-on-ones with the goalkeeper today which we have not had prior to Michael arriving.

'Give credit to Manchester City in the second half. We knew there would be a reaction from them because I felt we had dominated so much in the first half.

'They had a fair bit of the ball in the second half, but I cannot remember Shay having to make too many saves. You will talk about Michael getting his first home goal and how he finished it.

'But I would also like you to write about Shay's save from Sibierski early one when we were caught cold with a quickish free-kick and he got a good header in and Shay saved with his foot.'

City boss Stuart Pearce was disappointed after seeing his side lose their third game in a week, and was particularly unhappy with their first-half display.

'For the first 45 minutes, we gave Newcastle too much respect,' he said. 'We didn't get tight enough on the two forwards, we didn't win tackles, we didn't push up and it looked as thought we thought we just had to turn up to get a result.

'As I well know, in the Premiership that is not the case. If you are not at it for 90 minutes, you will get beaten. Our first 45 minutes cost us the game, basically.

'If we had played like we did from half-time onwards from the start, we would not have been beaten today and we might have won the game.

'I don't think Newcastle are firing on all cylinders at the moment and as I said to the players, `they are probably a side waiting to give you a result, but at the moment, you are not playing well enough to go and take it from them'.'

2005-09-20T15:50:00.000+08:00

Blackburn 0 - 3 Newcastle United

Watched the match on cable, but was too lazy to blog out the match report, so I've ~~stolen~~ taken the excerpt from www.soccernet.com.

Michael Owen came to Graeme Souness' rescue at Ewood Park and prevented his new manager's nemesis from dealing his difficult reign a potentially fatal blow.

Beleaguered Souness must have been having nightmares about coming face to face with Craig Bellamy after selling the striker following their much publicised summer spat.

But he was left celebrating Owen's first Newcastle goal which helped significantly ease the pressure and provided the visitors with their first Barclays Premiership win of the season, 3-0, at the sixth attempt.

Owen headed powerfully past Brad Friedel in the 68th minute to effectively seal the points after Alan Shearer's trademark free-kick had begun lifting some of the gloom which has been gathering over Tyneside.

Even Steven Taylor's late sending-off for two bookable offences could not spoil Souness' day as Charles N'Zogbia wrapped up victory with three minutes to go to leave Rovers and Bellamy down and out.

In truth the final scoreline deflected from a poor visitors performance in a game which never caught alight until Shearer's clinical set-piece finish.

That was a surprise given the anticipation of Bellamy's first meeting with his former employers since the summer row which cut short his career on Tyneside.

Bellamy had appeared to hold the upper-hand at half-time with neither Owen nor Shearer looking likely scorers in a dreadful first half when chances were at a premium.

The Newcastle captain cut an almost anonymous figure while Owen's only chance came in the fifth minute and ended with a weak right-foot shot across the face of goal.

By that time Blackburn's customary disciplinary problems had already threatened to rear their ugly head again with Lucas Neill booked for a first minute lunge on Steven Taylor.

And the game soon settled into a fratchety midfield affair where the only real passion was exhibited by the visiting fans who heartily booed Bellamy each time he touched the ball.

Rovers enjoyed marginally the better of the proceedings with David Bentley shooting weakly into Shay Given's arms on his first start.

And Morten Gamst Pedersen was perhaps the best player wide on the left, his 19th-minute cross just eluding the lurking Bellamy and Robbie Savage in the box.

But the best first-half chances predictably came from set-pieces with Pedersen whacking a 30-yard free-kick over the bar in the 20th minute.

Then Savage forced a fine diving save out of Given from his 30th-minute effort after Jean-Alain Boumsong had handled Pedersen's attempting through-ball.

Given's counterpart Brad Friedel could have stayed in the dressing rooms for all the work he was required to do as Rovers continued to fashion the better openings.

The energetic Bellamy flicked a half-chance over the bar from Vratislav Gresko's deep cross, and the Welshman's neat through-ball just ran too far ahead of Steven Reid.

Within seconds of the restart the home side signalled their intention to step up the pace with the increasingly impressive Bentley breaking well down the left.

His cross was knocked back by Bellamy to Reid who screamed a powerful right-foot effort just over the bar.

Owen finally showed a sign of the threat to come when he befuddled Ryan Nelsen on the left flank before the New Zealander managed to deflect his cross out for a corner.

Rovers came close again in the 57th minute when Bentley's long-ball into the box was headed by Bellamy into the path of the onrushing Reid, whose point-blank effort was deflected over the bar by Given.

Reid came close again from the resulting corner when his drive was almost deflected by Bellamy but instead flashed just wide of target.

But just as Rovers seemed to be getting a grip on the game Neill was caught clambering all over Owen in a central position 20 yards from goal in the 63rd minute.

The free-kick was in prime Shearer territory and Lee Clark tapped the ball to the Magpies captain, who drove a low shot into the bottom corner of the net to Friedel's left.Five minutes later Owen broke his Newcastle duck with a firm header from N'Zogbia's left-wing cross to put his side further ahead.

The visitors' only setback occurred in the 75th minute when substitute Taylor, who had already been booked, received a second yellow card for holding back Bellamy.

Rovers boss Mark Hughes threw caution to the wind with his substitutions but Rovers' best chance to get back in the match fell to Tugay whose rising volley from Pedersen's corner flew just over Given's bar with 10 minutes to go.

N'Zogbia sprung the Rovers offside trap with three minutes left and finished a fine counter-attacking move by rolling the ball around Friedel and then into the net to cap Newcastle's great day.

• Collapse irks Hughes

Rovers boss Mark Hughes was disappointed with his team's second-half collapse. He told PremPlus:

'Until the free-kick I didn't think they had had a shot in anger, then they got a second very quickly and obviously we had to chase the game.

'But really we should have had a foothold in the game. We were the better side in the first half and up to their goal.'

Hughes described the free-kick which preceded Shearer's opening goal - his first for more than seven months - as 'a little bit harsh' and continued:

'We are disappointed because certainly after Newcastle scored the shape of our lads wasn't what it needed to be.

'We needed to attack with guile and we didn't do that. 'Now we need to get back on track, we created a reasonable amount of chances - we just need one to go in and we'll be off and running.

'We have to get the balance right and make sure we get best out of Craig (Bellamy) - today we didn't do that.

'It's always difficult when you lose at home but we've got a game on Wednesday (at home to Huddersfield in the Carling Cup) so we can look at putting it right.'

My 2 cents worth

Blackburn had the better chances of the two teams, but in the end, it took a gutsy last third of the match to blow the home team away.

Lucas Neill should have been red carded for bowling Owen over, and Robbie Savage. Wtf! I mean, it is not in the good spirit of Soccer to get the ref to change his decision about the opposition.

N'Zogbia has proved me wrong, again. Hope that he continues to improve. Not all Frenchies are like Robert.

2005-09-01T17:30:00.000+08:00

Newcastle Transfers 2005

Nolberto Solano tonight completed his return to Newcastle less than an hour before the closure of the transfer window. The 30-year-old Peruvian arrived back at St James' Park just 19 months after making a £1.5million move to Aston Villa.

Teenager James Milner will spend the rest of the season on loan at Villa, but Solano's return will come as a further boost to the Magpies at the end of a day on which they unveiled record signing Michael Owen.

Solano, who has signed a two-year deal with the option of a further 12 months, was delighted to begin a second spell at the club.

'It's great to be back at Newcastle and I hope we can have a really successful season here,' he told the club's official website.

Chairman Freddy Shepherd added: 'It's great to have Nobby back and I am sure all the fans are thrilled by the news.

'The fans who gathered earlier to welcome Owen to Tyneside chanted the South American's name in the hope he would join, and they got their wish shortly before the midnight deadline after he passed a medical.

The former Boca Juniors player was signed by Kenny Dalglish for £2.5million in August 1998 and proved popular as he and Frenchman Laurent Robert set about the task of providing the supply to Alan Shearer. However, he fell out with Sir Bobby Robson over his trips to South America to represent his country after at one point agreeing to put his international career on hold, and he was eventually sold to Villa in January last year.

Robson's replacement Graeme Souness attempted to re-sign him in January, and his persistence has now been rewarded.

Since his departure and that of Robert, Newcastle have been short of both natural width and dead-ball specialists, and Solano will provide both.

His return will restore strength in depth to the Magpies midfield after Jermaine Jenas's departure for Tottenham and take Souness' spending since his arrival on Tyneside through the £50million barrier.

Milner, 19, emerged from the youth set-up under Villa boss David O'Leary at Leeds.But having moved to St James's last summer, he struggled to make an impact at first-team level.

Tottenham Hotspur have completed a transfer deadline day double swoop with the capture of England midfielder Jermaine Jenas, from Newcastle United, and South Korea defender Lee Young-pyo, from PSV Eindhoven. Jenas was released from England duty on Tuesday to undergo a medical and ensure the switch was completed before the deadline. A statement on Spurs official website read: 'We are delighted to announce the signing of England international Jermaine Jenas from Newcastle United.'

The 22-year-old had been tipped for a move away from St James' Park after admitting to manager Graeme Souness that playing for the Magpies was 'like living in a goldfish bowl'.

The two clubs have agreed an £7million fee for the England midfielder, who has signed a five-year contract with Spurs, and that money will go a long way to helping Newcastle fund the purchase of Michael Owen from Real Madrid.

Newcastle boss Graeme Souness wished Jenas all the best for his future career at White Hart Lane. 'I'm sorry to see him go,' he said.

'I enjoyed the 12 months I spent working with JJ. I'm sorry he didn't see his long-term future with us. We didn't want him to leave, but he's a big boy and it was his choice. 'He has made his decision, and everyone at this club from the chairman down wishes him all the best in his career at Tottenham Hotspur.'

Jenas will find midfield competition fierce at White Hart Lane, with Edgar Davids and Michael Carrick having started the season in top form.

My 2 cents worth

I like Nobby Solano ... but I do hope that James Milner's loan move to Villa will not be a permanent one. I mean, you spent £5million on Milner, and if this loan move leads to a permanent one, then I'll be damned.

Owen's move to Newcastle came as 25% of a surprise to me. I already have him in my Newcastle Fantasy Squad the first day I heard the rumours. (except that in my game, he is still vying with Bellamy for that no. 10 jersey)

Jenas can go for all I care. Earlier comparisons by Pele about him really made me positive about his style of play, but alas, I had yet to see 100% from him, not even when he was captain. I wonder whether he will dislodge Carrick (who may go to Newcastle considering he was born there and loves the team) from the center of midfield. Davids is definitely stuck there, that bulldog. Things are gonna be fiercer now from Newcastle, I hope. They still lack of a left winger though, and I think Souness will deploy his left footed striker Luque as a temporary left winger, till Shearer leaves, or when the transfer window re-opens.

Glory Glory M-M-M-Magpies!

2005-08-19T16:58:00.000+08:00

1st game of the Season against Arsenal

So, Newcastle failed to live up to their expectation. To be honest, I felt that they could have nicked a point off Arsenal, who were clearly the better team.

But, to be impartial bias, look at Newcastle's squad! We have the talisman, Alan Shearer, who is getting older and older by the day. I mean, 35? Goodness! And with 3 days left to the transfer window closing, I sense that Newcastle's gonna be doomed till the January window.

Owen doesn't want to play at Toon. Anelka's club is being stubborn, and Fulham is asking for too much. What, £3m won't even buy Boa Morte's left foot? *pukes* £10m is way too high for a plyer who isn't really that good (No doubt he did whack Newcastle senseless last season). Is Graeme going to introduce 16-17 year old reserves to play? *faints* I hope not. For a club like Newcastle, 19th placing (albeit after the first game only) is too low ... WAY too low.

We should be top 6. I would have said top 4 a few years back, but back then, it was only Arsenal, ManUre, Liverpool and Newcastle. Now, Chelsea is top of the pops, and teams like Tottenham and Everton are coming up strong.

What's this about Jenas wanting away from Newcastle, saying that life there is like being in a fishbowl? What rubbish! If it's really true (The board; namely Freddie Sheppard is doing a good job of covering it up if it's true) then WILL I BE DAMNED! Oh well, I wouldn't have wanted him to be captain anyways. Look at the matches last season which he was made captain. We lost most of them.

Anyways, I don't understand teams nowadays. Look at Chelsea. Carvalho just got his arse whupped by Mourinho, saying that he ought to have an IQ test.I mean, I would understand it if you're in a crap team like Wigan (who performed bravely against Chelsea), an international star, and in your prime, yet unable to play. But, you're in a hacked team like Chelsea, where reserves are Robert Huth, Joe Cole and Tiago. Wtf? Those fellas cost at £35m in total. (btw, the market rate for players nowadays is scary, SWP for £21m, incredible. Think his pops Ian Wright must be proud of him) ... but Newcastle should consider getting another defender to beef things up. I still don't trust Bramble. And, I have not seen Craig Moore play yet, so I don't know what he's like. Babayaro is injury-prone (as are most players in Toon land. Think they're getting laid too much) so a left sided defender would be nice. Too bad they couldn't offer Bernard some decent wages. He was outstanding for them.

Okay, enough of this ... for the moment. Going out now. Stay tuned ...

2005-07-18T17:02:00.000+08:00

Dubnica 1 Newcastle 3

Two goals in the opening seven minutes helped Newcastle secure a battling first-leg advantage against Slovakian side Dubnica in the third round of the Intertoto Cup.

Michael Chopra grabbed his first senior goal for the Magpies after just four minutes to give the under-strength visitors the ideal start, before Alan Shearer poached a second on the line three minutes later. James Milner lobbed an excellent third midway through the second half to cap a fine personal performance - but Dubnica were anything but outclassed and Lukas Tesak's strike just before half-time will give them hope for the second leg at St James' Park next week.

The departures of Patrick Kluivert and Craig Bellamy, and an injury to Shola Ameobi, had allowed 21-year-old striker Chopra a chance to impress manager Graeme Souness.

And the youngster wasted little time, latching onto an excellent pass from Milner before slotting past the advancing Dubnica goalkeeper Dusan Pernis. The hosts, competing in the biggest game in their 79-year history, looked stunned by the early strike but soon found themselves two behind.

An awkward cross from the left by tricky winger Charles N'Zogbia caused confusion in the home defence, deflecting off centre-back Robert Novak and goalwards - with Shearer waiting on the back post to double the lead. To their credit, the hosts did not buckle under the early pressure and forced their way back into the game late in the first half.

The impressive Igor Drzik, excelling against a Magpies midfield without new signings Scott Parker or Emre Belezoglu, floated in a delicate cross from the right, allowing Tesak to crash home a header from close range.

The complexion of the game could have changed completely early in the second period but for a smart save by Newcastle keeper Steve Harper from a Marian Zimen rocket. But when Milner made room and lifted a superb side-footed shot over the stranded Pernis from all of 35 yards in the 70th minute, a hard-fought win was secured.