The great Puma Newcastle United shirt rip-off

Posted on June 10th, 2013 | 89 Comments |

Puma spirit T-shirt & Newcastle United change shirt.
Spot the difference.
In the top photo, you can see an example of a £7.50 training T-Shirt from the existing Puma “Spirit” range side by side with the new Newcastle United change shirt with an almost identical design.

Now before I proceed, please don’t get me wrong. I’m not going to try and suggest that the two are actually the same items with just very minor changes in detailing as I haven’t examined them side by side. Nor am I trying to make the general point that replica team football shirts are a rip-off either, Freddy Shepherd and many others have made that point already.

However, writing as a designer myself, it is but one example among many of Puma’s lazy, poor and rehashed designs. The standard of the design is the same as you would expect to find from one of Mike Ashley’s sweatshop brands, and the same is true of the quality too, especially so if you remember the shirts of Newcastle United’s previous supplier, Adidas. For a supposedly premium product, they are an insult to Newcastle United’s fans, not to mention those of other clubs they supply. Then again, I am not a big replica shirt buyer personally, so I would very much like to hear the views of those of you who are.

There’s another thing too. Whilst the club’s sponsorship with Wonga is a large and highly controversial issue on it’s own, you might also observe that in the new kit, the club’s colours (Denim blue with “Wonga” blue details), or at least the detailing anyway, has been determined by the colour of Wonga’s corporate branding. Also, the new previously all black and white home kits will also incorporate similar blue detailing too (see below). Sponsorship and displaying a company’s logo is one thing, however, choosing Wonga blue for the strip is taking things a stage further, especially so when it becomes a part of the traditional black and white home kit. Some might say these are just minor details, but I would say they are insidious.

Finally, before I sign off on my mini-rant, here are some more examples of Puma’s lazy design, of which I could post many. They are followed by Newcastle United’s 2013-14 home black, white and Wonga blue home shirt.

Can you spot the differences?
.

Italy and Newcastle United goalkeeper's tops 2012-13.
Italy and Newcastle United goalkeeper’s tops 2012-13.

Tottenham and Newcastle United third kits 2011-12.
Tottenham Hptspur and Newcastle United third kits, 2011-12.

.
Newcastle United home shirt, 2013-14.
Newcastle United home shirt 2013-14 with “Wonga Blue” detailing.

Poll

NUFCBlog Author: workyticket workyticket has written 1096 articles on this blog.

Related Posts:

Posted on by workyticket in category: Newcastle United sponsorship deals and NUFC gossip and speculation and NUFC Kits and Thoughts and reflections and Wonga and Workyticket , with tags: , ,
Comment on this post

89 Responses

  1. With exception to the Adidas kit while we were relegated and the Adidas Championship one, the kits have got worse.

  2. Submitted before I finished… Anyway, what do you expect with the owner, cheap crap that people will still buy especially Newcastle fans. He knows he can exploit the loyalty of supporters because

  3. FFS! Because the club is virtually their world. He could print Sp****D***** Blue and Red stripes as our new home kit and nothing would be done, much like the stadium name change. Couldn’t see that being accepted at a Liverpool, Spurs, Everton etc. Standards have been lowered and accepted so much it’s not even funny anymore. The whole publicity of Wo*** painting over the SD signs and changing the name to St James’ Park was the biggest farce recently, yet some idiots now love the new sponsor for it :)

    But on subject, they are crap shirts that must have taken a good 5 minutes to design and probably cost 25p each to manufacture. Even our kit reveal was cheap with two average players standing in front of a white board. View the other Premier League clubs kit reveals in the papers, even Stoke and Norwich could afford to make an effort.

  4. Team’s shirts are designed primarily so their replicas ‘look good’ with jeans and trainers. An Adidas PR said so when they launched one of our late ’90s kits

  5. If that is the 13-14 home shirt then my god that IS awful, looks like they got someone to go on the ‘paint’ computer programme from Windows ’97 and knock it up on a Friday afternoon in time to go to the pub. It is pretty obvious that Puma are no match to adidas in terms of quality or design. As long as my adidas northern rock effort is still going strong I won’t be buying any of these, and the reason it is sill going is because it is of a lot better quality than this tat.

  6. I too still have the championship winning adidas top, puma one was thrown half way through last season. mind you I didn’t expect anything less off that fat bastard

  8. That is a terrible strip. As DJG said it looks like a kid on their first design project knocked it out on a Friday (I would suggest it was done after the pub).

    Is it trivial or symptomatic of how the club is run? I think an even bigger problem is the total mismanagement so far of the preseason.

    I am sure we will end up in some crappy tournament giving the fans a week to make arrangements.

    Ah, there’s always Motherwell.

  10. I just use cheapfootyshirts.com for mine now. Costs too much for the bairns kits and my shirt every season.

    I give enough to line fatman’s pockets on match days!

    Pretty decent quality for half the price and you can get all the names/numbers you want on their as well.

  11. I am with Jimbob on this one as far as I am concerned I would have been happier to leave the stadium name as Sports Direct than have Wonga come in and splash the cash and change the name back to St James park, most supporters would always refer to the ground as St James Park irrespective of what name they decided to stick on it.As for the argument that clubs advertise gambling and alcohol companies on their shirts to try and defend Wonga I would like to point out that there is treatment available for gambling and excessive alcohol consumption but when your skint and on the bones of your arse there is no help, excepting for the likes of these pay day loan companies who offer a brief feel good factor, until it has to paid back with a a whacking great interest.

  12. <<<<< wont be buying any more shirts but the 1s i have bought in the past are cheap and uncomftable to wear

  13. Puma stuff is GASH – I have three old adidas tops and although not a fan of sportswear I wear em round the manor if I am cleaning or dossing around.
    I wouldn’t buy any Newcastle merchandise that Mike and his cohorts might profit from,if I want something Toon I would buy vintage adidas or earlier umbro or super vintage Bukta.

    The design of those puma tops are totally lame,the fabric of the puma kits is tat…maybe a reflection of us under this dark regime.

  15. If you don’t like them, don’t buy them, if you don’t like what Ashley is doing, don’t go to St. James’ Park.
    Yes there are things one can resort to to get a message through, one of which he pays serious attention too, that’s loosing money.
    Ashley depends on a co-operative fan base who will spend their money for both seats and replica shirts, which they do.
    The sad part is there are bound to be individuals, who not only wear a shirt advertising a loan shark organisation tthat charges more vigorish than the mafia, but a vig.,they may be actually be paying.
    But then they are probably more concerned as to how the shirt looks, as opposed to how they are being ripped off.

  16. don’t mind the away strip incorporating the brand colour, it does make it a bit more coherent. the extra blue bits on the home shirt look shite – hope that doesn’t turn out to be the final kit though it looks like it is. :(

  17. Love the fact u all slate the club for these shirts even tho it’s puma making them. Also saying u won’t buy any nufc Products bet u all still twist we spend no money on players too where do u think the cash comes from in the first place

  18. mac @ 17
    But who caused adidas to not renew their contract with the club and had to find a brand lower down the quality/image foodchain? Who wouldn’t even offer Virgin Money the chance to match/ improve their sponsorship offer so that he could jump into bed with his friends from Wonga? Ashley is happy to cheapen the brand to his level of business acumen, he is the cheapest shop in the mall and we can become the cheapest club in the premiership for all he cares. The reason we have a cheap looking shirt that we don’t want to buy is not because of the fans…

  19. @mac
    what you dont get bud is even if he sold 50 million shirts he still aint going to invest proper money in the team, hes just leaching money off the club, and it will go on as long as hes here.Me 2nd point is also he says he wants to invest in the kids, but do you see him spending money on the youth acadamy.even blooming scumberland down the roads got better youth acadamy than ours.70 million we get from tv money do you think hes going to spend even half of that on the team i dont think so

  21. As far as I’m corncerned the best strip we have ever had is the old grandpa collar adidas home strip with the newcastle brown ale shield on it…never bettered and I still have mine and wear it all the time…you can keep puma and their tat…

  22. I am trying to get all Geordies to reject this sponsor and we should open the season with singing “Wonga is a loan shark” “Wonga steals kids pocket money”
    I have asked the club several times if I can buy the shirt without the “loan shark” advert and they do not reply.
    Please, Please everyone reply to the official store emails with this “loan shark” question and they will eventually get the message.
    When did we Geordies lose the will to fight for our club and culture, and become a cash cow for a fat greedy cockney…..

  23. Thanks for all the feedback lads, keep it coming in!

    Mad Mick, you’re right, it does look like a bizzie’s stab vest from the back!

    BillytheFish, as you probably know, the one thing that will make Ashley sit up and take notice is if a significant amount of people don’t buy the shirts. It would be good if alot of people booed the forthcoming Wonga half time experience too.

  24. I own a sports brand and dream of the day I can get my home town Club kit deal. The design and though as well as the quality is quite simply lazy and insulting. I’m amazed in a brand like Puma would put up such a poor show. Give this kit deal to Tsunami Sport and we’d blow it away lol….

  25. Ravenmad1, Spot on!, The best kit they ever made, I know people still wearing them now, And they still look new.
    They were made out of the same material, That rugby shirts are made of.

    Billythefish, Nice one!, Keep up the good work, Everyone needs to stand together, To rid the club of Ashley, And his cronies!

    Worky, I had a sneaky feeling you might do a write up, On those ghastly kits.
    Personally, I wouldn’t wipe my a**e, With one of them!
    I think everyone knew as soon as our Adidas deal came to an end, The quality of the replica kit, Would go down quicker than Kerry Katona’s bank account.
    Funny enough they have got her fronting another Charveresque Pay Day Lender, With an equally cheap and tatty advert.

  27. joe hawkins says:
    June 11, 2013 at 10:12 am

    “Worky, I had a sneaky feeling you might do a write up, On those ghastly kits.
    Personally, I wouldn’t wipe my a**e, With one of them!
    I think everyone knew as soon as our Adidas deal came to an end, The quality of the replica kit, Would go down quicker than Kerry Katona’s bank account.
    Funny enough they have got her fronting another Charveresque Pay Day Lender, With an equally cheap and tatty advert.”

    Aye Joe, “Cash Lady”. That advert was banned after a huge amount of complaints. It was decided by the ASA that the advert gave the impression that payday loans could help to finance a celebrity lifestyle.

  28. Thousand. But still in the hunt for that big one. Impossible to compete with the kit super powers of addidas, Nike, puma. You can seem even warrior who have a billon dollar backer of NB can’t compete with the big boys.

  29. Andrew says:
    June 11, 2013 at 10:32 am

    “Thousand. But still in the hunt for that big one.”

    Andrew, I would suppose that picking a team, or teams on the rise when you can still negotiate a good deal is the best way in?

  30. Worky, You would have thought they may have picked a better example, Than Miss Katona.
    Her troubles with money are well documented, A schoolboy error on their part, When they are trying to pitch their usury, With a well known Bankrupt.
    No wonder it was banned, And Katona herself is off her head, For having the temerity to front for them, After all her problems.
    It just goes to show, “Cash Is King”, I somehow don’t think we will see too much more from “Cash Lady”!

  31. joe hawkins says:
    June 11, 2013 at 10:58 am

    “Worky, You would have thought they may have picked a better example, Than Miss Katona.”

    Er, they’re not Coutts bank, Joe, they’re a payday loan company called “Cash Lady.” the last thing they would want is a model of financial responsibility. Kerry Katona’s the perfect choice for their potential customers as they can identify with her even though she is a celebrity, and with her financial problems even more so. Jade Goody would have been another good choice if she wasn’t dead.

  32. Oh great they are doing half time shows for us. What will that be, Earl diving into a pool to impress Joyce every game.

  35. Jimbob says:
    June 11, 2013 at 12:10 pm

    “Oh great they are doing half time shows for us. What will that be, Earl diving into a pool to impress Joyce every game.”

    Nah Jimbob, it will be the fans doing that for cash prizes. Last season they were doing half time games with names such as “Wonga cash dash!” and “Ready, steady, Wonga!” within the Wonga “family” of clubs.

    Potentially the most worrying thing will be their involvement with underprivileged 15-16 year olds in the Tyneside area via the Newcastle United foundation.

  36. Worky, When i see Kerry Katona advertising money lending, I wouldn’t be going there lol.
    I’m sure Jade’s mother jackie will be waiting in the wings, For the call.

  37. Andrew says:
    June 11, 2013 at 12:22 pm

    “Bloody geniuse workyticket … Thanks for that!”

    Andrew, I was thinking of teams from the past like Wimbledon, Watford, Swansea and so on who raced right through the League in a few years.

    It’s a different thing to supplying the shirts I know, but Waitrose got themselves splashed all over the Premier League after sorting out a £500,000 per season sponsorship deal with Reading back in the Championship. That’s still alot of course, but as you know, that’s just a small fraction compared with nearly all the other teams and it would have been even better value if they’d stayed up!

  38. I’ll never understand how Kerry Katona and Celebrity, Fit into the same sentence.
    She never sang on any of Atomic Kitten’s songs, And openly states, She only got into the band, Through having other assets.
    The only other thing she done of any kind of note, Was eating kangaroo’s nuts, And being crowned Queen of a manipulated jungle setting, Come television set.

    It’s a pity she didn’t come from Scunthorpe, She could have been on “SKINT”.

  39. What happens if you don’t pay your Wonga loan back in 30 days? Do they send Earl round with a baseball bat. :lol:

  40. The worst loan shark I found was “Peachy” payday loans. They charge the equivalent of 16,381.00% (as in OVER SIXTEEN THOUSAND PERCENT!) representative APR on their loans.

  41. Anyone read the articles in the Guardian in the Friday and weekend editions .
    There was a report on the case against the government by Kenyans, who were incarcerated by the military and Kenyan authorities in concentration camps throughout Kenya.
    Following a case that lasted over three years, the British government finally conceded to pay a pittance of twenty six hundred quid apiece to some 5528 Kenyan victims, but reluctantly and late.
    With secretary Hague apologising for the treatment of a concervitive figure of over one hundred thousand

  42. Incarcerated and tortured , it was described as the bloody Mau Mau uprising, though no one mentioned that ninety nine percent of the blood spilled was that of non white Kenyans.
    There was mention of brutal mistreatment even incidents of castration, murder even some official accounts of prisoners being roasted alive.
    Don’t take my word fjor it read the article in The Guardian, 7th. Of June
    That something on this level could take place without the knowledge being available to the British public , only shows the hypo racy and ability to control the press that existed during that period.
    But the most synical of all, was the equating by British propaganda methods the entire opposite that the Mau Mau were synonymous with evil.
    Of course this now opens a door which could include all of the post WW11,former colonies who had to fight for independence and resulted in similar circumstances being applied, guess the chickens are coming home to roost.

  43. If you don’t like either the quality or design of the shirts, not to mention the fact you are advertising a loansharking organisation, that makes the mafia look like pikers, then just don’t buy one.
    Look! You may believe there is nothing you can do about Ashley and his business methods, but believe it if there was a boycott of these shirts, he would certainly respond.
    As he would if there were a boycott of season tickets or for that matter, tickets period.
    But he’s got you on that one(tickets) selling them well into the future at a discount.

  44. Chuck, if the United States payed out fair and proper compensation for all the innocent people it has killed, injured and tortured in your name, and to all the nations it has destroyed and held in penury through it’s savage military and economic gangsterism, it would be bankrupted several times over.

    Possibly the worst of all though was your generation in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, all of which I know very well. The United States steadfastly refused to pay any compensation to them, even though Dioxin poisoned babies are still being born with no arms and two heads because of what people like you did out there several decades ago.

    If you want to be slightly more contemporary (rather than going back to Kenya in the 1950s), why don’t you mention all the innocent women and children your country are murdering and decapitating in Pakistan as I write this? How much compensation will they be getting then, Chuck? And what are you doing to stop it apart from sitting on your fat arse and whinging about someone else’s crimes from a long time ago? Worry about your own war crimes, as there are many more of them.

  45. Worky

    No doubt, but could you not comment on the question I referred to, rather than becoming all defensive and attempting to change and avoid any mention of this shameful period
    And at a time not long after the horror of the nazi camps during WW11.
    But you missed my point, which was the fact this horror was kept from the general public and until very recently was unknown to many,who still believed the Bruitish propaganda machine and controlled press of that era.
    Which described the Mau Mau as synonymous with everything evil, when in fact it was the opposite, the Kenyan officialdom and British armed forces (many conscripted youngsters perhaps unwillingly of course)that partook in these tortures and killings.
    Plus apart from the Guardian reporting them, I found little mention by any commentators or letters condemning such an important subject.
    Perhaps most are ashamed and embarrassed and only want to sweep it under the mat as quickly as possible.

  46. Chuck says:
    June 11, 2013 at 3:01 pm

    “Which described the Mau Mau as synonymous with everything evil, when in fact it was the opposite”

    The Mau Mau committed numerous atrocities too, Chuck. You can have a conflict where both sides descend into savagery. I daresay that that there will be no compensation for the victims of the massacres and torture carried out by the Mau Mau though.

    BTW, did you serve in Vietnam, Chuck?

  48. Sorry Worky, just got to mention Oliver Stones current “Hidden History of America”, now that does throw a spotlight on some rather nasty, dodgy happenings that are continuing to happen up to Obama even now.

    We don’t have anything to be proud of either!

    Kissinger was very much involved then as he is now.

  49. every country has a savage and brutal history, Nobody is whiter than white!

  51. joe hawkins says:
    June 11, 2013 at 5:14 pm

    “Nobody is whiter than white!”

    Not even the KKK just after they’ve washed all their robes in an Ariel boil wash, Joe?

  54. Boycotting the shirt is an option, as is finding alternatives such as retro shirts for a lot less money and with no “royalties” to SD or Wonga. It also seems that merchandise doesn’t make up that much of the revenue anymore (maybe coz SD undercuts the official sellers anyway). That could be linked to how tatty, expensive and ugly the shirts are.

    I think Worky was having a bit of fun with how god-awful this particular effort looks.

    I always thought that Ashley would be smart enough to see he was getting free advertising for SD and also kit sales through SD were adding to the profits of his main enterprise. I thought he would take this into account with NUFC transfer funds and financing. I am not sure anymore.

    However, I am a bit confused as the wage bill was said to be about 80% of revenue which seems really high. Maybe that was when we were in or coming out of the Championship and was a skewed view, or maybe it is temporary based on the expectation of extra TV money coming in. If it is the latter I can’t see us buying any decent players this offseason.

  55. GS says:
    June 11, 2013 at 6:44 pm

    “However, I am a bit confused as the wage bill was said to be about 80% of revenue”

    GS, I seem to recall that it’s in the high sixties, 68 or 69%. You could’ve have figured it out from the club’s accounts on this site. ;-)

  56. As the only one on here that served out there at that time and suffered at the hands of the Mau Mau and caused suffering.We were the rulers at that time and we all know the saying about power corrupts and it did.I was so pleased when they finally got their compensation to little and to late though.These crimes continue around the world even now and people should always ask the question why.Yes we were the bad guys then and should pay for it. This is my last words on the subject as this is a football forum.(If we ever play football again under ownership and manager?)

  57. pete_toon says:
    June 11, 2013 at 6:42 pm

    “How did we get off topic?”

    It never happened, Pete, move on. Divven’t start Chuck off again FFS. ;-)

  58. On the shirt issue First don’t buy it!
    Second if you do sew or by other means attach something like Loan Sharks under the Wonga bit (choose your own words)

  59. Worky: where are the clubs accounts on your site?

    Anyway, a lot of the time it is hard to find what you are looking for in those tedious lists of figures. Usually someone else is much more interested and will correct me.

    My point stands though. Paying a high % on wages doesn’t seem to fit Ashley’s model. MY expectation will be for him to rectify this. With the extra TV money the situation might fix itself, but that leaves nothing extra for new players and wages as Ashley has shown that he wants to run the club at break even or better.

    This is a problem as other clubs are spending. Even little Norwich have spent on van Wolfswinkel and West Ham are making decent money bids.

    I think Ashley has spent most of the budget in January. We might get a free Agent but we all know we need a quality striker. I hope Ashley can see we are in trouble without one.

  60. So Worky: In summary, you are saying the shirt is a sh*t design, overpriced, sh*t material, with a loan shark on the front and what looks like a police stab vest on the back, made in sweat shops by oppressed labourers to line the pockets of a fat billionaire.

    In that case, I’ll have half a dozen.

  61. GS says:
    June 11, 2013 at 7:31 pm

    “Worky: where are the clubs accounts on your site?

    Anyway, a lot of the time it is hard to find what you are looking for in those tedious lists of figures. Usually someone else is much more interested and will correct me.

    My point stands though. Paying a high % on wages doesn’t seem to fit Ashley’s model…”

    I thought that you were supposed to be a friggin’ finacial expert, GS? We have to whisper when we mention the accounts BTW in case we wake up “Free Scoring Smudge” again ;-).

    As I’ve explained before, Ashley’s Sports Direct is a like a vampire when it comes to NUFC’s finances. The club isn’t making the commercial revenue it should because of all the SD freeloading, and on the merchadising front, SD are undercutting the club there too.

    As well as this, the SD brand, and now the Wonga brand are toxic for the NUFC brand, it is being cheapened by two varieties of shit now, which further deters any quality sponsors wanting to be associated with us like the bigger clubs.

    So, although keeping wages as a proportion of turnover is a priority to Mike Ashley, he will always struggle with that because the club just can’t generate the commercial revenue of other clubs who aren’t being bled dry and degraded by their owner’s more important business interest.

    Here’s the link to the accounts anyway:

    https://nufcblog.org/nufc-accounts-2011-12.pdf

  62. GS says:
    June 11, 2013 at 7:41 pm

    “So Worky: In summary, you are saying the shirt is a sh*t design, overpriced, sh*t material, with a loan shark on the front and what looks like a police stab vest on the back, made in sweat shops by oppressed labourers to line the pockets of a fat billionaire.”

    No, and please stop doing that.

  63. LFC to sign Iago Aspas. He’s 25 years old with 35 goals in 68 appearances over the last two seasons for a not-very-good Celta Vigo side including 12 in 33 this term after promotion. I suggested him for NUFC before last season. Fee reported to be 7M. Might have missed a trick there.

  64. OK @61: That is MY opinion after reading your article and the comments. Is that better? Take it down if you think I am trying to put words into your mouth.

  65. tunyc says:
    June 11, 2013 at 8:58 pm

    “I suggested him for NUFC before last season. Fee reported to be 7M. Might have missed a trick there.”

    Laudrup was after him too, tunyc.

    Meanwhile, Delia must’ve been on the sherry with Hoots again as the Dutch media are reporting that Norwich have agreed a €5.5 million fee with Norwich for Ola Toivonen now. He would slide in very nicely indeed behind Rip van Wolfswinkel if that’s true.

    http://www.vi.nl/nieuws/242370/Norwich-en-PSV-in-beginsel-eens-over-transfer-Toivonen.htm

  66. Worky: I looked at the accounts and we were breaking even with a 68% of revenue wage bill. I don’t want to go into minute detail, but…

    My opinion is two main things have changed – the addition of the January Frenchmen and the increase in TV money. As a guestimate the Frenchies’ wages will take up half the TV money in terms of increased wages. That will probably leave us enough to pay the wages of 2 or 3 quality players. THERE WILL BE NOTHING IN THE BUDGET FOR TRANSFER FEES.

    So, we get a free Agent like Douglas, Ashley dips into his pocket, we sell fringe players to finance one decent player, or we sell a purple or two and use (some of) the proceeds to buy replacements. I doubt Ashley will dip into his pocket again.

    I can’t see it being anything but a frustrating summer as we watch lesser clubs splash the cash whilst we tread water. We are not lost though as we have 5 new players who might help out a lot if they have more time to settle. Plus, it looks like Coloccini will stay.

  67. loving the news on bent, think he would be a steal for 6 mil, proven premier league striker with a point to prove. mind you probably never happen Fulham will out bid us and offer better wages :-(

  68. Works

    To answer your question, yes I spent time in Vietnam , but not in the military.
    And a number of other places around the globe.
    Again you are being defensive, the ratio of black Kenyans killed and tortured and held in concentration camps is something beyond any comparison,with their white counterparts.
    There were fewer than one hundred and fifty white settlers killed and it wasn’t a case of terror, it was a situation where people were fighting to regain their country and land that had been appropriated by white settlers.
    Of course you are continuing the British propaganda of the time, by implying both sides were equally guilty which is nonsense.
    Those same white settlers still live on the lands they stole from the Kikuyu, that’s more than adequate compensation and to intimate that twenty six hundred quid is adequate for both loosing their traditional homelands, being tortured and ,killed by the thousands is just more nonsense.
    Why are you so defensive on this issue, when the facts have now been admitted by the government , you are attempting to defend the indefensible, which by the way has nothing to do with Vienam,Chile , Panama or elsewhere.
    Other than a red herring to use as an argument.

  69. bifftoon says:
    June 12, 2013 at 12:16 am

    “loving the news on bent, think he would be a steal for 6 mil,”

    Aye bifftoon, but there’ll be a million and one stories like that just in the Daily Mail alone before the transfer window ends and we’ll be lucky if one or two of them are true with Ashley!

    They just make them up to titillate us.

  70. Any one believe any part of Hague’s speech to the commons in regard to how you can all relax in regards to being listened to while making phone calls, or worried that perhaps your e-mails may be read by big brother.
    As he has things under control and any fear of GCHQ giving any info to the NSA,is out of the question, though the NSA may in fact be giving GCHQ information on you.
    So for you folk that may be paranoid, it’s not just you they are listening to, it’s everyone and in case your memory is short 1984 was twenty nine years ago.
    There’s just no escaping, no flying under the radar, they know who you are, we make the old East Germany, look like a bunch of amateures
    Ah well when you have nothing to hide why worry ?

  71. Not much happening on the transfer front.
    Same old Douglas and Sissokho stories circulating, with Bent now being thrown into the mix.
    All of which IMO are unlikely.
    Plus no one it appears are interested in our surplus lot.
    My guess is a striker and CD, will be it, then b ring those youngsters out on loan back.
    Ferguson, Sammy, Good and the two kids Dummett and his partner, playing in the SPL.
    After all, Ashley having splashed out for five players during the last window, it’s hardly rational to expect him to continue spending, knowing how he operates.
    It has been rumoured though that Worky’s hero the stalwart Iron Mike Williamson, may go to Cardiff, for a record two million quid ?

  72. Mau Mau Rising’s, Sounds like a Reggae album by Burning Spear.
    I cannot see Ashley paying Bent his 70 grand a week wages, And Bent had a bit of a funny relationship with the fans, Whilst at Sunderland.
    I remember him saying something on his Twitter Account, About how he hated Toon fans, And they had Super glued his car door locks, And abused him etc.
    So you never know, He might not want to come here, And not many go on to cross the divide, Having played for their big rival.
    Plus the fact he’s 29, He doesn’t exactly fit the so called “Blueprint”.
    I wonder whether this is Pardew’s attempt to get the board to look at their stringent policy, And he covers the Premier League experience, That he was banging on about!

    I cannot see Bent working Cisse, And it would be like the Demba Ba situation, All over again.
    The only thing that will save Pardew’s a**e, Is a big target man, Like Andy Carroll!, Otherwise he’s knackered, IMO.

    You have to have more than a chuckle, Looking at The Chronic’s big news, Whether Shola Amoebi should get a contract extension.
    We all know Shola divides opinion, But he gets 28 grand a week, And he’s never fit, And if Pardew is to be believed, He can only train twice a week.
    We have been continually told by fatty, About him wanting his quality for money, And not having players being a drain on resources.
    Surely Shola must fall into that category, And someone younger and fitter, Would play for those wages.
    Apparently he will be told he only has a bit part to play, And he’s looking for more first team starts.
    I cannot see him getting away with what he’s been doing, At another club, They just won’t stand for it.
    We’re talking about a player who has put is name to a physio’s bench, In the same way George Foreman, Has to a grill.

  73. Chuck, We are certainly living in strange times, That much is sure, I wonder if those Iron Mountain Documents, Might now have some truth to them?
    Iron Mountain, Sounds like a Cockney Gay Club lol.

  74. According to The Journal,Bent would welcome the move, So that would put paid to my previous comments, On his dubious past relationship, With Newcastle fans.
    I still think his wages will be a stumbling block, And negotiations may become “PROTRACTED”!

  75. According to The Chronicle, 6 million pounds for Bent is too much, Now there’s the Regime we know and hate!

  76. Joe
    Strange times ?
    Stranger than fiction!

    Nah ! You can take it too the bank, that you will never see Bent in the black and white stripes.

    As for who we will sign, well it’s gonna be a pair, one striker and a defender, plus possibly one for the future.

    The question is, how long before Ashley realises he has a liability on his hands and fires
    Pardew ?

    The blog should run a pool on whether he will make it past Christmas, the one thing we know is it’s inevitable, just a matter of time.
    However the question remains will he be replaced by someone similar, a retread ? Or will Ashley realise that winning sides earn more money and sell more shirts,and therefor hire a real manager ?
    Somehow I can’t seem to believe that will happen , due to his control freak nature.
    Ah well !

  77. One thing is for certain Chuck, I cannot see Pardew turning it around.
    I think it’s safe to say, We’ll be in store for more of the “Shock & Awe”, Aerial bombardment Football.
    It’s a good idea running a sweep, Because Pardew will be under more pressure, Than he has ever seen before!

  78. Chuck says:
    June 12, 2013 at 8:51 am

    “It has been rumoured though that Worky’s hero the stalwart Iron Mike Williamson, may go to Cardiff, for a record two million quid ?”

    He was off to Swansea before that. They seem to be very keen to banish him to Wales. Perhaps it’s because “Williamson” sounds vaguely Welsh, though William is Norman, like William the Bastard.

  79. worky @ 64:

    “Laudrup was after him too”

    I’ll take that as a compliment!

    I also suggested Jose Rondon and Shane Long before they were on the radars of big clubs. But what do I know? (In fairness, I thought we should take fliers on Kris Boyd and Marouane Chamakh as well, so…)

  82. tunyc says:
    June 12, 2013 at 4:19 pm

    “I also suggested Jose Rondon and Shane Long before they were on the radars of big clubs.”

    tunyc, to wheel out my little Carr hypothesis one more time, if they don’t play for clubs situated relatively close to the route of the Eurostar train, or for clubs who play away games in grounds close to the Eurostar route, I wouldn’t hold out too much hope of us signing them. If we do, they’ll probably be players suggested by Alan Pardew so let’s not go there.

    Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying he doesn’t fly out there nowadays, as I have seen him at an Airport. However, I do think at some stage in the past he has developed a “beat” he travels centered around the route of the cross channel train.

  83. The club have nothing to do with the design of shirts, unfortunately you can’t blame Ashley and Pardew for every problem in the world. Most kits made by Puma will have similar designs, Dortmund last year had our kit but in different colours and if you look at all new Puma kits they have that rather strange collar design, home kit, across them all. NUFC have had blue on home shirts before and have also had blue away kits since the 1970’s. Adidas kits were criticised by fans, two home kits were identical with minimal changes but we couldn’t blame Ashley for that so I’m not sure who actually got the blame.

  84. Gordielaa says:
    June 12, 2013 at 6:39 pm

    “unfortunately you can’t blame Ashley and Pardew for every problem in the world.”

    I think you’ll find that we can indeed blame Ashley, Llambias and Pardew for every problem in the World on here, Gordielaa. ;-)

  85. @andrew… had a quick look at the tsunami, nicely done. i wouldn’t hold up warrior as an example though as their liverpool efforts are heading straight into the football kit ‘hall of shame’. last season’s were bad, this season even worse. they’ve also made a shabby effort of sevlla’s new kits for next season.

  86. all kit manufacturers use templates, they always have. so this isn’t really a relevant criticism of Puma. it is unusual for a club to get a bespoke design which is what Newcastle enjoyed in the early days with adidas. let’s not forget that adidas were capable of off-days in their kit designs for us… however the manufacturing quality was vastly superior to that of Puma. they clearly use a better class of Indonesian sweatshop.

    Puma’s templates are terrible. so even before I’d seen the new toon shirt I knew they’d be horrible because I’d seen the 13/14 season templates which, as mentioned are shit.

    it’s not unusual for a sponsor’s colour palette to be incorporated into shirt designs and blue is a traditional 3rd colour for us so it sort of makes sense. whether it’s actually ‘wonga’ blue or PMS 072 is a moot point.

    the black panel on the back is there for a reason. the media will tell you it’s to make the number more legible for TV and commentators. the marketing department will tell it’s to accommodate a further £10 per shirt in names and numbers.

    again this tactic isn’t restricted to Puma, it’s fairly common practice, remember that god awful shield adidas had on the back of the 97-98 home kit?

    @joe and worky and the others who talk of boycotts etc. there just isn’t the appetite.

    over the penines in bolton they did something about it. they protested they engaged with the club and they got their loan-shark sponsor removed form the shirts. our lot haven’t got the heart for a fight. a few murmurs the day the sponsorship deal was announced, a slight-of-hand with the stadium ‘renaming’ and 52,000 mugs are happy again.

    to me the wonga sponsorship is the the most offensive thing ashley has got us involved in and is the reason i’m not renewing my season ticket (after 20 years).

    i haven’t bought a toon shirt since he arrived and won’t until he leaves. and i certainly will never advertise that bunch of money-lending crooks.

  87. Stewpot, WTF have you been?

    I think “Wonga blue” sounds better than PMS 072, don’t you?

    I didn’t really criticise Puma for using templates as such, and yes, Adidas and other manufacturers use them too. I meant to criticise them for using shit templates in a lazy fashion and being shit designers in general.

    That shield thing never appealed to my aesthetic sensibilities either but at least they made an effort of some kind.

    And of course, the bizzie’s stab vest on the back is for ten pounds worth of extra letters.

  88. It’s all about making an extra few cents a shirt, face it an off the rack suit was always cheaper than a custom made one.
    But every manufacturer in the globe goes hunting for the cheapest producers, look at the recent Bengladesh horror,but do you think things will change, no! It will be like the bed sheet crowd at St. James’, ignore it and they will go away.
    As Stewpot sez, there’s no heart for it !
    But I have to say I knowing nothing about design or fabrics, could certainly come up with a better design plus using a better fabric and at the same price, the difference would be in the profit.
    And the fact that the crap fabric used in to-days shirts last only for a season, forcing those with kids to repeat the process the following season, plus put a lot more profit in the pockets of both manufacturer and club.

    Where did I read it recently, “The wealth of the rich is based on the poverty of the poor”
    So go out and borrow at an outrageous interest rate and proudly wear the logo of the loansharks, if you don’t give a damn, cause that’s what bothsponcer and manufacturer are counting on.
    Believing you are either too dumb or just don’t give a damn.

  89. Stewpot, If you don’t act now, You will lose the club altogether?
    You have to ask yourself whether you want your club ran by people with the mentality, Who think they should get Darren Bent, On a free?
    People who are not living in reality, And seem to be of the level of trading Subbuteo teams.
    Look at the level they are operating at now, The French Ligue 2, Amalfitano anyone?
    Ashley and his cohorts, are complete s**t!