James Collins seals the win for Villa.As the teamsheets were read out and the players prepared for action, there was news that Shola Ameobi would not be playing, not even on the bench. Subsequently it turned out that he had picked up a knee injury on the morning of the game. It also became apparent that Alan Pardew would be using Fabricio Coloccini in a defensive midfield role today due to the ravages of injuries and suspensions in midfield. So it was that Ranger got his first Premier League start, alongside Peter Lovenkrands at the front.
To the game itself. Newcastle kicked off, there were a one or two chances including an excellent cross from Jose Enrique found an galloping, unmarked Joey ‘best English midfielder’ Barton in the area. However it was a fairly low headed chance which he ballooned over the goal. Another real chance came around the nine minute mark when Newcastle broke with Ranger. However, instead of doing the decent thing and squaring the ball to an unmarked Lovenkrands for what could have been a much better opportunity, he took a heavy first touch, ending up launching a fairly tame effort at Brad Friedel in the Villa goal. (more…)
Lovenkrands after tucking away the third goal.The sun shone and Newcastle made hay at SJP on Saturday!
The Magpies got off to a decent start. As early as the 4th minute when Joey Barton was hacked down around midfield, he picked himself up and from the resultant free kick, curled in an excellent ball to be met by a diving Mike Williamson, with the Wolves ‘keeper just managing to turn it around the post.
It was all Newcastle for the first few minutes, but they were unable to prize a clear opening.
It seemed that we’d got the same ref as last time, with Mike Dean being sucked into Wolves typical tactics like a wet noodle. Whenever a Toon player got close they went to ground, whenever Newcastle had the ball they were chopped down. The refs falling for their ‘gamemanship’ gave me an ominous feeling in the pit of my stomach. (more…)
Strolla after banging in the second Newcastle goal.With Newcastle needing a victory fast to avoid getting sucked in to the fight at the bottom end of the Premiership table, it was with much anticipationm and some trepidation that I began viewing this game.
After the kickoff, Newcastle seemed to get off to a fairly brisk start with Peter Lovenkrands leading an attack on the Wolves goal as he chased down a long kick from Steve Harper, cutting through the Wolves defemce. The ball is safely gathered by by Wolves goalkeeper, Wayne Hennessy however, and the ball is soon up at the other end of the pitch where Wolves striker, Sylvan Ebanks Blake, worries Harper in the Newcastle goal. Once again though, the ball was gathered and the panic was over but it was “end to end stuff” as they say. There were in general quite a few long punts producing action at both ends of the pitch, at least in the early stages of the game.
Somewhat predictably, Wolves midfielder, Karl Henry, was given a less than hospitable welcome by the St James’s faithful as he took his first touch of the ball, a reminder of rather “robust” treatment of Joey Barton in the last encounter between the two sides at Molineux earlier in the season. This time, there seem to be some rather clumsy challenges going in all round though, with Henry himself on the receiving end of a rather clumsy one from Shola Ameobi in the ninth minute of the game. Just after that though, Ameobi almost went on to score as he charges on to Christophe Berra’s clearance and a lucky deflection almost loops over Hennessy. Luckily for him and Wolves though, he manages to get his hand on it, preventing a certain goal. (more…)
Best scores, but it wasn't enough.With Newcastle United and the fans hoping for a victory that would take them into the European places, this game started with some optimism in the air.
After Newcastle kicked off though, the game proceeded in a fairly scrappy fashion mostly for the first fifteen minutes or so. Tiote seemed no time in getting stuck in (as usual) bringing down Everton’s Phil Neville (seemingly playing in midfield today) with a very firm challenge in virtually no time.
There was a bit of cut and thrust both ways, but with no moves going very far on either side really. It wasn’t until almost a quarter hour into the game when Everton goalkeeper, Tim Howard, gets his hands on the ball for the first time. It was also Everton who had the first real chance of the game after seventeen minutes. Starting with Kevin Nolan lashing the the ball across the Toffees goal with no one to connect, Ex Magpie, Sylvain Distin (or “Sacha Distel” as Bobby Robson used to call him) scrambles the ball away, launching an very good Everton counterattack. With another ex Magpie, Louis Saha eventually finding Mikel Arteta in space on the right flank. Arteta, a candidate for man of the match by the time the game was done, cuts the ball towards goal, forcing an excellent save from Steve Harper. The resulting corner sees Everton’s Leon Osman having another crack, but that effort was also unsuccessful, going just wide of the Newcastle goal. (more…)
Cue the Chicken dance! Nolan scores.This game started with something of a disappointment as it was revealed that one of Newcastle United’s talismen, Joey Barton, could not start the game.
He was due to take his usual role in the starting line up, however he had to be replaced due to some kind of malady. His replacement, Ryan Taylor, was to have a big influence on the game later on, though perhaps not in the way that the fans would have preferred. More on that later though.
Back to the beginning, it was Bolton who kicked off towards the the Gallowgate. They made a lively start to a game which started at a fairly frantic pace with action at both ends. Within the first minute or two, Bolton were winning a corner and forcing a slightly fumbled save from Steve Harper. It was Newcastle who had the first real chance in the game though, with Best doing some nice work to cut in past Bolton’s Marcos Alonso and get in a left foot shot which wasn’t very wide of the goal at all. (more…)
