'Road to Wembley' slightly longer now...John Anderson probably summed it up nicely towards the end of his Radio Newcastle commentary, that both managers would have been happy with a draw before this game. But as the referee blew the final whistle with the score at 0-0, it will surely be Plymouth boss Paul Mariner who will be happier than his Newcastle counterpart Chris Hughton. Obviously this despite the inconvenience for their fans of another 800-mile-round-trip to St James’ for the replay, a week on Wednesday.
The FA Cup throws the form book out of the window, and even though Plymouth have improved in recent games, that suited them due to their lowly position. Newcastle, conversely at the summit of the Championship, made several changes to protect the squad from a demanding run-in ahead. And so if anything, with home advantage, you’d have been excused for putting Plymouth as favourites. However, Hughton still fielded a strong team, and but for some good goalkeeping and wayward finishing, we did enough to win this game. (more…)
Tricky tie at Home Park!Cup fever hits Tyneside for the first time in the new decade, as Newcastle visit Plymouth in today’s FA Cup 3rd Round tie at Home Park! As the last few have been relatively successful, here’s another link you can just use for the match banter. Unfortunately, my better half changed our holiday plans, so as we’re not in the area, ‘wor lass’ frowned on the idea of me going.
Like yours truly, not all Toon fans are lucky enough to be there (if lucky is the right word to embark on a such a hike!). With the game not being beamed out live anywhere, it’s probably not going to be possible to watch directly, as I’m not sure how the ITV links will work abroad. But if anyone can find radio, video links etc to the game for people who don’t have it, I’m sure that would be appreciated. As ever, this can be the place to come together during the match and p*ss and moan, as we usually do.
There’s no probable teams news [UPDATED BELOW], as Hughton has suggested a much changed side, and it’s likely to be anyone’s guess who plays, although Deb has done a preview article and both have strong squads to choose from. Hopefully we’ll get line-ups on here before the start. (more…)
Howay the New Year!This time ten years ago, we were staring into a brand new millenium and the late great Sir Bobby Robson was halfway through the first season of his popular reign as manager at Newcastle United. The slightly uninspiring capture of Diego Gavilan was the only January transfer that Robson made and the little Paraguayan never made the impact he would have hoped for at St James’. Sir Bobby, conversely, went on to create one of the most exciting sides of a Toon generation.
Despite falling short as Keegan had done back in the ’90s, with his wealth of experience, Robson played a brand of football that the supporters could once again get behind. And the football wasn’t just good to watch but effective as we flirted with European and domestic success. But of course, the end of his reign was somewhat soured by it’s nature as many fans welcomed the decision feeling he’d lost the dressing room, and he was unceremoniously dumped by Freddy Shepherd.
2000 actually saw Robson get rid of one of our most infamous and old-fashioned bad-boys, Duncan Ferguson, but the new millenium brought the advent of a new type of bad-boy. The ‘noughties’ became the decade of the ‘naughties’ as Robson built his side around ‘bling boys’, such as the likes of Keiron Dyer, Jermaine Jenas, Titus Bramble and Craig Bellamy. (more…)
Possibly some Derby fans. Or possibly not.I was just going to write the word ‘garbage’ and leave it at that for my write-up on the Derby game, my feelings shared by many Newcastle fans spilling out of St Jame’s Park after last night’s game. However, my choice to indulge in some enjoyable ales on the way back to the station for the last train, has given me time to ponder.
And yes, we were still garbage, but there is more to it than just that. Even as I made my way from Durham, I sensed that things seemed flat amongst the supporters, and undoubtedly that was evident on the park for some of our players last night. This word ‘complacency’ has almost lost all meaning, as the doubters and knockers rub their hands in glee at the prospect of another black and white collapse following an impressive lead. While the ‘Class of 96’ was certainly more high-profile, something tells me that our detractors would enjoy our demise just as much this time round. (more…)
Ram-raid!Following on from the previous games threads, I thought it would be a good idea to put up another article for the Derby game, that you can just use for the match banter. Once again, yours truly will be in attendance but not all Toon fans are lucky enough to be there..
Of course the game is on Sky Sports but as not all posters are based in the UK, it might not be possible to for them to watch directly. So if anyone can find radio, video links etc to the game for people who don’t have it, I’m sure that would be appreciated. As ever, this can be the place to come together during the match and p*ss and moan, as we usually do. Squad news is on the preview article but hopefully we’ll get line-ups on here before the start. (more…)
