Final score from St. James Park:

Newcastle United 0 - 0 Arsenal

After the disastrous Man City result last weekend we went into the Easter period fearing the worst and expecting very little to be honest and if the football gods had offered us four points for the next two games on Good Friday we’d have gladly snapped their hands off and tucked into our Easter Eggs.

So after a battling display that gained us three very important points at Bramall Lane we were suddenly faced with the visit of Arsenal to SJP today with a wave of optimism returning.

However, for this game Roeder was forced into making three personnel changes, with Gooch coming in for Moore, Emre replacing Parker and Sibierski making way for Dyer up front.

Newcastle had started the game the brightest and had a good chance to score when an Emre free kick fell to Gooch who shanked his effort and Lehmann made a fine save.

Shay Given seemed to pull up holding his groin muscle (again!) and was replaced by Steve Harper on 25 minutes. This looks like Shay’s season is over.

The first half didn’t produce too many openings for either side after that but Ljungberg was booked for dissent on 30 minutes – apparently for something said to the niggly Howard Webb who constantly stopped the game for the slightest of touches. Half-Time 0-0.

The second half started brightly for Newcastle and we looked up for it early on with Milner hitting a fantastic shot only to see it come back off the crossbar.

The Toon formation required a reshuffle when N’Zogbia replaced Dyer on 52 minutes (Dyer looked like he was holding his hamstring – but it was later confirmed that this was a strain, not a tear) with Emre going up front alongside Martins and Duff tucking inside.

Steven Taylor and Gallas were booked on 77 minutes in what was described as ‘handbags’ by Mick Lowe on Radio Newcastle, with Lehmann inevitably involved in the ensuing melee.

As the game started to wind down and looking like a draw, there was time for a few scares as Nobby Solano cleared two goal bound efforts from Gilberto off the line. (New contract for Nobby please?)

There was still time for Luque to make a guest appearance, replacing Emre with 2 minutes left on the clock (surely this oozing sore will leave in the summer?)

So as the sun shone on Tyneside we can almost [*] look forward to safety and Premiership football at SJP next season, right?

Howay The Lads.

[*] Remember West Ham were relegated in 2003 with 42 points under Glen Roeder and that Crystal Palace were relegated on 45 points in 1995 and also (somewhat amazingly) relegated in 1993 with 49 points.

Final score from Bramall Lane:

Sheffield United 1 (Nade 74) – Newcastle United 2 (Martins 17, Taylor 80)

Is Taylor really a Geordie? What is the definition of Geordies? You know what – who cares. The central defender rose majestically to head home a James Milner corner with just 10 minutes left on the clock to record a crucial victory for the Toon, and plunge Sheffield United firmly into the relegation zone.

It’s no less than we deserved having bossed much of the game. We took the lead on 17 minutes when Martins superbly volleyed home after a Milner lay-off (welcome back James!) and our Nigerian could have increased his tally had he shown a wee bit more composure infront of goal.

Our best opportunity to double the lead came just after the hour when Martins saw an effort rebound off the post and to Sibierski who, despite having time to take a touch, decided to go for power – and ultimately missed the goal entirely.

It looked like we would be punished for that miss when poor defending allowed Christian Nade to score from a few yards out and with Bramall Lane jumping it looked like a winner would only come from the home side.

Incredibly though, we passed the ball around well and with the introduction of Dyer, we had pace through the middle and started to hit Sheffield United on the counter attack. Dyer and Martins both had chances but it was a Milner corner that found our young central defender and he powered home a header to collect all three points.

As usual, we almost threw it away but Shay made an outstanding save in the dying seconds to preserve the three points and ‘almost’ eliminate any relegation fears.

The goals can be viewed here.

ToonArmyUSA in Newcastle!

April 4th 2007

At the end of February, ToonArmyUSA member Matty Faria went over to Newcastle to take in the Zulte (H) and Wigan (A) games. He took a few pictures at both games - and a few of Newcastle city center inbetween, including one with a certain Mr. Solano. To view Matty's pictures,click here.

Poll Result - The 2007/08 Home Shirt - Love it or Hate it?

April 4th 2007

Last week we asked you the following question:

The new home shirt - Do you love it or hate it?

And this is how you answered:

- Love it, 58.06%
- Hate it, 16.13%
- Indifferent, 25.81%

So while nobody knows how next season (or even this season!) will turn out, at least the majority of us will enjoy watching the lads play in their new black and white shirts!

APRIL FOOLS

April 2nd 2007

Final score from St. James Park:

Newcastle United 0 – 1 Manchester City (Mpenza 82)

We said in the preview for this game; “Nothing short of a victory and commanding performance is required from our pampered heroes”.

To say they didn’t quite deliver would be an understatement. Again a lack of urgency in attack and an all too familiar defensive lapse cost us dearly.

The atmosphere at St. James Park was understandably hostile given the fact we haven’t scored a goal in the league since a home win against Liverpool in February and we crashed out of the UEFA Cup all too easily.

The club is now stuck at the cross roads in terms of how we move forward in the future. However there is no doubt we need to clear some of the dead wood in our squad, with the likes of Carr, Bramble, Babayaro and Moore all hopefully on the way out.

To think that we have players in our ranks such as Duff and Parker (allegedly two of the most gifted players in the league) who continually fail to impress, now means that we must look to our manager.

Roeder seems to have completely lost the ability to motivate his players and now the supporters, many of whom were calling for his head on Saturday, are desperate for change.

A year ago, Roeder could do no wrong but since the second game of the season against Villa, it was clear the honeymoon period was well and truly over. As was mentioned on our message boards this weekend – Roeder seems to manage the squad to “avoid defeat” and not to win. We can’t disagree with this.

Despite continuing to take steps in the wrong direction this season, Shepherds strangle hold over the club has become tighter and unless someone steps in to buy us out soon next season could be truly horrific.

Next up for us are Sheffield United, a team with virtually no international stars and a modest wage bill, stadium and coaching staff. They are however, a team with heart, spirit and the willingness to get stuck in.

No goals in April? We wouldn’t be surprised…