Game No 13....

Glutton for punishment or what... Got a ticket for St Andrews on Monday night now. One the advantages of working near Birmingham is that it means I don't have a five hour journey home after a Monday night game... in fact it might be the only advantage.

I'm sure it will be grim, again. Birmingham are two places below us and two point behind us... So apparently that makes this a "six pointer"... I was relieved that they got nothing from Portsmouth yesterday, but at least they are scoring goals, which is more than our attack is doing at the moment. Please Kevin, give Oba a start... he's so much more convincing than either Owen or Smith (who last scored when players were paid in pounds, shillings and pence). However, we will be without Milner as he's injured after the Anfield humiliation, but ring the bells... Joey Barton is available for selection. Deep joy.

I also found myself watching Bolton on the TV tonight, and willing them onto win. This is odd because Bolton still pay terrible football and irrationally I want to blame Bolton Wanderers for employing Allardyce and leading him to the door at St James' Park. Anyway, I wanted them to win tonight, not out of a desire to see a Premiership club progress in the Uefa cup, but in the hope that a cup run would distract them sufficiently from their position in the league. Needless to say they lost. Bloody typical.

Anyway, Monday will be game 13 since our last win. Unlucky number? I still say that we make our own luck. If Newcastle don't win and other result go against us then we will be replacing Bolton in that 3rd from bottom. Time for the battle cry and unwavering support for the full 90 mins from the fans - I'd even cheer if Barton scored. Fickle or what?

It's my duty

The text came yesterday... bad news.... I've got a ticket for Anfield on Saturday. It's going to be grim. I'll need to have the pubs and psychiatric hospitals on high alert. I'll be the one purple with rage, screaming at the useless wasters on the pitch and wishing that I'd saved myself the petrol for the journey. [Oh, and standing next to me will be a slightly more demure soul, harping on about the "so called City of Culture", swearing in Northern Irish and bragging about using an Apple Mac - but I digress.].

It'll be another ugly game - in which no doubt the players will have a decent start and then remember they are playing a better team and capitulate in the same way that we have done against Villa and Manure. No Given or Emre; but equally no Barton or Carr - so its not all bad news. Of course EMO will be returning to his former employers. I wonder
a) what sort of reception he'll get from the home fans... he was booed last time he appeared in a black and white shirt at Anfield
b) how interested he will be...no point to prove
Well, I'll be there to witness it anyway. I just hope that Oba starts.

Of course all of the above is reverse psychology... I think that we are going to win (despite the fact that Torres has hit a hat trick tonight ) but every time I say this to anyone I get stared/laughed at. We'll see...

Genius - Not

I see that EMO* has been doing his captains PR stint prior to Saturdays game. Stating that we are short on confidence, but he's sure that Newcastle will get themselves out of trouble. He then has gone on to say that the game on Saturday is winnable, but that the one against Liverpool isn't. OK, I'm paraphrasing slightly, this is what he's reported as saying

This game against Blackburn on Saturday is one you look at and think Newcastle at home should be getting something out of it.

"If we can do that we can get a bit of confidence. We then play Liverpool and after that we have got a few games that are winnable.

Now, it could be argued that he's being realistic, but I'm not sure that I want a realistic captain. I want someone who will cajole, rabble-rouse and inspire the best in any team he plays for. I want someone who believes that his team can win every game and will drive his team forward to do that.

I can't see Owen doing this, he has that wonderful strikers selfishness that means that all that is important to him is scoring goals. He's not a team player, and its not his job to be that. I can't see him inspiring Charlie Zog to put in a better cross or for Steven Carr to become a defender again. And as for the comment above, I still think his allegiance lies with his previous employers rather than his current ones... And given half a chance he'll be off in the summer. Not what is needed of a captain in a relegation scrap is it?

The other news this week is that Oba Martins is going to sign a new contract. Good. I just hope he celebrates with a hat-rick against Blackburn tomorrow.... Off now for my medication...

*EMO - England's Michael Owen

Motivation

Well, its a football free weekend for the Toon, the FA Cup juggernaut trundles on, with Newcastle left in an Arsenal inspired wake... So, news has been a bit thin on the ground this week, with one exception - Charles N'Zogbia has said that he's "homesick" and wants to leave the Toon.

This bad news for a couple of reasons - the first is that ever since he came to us from Le Harve he's been one of our best performers. Always whole hearted, quick (both on foot and in the head) and adaptable playing either left wing or left back. Secondly, its bad news because if this "Keegan Second Coming" (copyright Evening Chronicle) is going to stand a chance of working then we'll need wingers. To me, Milner and Charlie Zog will fit the bill perfectly.

After reading a bit more into the story (which has surfaced a couple of times) it transpires that he's actually homesick for London and not France... Odd that, seeing as Spurs keep being quoted as being interested in him.... Now I may be being cynical but to me London isn't that much easier to get to Harfluer from than Newcastle is. So, another money (or agent) inspired move is on the cards.

I could understand it if he'd been treated badly by the club, but he has just signed a new contract at the start of the season (presumably with improved terms), he plays most weeks, he's a favorite with the fans (Zog on the Tyne chant is testament to that) and he's just starting to break into the French national side. So why do we have trouble hanging onto players? Is it geography? Unlikely. Lack of funds? Almost certainly not. The absence of European football will be having an effect, and this may be the cause. However, I'd guess its more to do with the economics that are involved in a transfer - a dollop of money to an agent, a dollop to the player and hey presto contract broken.

As an aside - why do the Toon have such difficulty with French players? NUFC.com have pointed this out some time ago - but Goma, Boumsong, Bernard, Distin, Guivarc'h, Robert have all been either complete wasters or do well for a while and then implode. The finest example of this was David Ginola - wonderful player - when he could be bothered. Re-built his career at the Toon and then upped sticks for Spurs (hummm... maybe a theme here) and left in a galic huff when Kenny Dogleash arrived.

So I really hope that Charlie Zog decides to stay in Newcastle - for one thing if he does move one of my favorite bits of football trivia this year will not be as relevant.... "Which tennis grand slam finalist has a cousin that plays for the Toon?" I wonder if he and Charlie have had a go on the courts on Nuns Moor Road - like I did as a kid??

They just don't Understand

I spend a lot of time traveling thanks to a job that sees me living in Manchester and working in Birmingham. One of the things that keeps me sane (ish) as I suffer the regular hell of the M6 motorway is listening to Radio five live - a BBC sports and news station. Apart from when Nicky Campbell is presenting the breakfast show - but that supercilious Scotsman is another story... and don't get me started on how Eamon Holmes ruins my Saturday mornings.....

This week has seen a lot of attention on Newcastle United, mainly as I expect that the Southern based press expected the Toon to loose heavily against Arsenal and then sniffed the potential sacking of Allardyce by the time that Nicky Campbell next pollutes the airwaves with his self publicising opinions - oops, there I go again.

Last night there was an edition of 5 Live Sport from Newcastle to discuss the malaise at the Toon. Well, of course they were slightly scuppered as the expected capitulation against Arsenal hadn't happened and its unlikely that Allardyce will be taking up the England/Scotland/Eire job in the near future. Therefore, they drifted back into the lazy stuff about why Newcastle never win anything. The panel consisted of Mick Lowes (a BBC Newcastle match-day reporter) Steve Claridge (ex player, manager) and Gabrielle Marcotti. The ensuing discussion was about what constituted a "Big Club". Lowes suggested that it was due to the level of support and Marcotti kept on suggesting that what defined a big club was the size of the trophy cabinet. The killer statement was from Marcotti when he suggested that Leeds and West Ham were bigger than the Toon because they had won stuff more recently and they had more potential. Needless to say I was shouting at the radio and the people in the lane next to me as I crawled along the M6 at 10 miles an hour started to stare.

Its not that I object to my team being portrayed as a small club - I really don't care, they are the club I support, if they were in the Premiership or the Rymans League... But, its the complete misunderstanding of journalists as to what drives 52,000 people to turn up at St James Park every other week despite not having anything to add to the trophy cabinet for the past 40 years. The reasons for this are legion, just some of them are:-

• Mis-management of the club by owners over the past 100 years from Westwood to Shepard
  
• Linked to the above, panicked managerial appointments (McFaul to Roeder)
  
• Linked to the above, poor player purchases (Givarch to Luque)
• Being just good enough to sit at the top table, but lacking the resources, guile or funds to maintain to win
• Being a long way from London, and therefore making it difficult to attract overseas quality players

Linked to the last point, Lowes asked Marcotti how often he'd been to Newcastle, he confessed he'd been twice... Twice from a supposed "expert on Premiership football". So, he'd just taken the usual Southern based prejudices and made a few sweeping generalisations. Claridge had more sense, saying that the Newcastle managers job would be the dream job in world football if (and my god that's a big if) Newcastle ever won anything.

Anyway, its Birmingham City today - and no win in the last six games. Those green shoots of recovery that started at Blackburn and have grown a bit more after Arsenal, need to start to bloom....

We'll see.

Fast flowing football

Blackburn 3 Toon 1

Interesting day in the wilds of Lancashire - yes we got beat, again; yes we are slipping down the league table, again; and yes some of the numpties have been booing the team, again. But, to paraphrase a political party - the green shoots of a recovery where evident.

The passion and pride in playing for the shirt where evident across most of the team. The game could have just as easily finished 2-2 rather than another loss. Playing Smith and Martins up front gave us a nip and zip that had been lacking in recent weeks and restoring Milner to the team gives a sense of purpose. The defence is still a shambles at times, but the sooner that Faye gets back to fitness (went off after about 20 mins - must have been brought back too soon) and Beye, Taylor, Rozenhal, Cacapa (give him a 2nd chance?) Enrique (still not sure about him) and Carr (jury isn't so much out on him as already having him sent down) are sorted out then things will start to improve.

The highlights of the day where Martins goal and the ensuing bedlam, Stevie Harper warming up and suggesting that some of the fans had been drinking as we chanted "England's number one" at him and the blokes outside the pub chanting "dodgy perm" at a couple of septuagenarians who wandered past.

A personal highlight was the winning of a small side bet. Despite the pre-match doom and gloom I had a feeling that it would be a good game. It was (despite what the papers say) and fulfilled my prediction of the 3 Fs - Fast, flowing football. Most of all it was entertaining. Ok, we lost (see first sentence) but at least I had my half time pie paid for as a result of the change in attitude from the players - thanks lads.

Wednesday, Arsenal - hummm we'll see.

Mike Ashley - Media genius

I've been kicking this thought around for a few weeks now.... I think that Mike Ashley is playing a very clever PR game. It occurred to me at the mackem game and I've been mulling it over ever since. When he first arrived he was supposed to be this recluse (see Britain's answer to the late Howard Hughes. ) that would hardly be seen at the matches and wanted to stay out of the limelight. Well, he's not done that has he?

Firstly there was the wearing of the Toon top (with Alan Smith's name and number on - no pressure there then, Alan), followed up by stories about him going out on the lash and buying the whole of the pub a drink, and then the ultimate 'man of the people' move, joining the 'ordinary' Toon fans in the away end at the Stadium of Plight. I was so moved by this that I ventured that I'd happily marry him and bear his children after this (not likely for reasons far to numerous to mention...) And then I started thinking....

He's certainly a breath of fresh air after the attention seeking, self aggrandizing bucket of lard that was our previous chairman. He's endeared himself to the Toon army in the past few months in a way that Fat Fred and his sycophants never would have dreamed of - he's shown an understanding and tapped into the psyche of the Newcastle fan base beyond the comprehension of any of the previous owners of the club. So that's how... perhaps the most important question is why?

The cynic in me says its helps shift shirts... Shirts that are for sale in his sports shops up and down the country. After all we are the 3rd best supported club in England - and us barcodes like to buy a lot of shirts. However, I think its more than just that. Could it be that Mr Ashley is doing his market research? What better way to hear about your punters views than by listening to what is said in the pubs and on the terraces (well almost)?? Its a great way to do market research. Interesting when you think about it and also startlingly obvious.

But the thing that makes it work so well - is the lack of contact that he gives the media... What does he sound like? I've no idea, might be David Beckham or maybe Sean Connery. I'm happy not knowing. It all helps preserve his mystique - and long may it continue

Depressed - but I'd never boo

Toon 0 - Liverpool 3

Hopeless, hapless, clueless - that pretty much sums up the debacle today. BUT - thats not what I object to (well, I do, but thats for another day) what is really boiling my blood is the booing of players.

Firstly, I'd never boo a player when he pulls on a black and white shirt - (not unless he'd done something - like Nicky Butt's complete non appearance at the FA Cup semi V Manure). He might be really poor, he might lack ability, he might show complete disinterest (e.g. Patrick Kluivert, Albert Luque etc) but its my job to cheer on the team - the team I support. The clue is in the name...

Secondly, don't boo the opposition players. If they are any good it will only encourage them. I recall Shearer saying that the booing/taunting of the Manure fans used to spur him on. Today booing Steven Gerrard just made him play better. The only time I can remember it working was in the FA Cup against Spurs, when Ginola was given the dogs abuse throughout the first half. The effect of 40,000+ people shouting at him was such that he just sat down in the centre circle and had a hissy fit. BUT we had a right to give Ginola abuse - he'd jilted us for the bright lights of the Smoke... However, Gerrard has only played poorly for an international team. It doesn't make sense... So stoppit.

My preference would be to show the opposition complete disinterest... They all have inflated ego's anyway - so lets not pander to them. Also, it gives the bloody London based sports press another chance to have a pop at the stupid Northerners... So lets not give them the ammunition. But, the chants of "Big Sam for England" from 3/4 of the ground did make me smile.

Got my ticket for next Saturday's game v Blackburn - oh, I can barely wait...... Sarcasm, another of my unattractive traits.

PS - Just been cheered up by the mackem v Everton score... Thank you toffees :-)

England's Michael Owen

So - the baby faced goal scoring machine isn't going to be turning out in the black & white stripes for another 4-6 weeks. Deep joy. Why is this? Another injury picked up playing in a meaningless friendly for his country... As the wonderful Biffa said "if this wasn't so tragic it would be comical"

He was made captain for the game against the mackems and looked completely ineffective. You could argue that he was being played out of position, but then again for £100k + a week I'd expect him to play in goal if asked.

So, I've carped on a bit about him not playing for us - yet again... But I must admit that part of me is a little bit pleased. Oba and the Big Aussie to put Owen's ex-employers to the sword next Saturday anyone???

Off for a lie down in a dark room now, time for my medication

Hello

Welcome to the musings of a 40+ female Newcastle United fan, who wishes that I didn't have to suffer this affliction.... Never blogged before, never thought that anyone would be even vaguely interested... But lets see...

A little about me - I'm a Toon exile. Born and bred in Newcastle (its still 'home') but now living in the shadow of Old Trafford. I went to my first game at the age of 7, stood in the Gallowate end and saw Supermac and John Tudor taken on the then mighty Leeds United. Apparently the score was 3-3... however my abiding memory was being really confused when Supermac was taken off with an injury. I wanted him to stay on the pitch and help us win. Needless to say I was hooked.

Now I get to go to away games only (much more fun anyway) and managed not to see us win for about 2 years. I had the misfortune to be at Coventry when we lost 4-0, Man U (lost 5-1, and the 1 was an o.g.) Wigan ( lost 1-0 against their 2nd team in the Coca Cola Cup) Derby (lost 1-0
to quite possibly the worst team in the Premiership ever) However, I was also at the win at Blackburn (3-0), Bolton (3-1), saw Shearer's 150th goal (against Bradford, I think) and his 200th (against Man U).... Anyway you get the idea.

The aim of this pointless wittering is :-

a) to help my ailing memory
b) to allow me to vent my frustration at being almost, but not quite, good enough as a football team
c) to encourage me to write

Feel free to read, comment and contradict - its just good to know that someone has taken the time to read (unless you are a mackem of course)