Ticket news:
West Brom (h) Very limited availability
Watford (a) ST holder sale now (70 points)
Spurs (a) ST holder sale now (80 points)
Chelsea (h) SOLD OUT

Safe standing petition now 92K sign it here

Update:
More Metro misery

FAO fans heading to Gallowgate on Saturday:

The scheduled metro closure between Tynemouth and Byker has been extended and there will now be no service between Tynemouth and St James in both directions all day.

Replacement bus service 900 will operate between all affected stations but leave extra time for your journey or find an alternative route if possible.

Another scheduled Metro closure on Sunday May 13th will also affect fans going to and from the Chelsea home game, with no metro service between Monkseaton and St James in either direction all day. 

Full details of both closures are online here

Premier League:
Unstuck by Toffees
and Theo again

Everton  1  Newcastle  0

Newcastle's winning run came to an end in familiar fashion at Goodison Park on Monday night and once again Theo Walcott found the back of our net as he grabbed the only goal of what was a poor game. 

Rafa Benitez marked his 100th game in charge by unfortunately replicating the scoreline of his maiden outing at Leicester City - also on a Monday night.

However the black and whites did have some chances near the end to pinch a point, substitute Dwight Gayle going close deep into injury time.

But it was a disappointing display from United, Islam Slimani's first start failing to provide him with a goal, although a simple pass from Ayoze Perez pass could have done just that in the 38th minute.

Kenedy had blocked a Jordan Pickford clearance but Perez's ball to an unmarked Slimani was wayward and our best chance of the half went begging.

Cenk Tosun and Phil Jagielka had close range efforts off target in a first 45 minutes of few clear chances.

The winner came six minutes after the break when Yannick Bolasie's high cross to the far post wasn't dealt with twice by DeAndre Yedlin and Walcott was able to waltz inside before driving it into the roof of the net.

That followed a Perez chance when he was put through on the left side of the box only to take an extra touch and snatch at his shot that flew off target.

Gayle replaced Slimani just after the hour and within a minute the substitute volleyed narrowly over when Jamaal Lascelles headed a Jonjo Shelvey corner into the six yard box.

Perez flicked a header on target from Kenedy's cross and Matt Ritchie put a free-kick just over the bar after Gayle was brought down near the edge of the penalty area.

Michael Keane was lucky just to receive a yellow for the foul and then should have had another booking for tripping Gayle down the right wing. That was shortly after hopeless referee Bobby Madley failed to award a spot-kick for a Jagielka handball.

But in the sixth minute of added time Gayle was inches away from meeting a cross from the right but Seamus Coleman made a vital headed clearance to seal the win for his side.

The defeat left Newcastle in tenth spot and still not quite mathematically safe, with but genuine hope of achieving a first top half finish since 2014.

Full match report to follow.

Team: Dubravka, Yedlin, Lascelles, Lejeune, Dummett, Ritchie (Murphy 79), Diame, Shelvey (Merino 83), Kenedy, Perez, Slimani (Gayle 63).
Subs n/u: Darlow, Manquillo, Clark, Hayden.

Booked: Kenedy.

EFC: Pickford, Coleman, Jagielka, Keane, Baines, Schneiderlin (Davies 52), Gueye, Rooney, Walcott, Tosun (Niasse 85), Bolasie (Calvert-Lewin 59).
Subs n/u: Robles, Martina, Baningime, Mori.
 
Booked: Keane, Gueye.

Goals: Walcott 51.

Crowd: 39,061, including a not sold-out away allocation of 3,000 who gave former mackem 'keeper Pickford and ex-mackem boss Sam Allardyce constant barracking. The custodian responded with an added time "shush".

The departure of the red and whites to League One was inevitably celebrated - mercifully leaving no room for tedious extracts from the merseyside songbook and mentions of stereos, signing on and feeding scousers.

Given the antiquity of the away stand and the small catering facilities therein, the issue of free refreshment vouchers to Toon fans to compensate for moving the game was always likely to be problematic - and so it proved, Toffees staff totally unprepared and initially refusing to accept said vouchers. 

After the game Rafa said:

"We didn't take our chances and that is the difference when you have Walcott or Rooney or players on these wages that can make a difference.

"We did really well to be here to play against this team. To expect that we have to beat them easily is impossible.

"They have very good players and they can make the difference. We battled and we fought until the end so we had the chance to draw, but we lost against a good team and that's it.

"The difference is they have players with experience in the Premier League. I don't know how much they have spent this year, but it is very simple.

"To come here and expect we have to better than them because we were doing well is not easy. Normally if you go away against these kind of players and these kind of teams, it is not easy to get anything.

"We are really strong. To stay in the Premier League was the target and we are really pleased with that.

"We will try to do better if we can but today, we knew it would be a difficult game against a very good team, but still we had our chances and now we have to be ready for the next one."

Referee: Bobby Madley - first Toon game this season for the West Yorkshire-based official and hopefully the last. Ever. 

Madley remains infamous for awarding a penalty against us and dismissing Fabricio Coloccini at the mackems in October 2015 - the red card later rescinded.

Two and a half years on he's no better, making a series of incorrect calls when free kicks and yellow cards were apparently inevitable and also joining many other refs in ducking out from awarding an old-fashioned drop ball.

The simple act of awarding a foul seemed to be beyond him, with one obvious assault on Florian Lejeune not punished and then a failure to blow for two separate Everton fouls resulting in the Kenedy booking.

Things became farcical in the 87th minute, when he failed to penalise a Jagielka handball in the box but quickly before repeatedly mouthing "I'm sorry" at the Newcastle players who berated him - while presumably getting confirmation of the offence in his lughole.

Stats:

Rafa Benitez took charge of Newcastle for the 100th competitive fixture since arriving in March 2016. Sadly though he was unable to add to his tally of 48 victories or 21 draws, this his 31st defeat.

With two games still to play away from Gallowgate, Newcastle's current tally of 16 points on the road is already superior to that gained in eight of their 19 Premier League seasons comprising of 38 games. 

It's now five games since United last netted against Everton and 482 minutes since Jack Colback beat Joel Robles during a 3-2 win at SJP in December 2014.

While attention inevitably focused on whether Wayne Rooney would add to his 15 career goals against Newcastle, another repeat offender did the damage.

Theo Walcott found the Magpies net for the seventh time, the first six of which came for Arsenal. The last one of those had come back in December 2012.

United's wait for a top-flight point on a Monday may have been ended by success at Stoke on the first day of 2018, but that was an afternoon kick-off.

In terms of Monday nights, it's now nine successive defeats in the Premier League:

Dec 2012 Wigan (h) won 3-0
Dec 2012 Fulham (a) lost 1-2
Aug 2013 Man City (a) lost 0-4
Sep 2013 Everton (a) lost 2-3
Apr 2014 Arsenal (a) lost 0-3
Sep 2014 Stoke City (a) lost 0-1
Apr 2015 Liverpool (a) lost 0-2
Sep 2015 West Ham (a) lost 0-2
Mar 2016 Leicester City (a) lost 0-1
Apr 2018 Everton (a) lost 0-1

(NB: we did win on a Monday night last season in the Championship, beating Aston Villa 2-0 at SJP).

Toon at Goodison - Premier League era:

2017/18 Lost 0-1
2015/16 Lost 0-3
2014/15 Lost 0-3
2013/14 Lost 2-3 Cabaye, Remy
2012/13 Drew 2-2 Ba 2
2011/12 Lost 1-3 og(Hibbert)
2010/11 Won 1-0 Ben Arfa
2008/09 Drew 2-2 Taylor, Duff
2007/08 Lost 1-3 Owen (pen)
2006/07 Lost 0-3
2005/06 Lost 0-1
2004/05 Lost 0-2
2003/04 Drew 2-2 Shearer 2 pens
2002/03 Lost 1-2 Robert
2001/02 Won 3-1 Bellamy, Solano, Acuna
2000/01 Drew 1-1 og(Unsworth)
1999/00 Won 2-0 Hughes, Dyer
1998/99 Lost 0-1
1997/98 Drew 0-0
1997/98 Won 1-0 Rush (FAC)
1996/97 Lost 0-2
1995/96 Won 3-1 Ferdinand, Lee, Kitson
1994/95 Lost 0-1 (FAC)
1994/95 Lost 0-2
1993/94 Won 2-0 Cole, Beardsley

Latest Premier League results:

Tue 17.04.2018:
Brighton & Hove Albion 1-1 Spurs

Wed 18.04.2018:
Bournemouth 0-2 Manchester United

Thu 19.04.2018:
Burnley 1-2 Chelsea
Leicester City 0-0 Southampton

Sat 21.04.2018:
West Bromwich Albion 2-2 Liverpool
Watford 0-0 Crystal Palace

Sun 22.04.2018:
Arsenal 4-1 West Ham
Stoke City 1-1 Burnley
Manchester City 5-0 Swansea City

Mon 23.04.2018:
Everton 1-0 Newcastle

Loan:
Arrivederci Aarons?

Update: Aarons entered a guilty plea to the lesser charge of affray on Tuesday and was given bail. Sentencing will take place on May 22nd. 

a 1-3 defeat at Genoa on Monday made relegation from Serie A increasingly likely for Hellas Verona, with loan signing Rolando Aarons nowhere to be seen.

The Hellas website confirmed that the winger was back in England "for personal reasons", but in reality he was  appearing at Newcastle Crown Court on Tuesday to answer a charge of violent disorder.

Aarons was one of six men charged with that offence following an alleged brawl in Livellos back in 2016. 

The 22 year-old moved to the Serie A side on loan in January but struggled to make any impact and to date has played just eight times without finding the net. 

Borrowers:
Job done for Arma

Adam Armstrong (Blackburn Rovers)
Promotion from League One was confirmed for Tony Mowbray's side on Tuesday following a 1-0 win at Doncaster Rovers. Arma played for 79 minutes.

Jack Colback (Nottingham Forest)
A 3-0 home success over Barnsley in the Championship on Tuesday night was achieved with Colback remaining unused on the subs bench.

Alex Gilliead (Bradford City)
City's recent renaissance continued with a 2-0 home success over MK Dons in League One on Tuesday. Gilliead kept his place in the side and was replaced in the 92nd minute.

Aleksandar Mitrovic (Fulham)
mackems (h) Championship, Friday.

Freddie Woodman (Aberdeen)
Hearts (h) Scottish Premiership, Friday.

Ivan Toney (Scunthorpe United)
MK Dons (a) League One, Saturday.

Sean Longstaff (Blackpool)
Shrewsbury Town (h) League One, Saturday.

Jamie Sterry (Crewe Alexandra) 
Crawley Town (a) League Two, Saturday.

Stuart Findlay (Kilmarnock) 
Hibernian (a) Scottish Premiership, Saturday.

Kyle Cameron (Queen of the South)
Brechin City (a) Scottish Championship, Saturday.

Henri Saivet (Sivasspor)
Gencerbirligi (h) Super Lig, Saturday.

Matz Sels (Anderlecht)
Sporting Charleroi (h) Belgian League playoffs, Sunday.

Rolando Aarons (Hellas Verona)
Relegation from Serie A looks increasingly likely for Verona, who lost 1-3 at Genoa on Monday night. 

The winger wasn't involved, having returned to England "for personal reasons" - namely a court appearance.

U23s:
Edun hazard

Newcastle U23s  1  Fulham U23s  1

Newcastle U23s were denied a third successive league victory by a late equaliser in their final Premier League 2 Division Two game of the season on Monday. 

Their opponents on the Academy pitches at Little Benton were a Fulham side needing three points to retain any hope of a promotion playoff place.

Thomas Allan was a late replacement for Luke Charman in the starting line-up and it was the young striker who 
almost gave United the lead in the ninth minute, a low centre from Callum Roberts left flashing across the six yard box just evading Allan at the far post.

United's next chance came in the 23rd minute when a Roberts free-kick just outside the box struck the defensive wall and Macaulay Gillesphey headed it back in for Stefan O'Connor to loop his header just wide.

Ten minutes later Fulham had the ball in the net but Elijam Adebayo's effort was ruled out as Cameron Thompson had run the ball out before crossing.

The Cottagers came close to a breakthrough just on half time, Gillesphey hacking Jaydn Mundle-Smith’s shot clear of the six yard box as Sonny Hilton lurked.

Both sides were affected by the blustery conditions on an exposed pitch and although resuming with the wind in their favour, Newcastle still made little headway.

However the deadlock was finally broken in the 77th minute when a Fulham error allowed Allen and Adam Wilson sight of goal. 

The latter had an effort blocked by the goalkeeper but substitute Dan Ward followed up to hammer home the opener.

That looked like the clincher but the visitors pushed on strongly in the closing stages and equalised during the second minute of five added on - Tayo Edun beating Nathan Harker with a low shot from the edge of the area that went through a crowd of players.

Despite being forced to settle for a point, the black and whites managed to move up a place in the final league table - finishing tenth in a twelve team league with 21 points (six wins and three draws).

That's a noticeable decline from last season, when a third place finish (and eventual playoff final defeat) brought them 37 points via 11 wins and four draws. 

Soberingly, seven of the nine teams above them this season came from current Championship clubs.

Blackburn Rovers gain promotion as champions, with Aston Villa, Brighton, Boro and Reading involved in playoffs for the second spot in Division One.

Dropping into Division Two - and facing Newcastle next season  - will be Manchester United and the mackems. 

Team: Harker, Bailey, Gillesphey, O'Connor, Yarney, Good, Roberts (El-Mhanni 81), Hunter (Ward 63), Allan, Barlaser, Wilson.
Subs n/u: Sangare, Huuhtanen.

Booked: O'Connor.

FFC: Norman, Sessegnon, Mundle-Smith (De-Havilland 46), Edln, Davies, Atkinson, Hilton, Harris, Adebayo, Thompson, Thorsteinsson.
Subs n/u: Schwarzer, Davis, Santos-Clase.

The U23s will now conclude their season by bidding to regain ownership of the Northumberland Senior Cup Final trophy they last held in 2014.

Their opponents at SJP on Wednesday May 2nd will be a Morpeth Town side assured of promotion from the Northern League and still in contention for the title.

The tie will kick off at 7.30pm and admission is £7 adults and £3 concessions, payable at East Stand turnstiles. Season tickets and memberships won't be valid - it's an "all pay" game.
 

When the gloat comes in:
Enjoy Burton.....

...we did!

Our red and white chums will be playing third tier football next season for the second time in their history, after a trademark implosion on Saturday.

1-0 up against fellow relegation strugglers Burton Albion at the renamed Bungalow of Light, former mackem Darren Bent equalised in the 86th minute.

Had that been the final score then both sides would have had a stay of execution, but the Brewers hadn't finished and Liam Boyce conjured up a 92nd minute winner for wearside-born Nigel Clough's side.

And in yet another twist, their second successive demotion was only confirmed after referee Darren England initially allowed a 96th minute equaliser - before changing his mind and ruling it out for handball.

Burton still have to host Bolton Wanderers, meaning that one of them must reach 41 points and so the defeat condemns the unwashed to League One, where trips to Doncaster, Fleetwood and Accrington await.

It's less than 24 months since Fat Sam did his best silverback impression on the pitch at the SoS after beating Everton to relegate us. Who would have believed that we would be two tiers above them so soon?! What goes around, indeed...!

Netflix anticipate record subscriptions in NE postcodes for their documentary about the mackems, while our only regret is that they've gone too early, thus depriving Aleksandar Mitrovic of the chance to put them down live on Sky Sports this Friday night.  

A suitably named ale 
- brewed in Burton....

U18s:
Away woes continue

Stoke City U18s  2  Newcastle U18s  0

Newcastle's U18 side ended their away league fixture programme on Saturday morning by losing to the Potters at their Clayton Wood home.

Having conceded ten goals in their last two games on the road, Dave Watson's side were quickly behind as James Jennings struck after just six minutes of play.

City then doubled their advantage through Joel Mvovi's 21st minute effort before Magpies 'keeper Dan Langley blocked another effort from Jennings with his feet.

A fractious finale saw no less than five bookings and a straight red shown to Stoke's Lewis Macari (grandson of Lou) for his challenge on Oliver Walters in the fifth minute of added time.

Team: Langley, Joyce, Walters, Longstaff, Cass, McEntee, Kasinga, Young, Sorensen, Watts, Cole.
Subs n/u: Brown, Swailes, L.Gamblin, Rounsfell.

Booked: Cole, Walters

The curtain comes down on Newcastle's campaign with this Friday's rearranged home fixture against Boro - which is a 11am kick-off at Little Benton (not 1pm as was previously announced by the Premier League).

Ex- Magpie:
Roy Bentley RIP

The death of former Newcastle United striker Roy Bentley was confirmed on Friday, a month before what would have been his 94th birthday.

The Bristolian began his career as a centre half with Bristol Rovers, Bristol City and Liverpool but had converted to a striker by the time he moved to Tyneside in June 1946.

An immediate hit at SJP with 25 goals in 54 league and cup appearances, he left abruptly during January 1948 and joined Chelsea for a £12,500 fee.

Capped by England, Roy was a prolific scorer for the Blues and his eventual total of 150 strikes puts him fifth in their all-time scorers list, behind Didier Drogba, Kerry Dixon, Bobby Tambling and Frank Lampard.

Leaving a year later and playing for Fulham and QPR, Bentley later managed both Reading and Swansea.

May 2011 found him receiving warm applause from both Chelsea and Newcastle fans when introduced to the Stamford Bridge crowd before the teams met.

Event:
Talk-in winner

A quartet of former Magpies are heading to Newcastle City Hall next month for a special talk-in event on the final weekend of the season.

Boasting a combined tally of over 1,200 games for the club plus 241 international caps, Keith Gillespie, Shay Given and Rob Lee will be in conversation with MC John Beresford on Friday May 11th.

Three categories of tickets are on sale here for this Legends event, with entry from £35.50, a £55.50 Gold option including entry and signed copy of Shay Given's book and a £69.50 VIP option including entry, a Given book and a pre-show meet & greet with the lads.

Thanks to promoters Floodlight Entertainment, we had a pair of VIP tickets to give away and asked which much-travelled Magpies defender is behind Shay at White Hart Lane in 2007. 

It was of course Peter Ramage and from the correct entries received, Scott Elliot from Consett was selected as the winner. Thanks to all who entered. 

U23s:
United ruin Villans'
title hopes

Newcastle U23s  2  Aston Villa U23s  0

Match report

Premier League:
Another perfect
Matt finish

Newcastle  2  Arsenal  1

Match report

Magpies return to HK:
Newcastle v Newcastle  

Following a one year absence, a Newcastle U21 squad will return to Hong Kong next month to compete in the annual Hong Kong Soccer Sevens tournament. 

The Magpies brought home the trophy at the first time of asking back in 2012 and this year will be the sixth time that they've participated in the event, staged between May 18th and 20th.

Hong Kong Football Club in Happy Valley will once again stage the tournament and United have been drawn in Group C along with the hosts HKFC, Glasgow Rangers and Australian side Newcastle Jets.

Also featuring in the 16 team event are teams from West Ham, Aston Villa, Brighton and Leicester City.

PS: There's also a Masters event, with the region represented by a Wallsend Boys Club squad featuring various former Magpies including Michael Bridges.

TL18:
Old boys assemble

Following the success of previous gatherings of former Magpies, the 2018 Toon Legends Club Dinner is at the Village Hotel on Saturday May 12th 2018. 

Guest speaker is Rob Lee and in attendance will be:

Tommy Cassidy, Frank Clark, John Cowan, Tommy Craig, John Craggs, George Dalton, Keith Dyson, Ray Ellison, Bert Garrow, Chris Guthrie, Ron Guthrie, Gordon Hindson, Pat Howard, Gordon Hughes, Keith Kennedy, Ron McGarry, Jon McNamee, Stewart Mitchell, Bob Moncur, Duncan Neale, Jimmy Smith, Graham Winstanley and Charlie Woods.

There's also a reunion of the 1969 international youth cup winning team with the following also present:

Bob Agar, Dave Clarke, Chris Coppen, David Crane, Ian Crumplin, David Embleton, Stuart Fellows, Terry Harrison, Kenny Heslop, Ian Hopkinson, Terry Johnson, David Lawson, Paddy Lowery, Artie Lumsden, Colin Mather, Les O'Neill, Jimmy Sutton, David Tolson, Ian Watts & coach Keith Burkinshaw.

Tickets are £50 including a three course meal (£450 for a table of 10). Details from Daniel on 07786 244178. 

The Village Hotel is just off the A19 at West Allotment, close to Silverlink / Northumberland Park.



The "other" boys of 1969 (pictured above) lifted silverware at the De Kuip home of Feyenoord after beating Arsenal 2-0 in the final. 

Their route to the final included wins over Dutch side Go Ahead Eagles, Belgians Beerschott and a draw against a Spurs side featuring a certain Graeme Souness. 

Premier League:
West Bromwich 
Albion (h)

Saturday sees Newcastle host a Baggies side who will be relegated from the Premier League if they fail to win at St. James' Park. 

It's an old-fashioned 3pm kickoff and a sell-out.

Coral match betting will appear here

NUFC: To follow

WBAFC: To follow

Referee: tbc

UK TV: None

Overseas TV: To follow

UK Radio: None

Local Radio: Live on BBC Radio Newcastle

Travel:  

There will be no metro service between Tynemouth and St James in either direction all day (extended from the original Tynemouth to Byker closure). 

Replacement bus 900 operates between affected stations.

Roads around SJP will be traffic free for 20 minutes either side of the final whistle, with barriers closed at these junctions:

Strawberry Place/Leazes Park Road
Strawberry Place/Barrack Road
Strawberry Place/St James Street
Strawberry Lane

Leazes Terrace will also be traffic-free for the same period, additionally closing from 12.30pm.

Pizza Express on Dean Street are offering anyone with a valid match ticket a 30% reduction on their total food bill before and after the game. Only one match ticket is required for a full table to qualify.

Stats: 

Baggies in Toon - Premier League:

2015/16 won 1-0 Mitrovic
2014/15 drew 1-1 Perez
2013/14 won 2-1 Gouffran, Sissoko
2012/13 won 2-1 Ba, Cisse
2011/12 lost 2-3 Ba 2
2010/11 drew 3-3 S.Taylor, Lovenkrands, OG
2009/10 drew 2-2 Guthrie, Lovenkrands
2008/09 won 2-1 Barton(pen), Martins
2005/06 won 3-0 Solano, Ameobi 2(1pen)
2004/05 won 3-1 Kluivert, Milner, Shearer
2003/04 lost 1-2 Robert (LC)
2002/03 won 2-1 Shearer 2

Upcoming Premier League fixtures:

Sat 28.04.2018:
Liverpool v Stoke City (12.30pm) Sky
Burnley v Brighton & Hove Albion (3pm)
Crystal Palace v Leicester City (3pm)
Huddersfield Town v Everton (3pm)
Newcastle v West Bromwich Albion (3pm)
Southampton v Bournemouth (3pm)
Swansea City v Chelsea (5.30pm) BT

Sun 29.04.2018:
West Ham v Manchester City (2.15pm) Sky
Manchester United v Arsenal (4.30pm) Sky

Mon 30.04.2018:
Spurs v Watford (8pm) Sky