55secs Evans shot 0-1

25mins Emre shot 1-1

Half time: Newcastle 1 Man U 1

Full time: Newcastle 1 Man U 1

Adam Sadler commented:

"We've spoken to Wes about it - he's claiming he was spat on, and if that is the case, then of course it's wrong at any level.

"However, to run 40 yards, or whatever it was, to get involved in an incident that didn't involve him was a little bit disappointing.

"Their lad would have been sent off regardless, and we would have had that last six or seven minutes 11 versus 10, and you would hope that we maybe could have capitalised on that numerical advantage to win the game.

"It was one for Wes to learn from. I understand it's difficult to restrain yourself when things do happen to you, but he was 40 yards away, and didn't need to get involved."

The first half was probably our best performance, as far as our football's concerned.

"I was delighted with that. It gives us an idea of how far we've come.We've made serious steps forward.

"The lads have worked tirelessly on the training ground, and I can't think of a game where they haven't put the graft in.

"We couldn’t have wished for a better venue to play this season than St James’s. This is our church, if you like.

“Every Geordie fan and player for the club understands what this ground is about.

“When the players come to St James’s Park there is a huge buzz.”

On Emre:

"It was a concern when he went down after two minutes - but he showed what a master of the ball he actually is.

“He’s a terrific player and his goal just summed the man up. I was delighted to be in charge of a team that had Emre in it.

“There’s always somebody who says that first-teamers don’t put the work in when they come into reserves.

“But that doesn’t happen at Newcastle – and since I’ve been in charge I can’t think of one player who hasn’t gone about their job in the right manner.

“We were looking to give Emre 45-60 minutes but I think the kick didn’t help.

“He is expected to train on Thursday with a view to being in the first-team squad at the weekend.”

A season's best crowd of almost 3,000 fans saw a hard- fought finale to our league season at SJP on Monday and a fine goal on his comeback from Emre.

However the game ended with both sides reduced to ten men, Man U's Richard Eckersley shown a straight red after chopping down Kazenga LuaLua in full flight.

That led to a tussle in the penalty area involving a number of players on either side that required the referee and both his assistants to intervene and restore order.

And when things calmed, Newcastle's Wesley Ngo Baheng collected a second yellow card much to his dismay - apparently for his over-zealous attempts to prise the ball from the opposition after the free kick award.

The evening had started with a bang, the visitors taking the lead after just 55 seconds when David Gray's cross shot was palmed away by Fraser Forster in the Gallowgate goal, only for Sean Evans to convert the loose ball.

Things looked to have gone from bad to worse within three minutes when Emre limped from the field after being kicked - although he was able to return after treatment.

And it was the Turk who conjured up a well-worked equaliser on 25 minutes, exchanging passes with Andy Carroll and Baheng before shimmying past a defender in the box to beat German 'keeper Ron Robert Zieler.

A flurry of shots off-target just before the break from Newcastle raised the crowd's spirits, with David Edgar, LuaLua, James Troisi and Tamas Kader all having a go.

However the second half brought an improvement in accuracy from the home side, with LuaLua and Carroll both seeing efforts saved - the latter resulting in the ball running loose to Baheng but at too extreme an angle to allow him a shot on goal.

The closing stages of the game saw tempers begin to flare, with Newcastle's Baheng and Marwood booked along with Man U's Evans in a four minute period (Ritchie Jones having already been yellow-carded for his late tackles).

Gradually though the visitors started to threaten more and Tom Cleverley should have done better on 67 minutes after a quickly-taken corner was only half-cleared. 

Gary Neville's involvement for the Red Devils had seen him booed every time the ball came near him, but he came close to heading a winner five minutes from time, only to see his goalbound effort blocked.

Newcastle sought to break forward on the counter-attack as time grew short but the free kick that stemmed from LuaLua's thwarted run was blasted over by the same player, who then shot wide in added time. 

Defender Lamine Diatta made a low-key first appearance at SJP, while Peter Ramage continued his comeback with another steady ninety minutes at right back. 

That wraps up the league season for the lads although there's still the Senior Cup final to come.

Although we end in a mid-table position, it's been a more enjoyable campaign this time round than in recent seasons, especially since abandoning Kingston Park as a home venue.

Adam Sadler's replacement of Lee Clark as coach in November was followed by an influx of new faces such as Tamas Kadar, Ben Tozer and Baheng have come into the side and shown some promise. 

And had Andy Carroll not been loaned out to Preston for the first part of the season (or subsequently drafted into the first team squad), we could have earned a higher place finish - that lack of a physical presence costing us.

But while the efforts of central midfielder Mark Doninger and winger Jonny Godsmark have deservedly brought them pro deals, more established players such as David Edgar, Kazenga LuaLua and James Troisi seem to have stagnated since they featured for the first team in pre-season.

Whether they would have progressed had they been loaned out to lower league sides remains open to debate.
 
Red Devils Reserves in Toon - Premier Years:

1999/00 won 2-0 Robinson, Coppinger (2,610 @ SJP)
2000/01 won 2-1 Bonvin, S.Caldwell (1,448 @ KP)
2001/02 won 5-2 L. LuaLua 2, Bernard, S.Caldwell, McMenamin (1,827 @ KP)
2002/03 lost 1-2 Ambrose (3,068 @ SJP)
2003/04 lost 0-4 (3,102 @ KP)
2004/05 lost 0-3 (1,544 @ KP)
2005/06 won 2-0 Chopra 2 (1,235 @ KP)
2006/07 won 2-0 Edgar, Carroll (749 @ KP)
2007/08: drew 1-1 Emre (2,839 @ SJP)

Biffa

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