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Season 2008-09
West Bromwich Albion (h) Premier League

In association with NUFC.com

Date: Tuesday 28th October 2008, kick-off 7.45pm. Live on Sky Sports

Venue:
 St. James' Park

Conditions: 
cool and clear
 

  

 

Newcastle United

West Brom

2 - 1

Teams

Goals

9 mins Shola Ameobi tumbled in the area under challenge from Ryan Donk and Joey Barton grabbed the ball when a spot was awarded, sending the 'keeper the wrong way as heconverting a low right-footed effort at the Leazes End 1-0

42 mins
Duff carried the ball deep into the visitor's half before releasing it to Beye on the right flank. The defender strode towards the byline on the edge of the box and sent over a cross for Obafemi Martins - who had pulled slightly away from the goal -  to steered home an eight yard header and give himself a birthday present. 
2-0

Half time: Newcastle 2 Albion 0

65 mins
Albion got back in it after a move that had its origins in some ineptness from Duff at the other end of the park. Surrendering possession cheaply, the ball was worked forward to Koren, whose pass took out Coloccini and found Ishmael Miller. The substitute grabbed his first-ever top flight goal, leaving Given stranded on the edge of the box before slotting into an empty net.2-1

Full time: Newcastle 2 Albion 1

We Said

Interim boss Joe Kinnear commented:

"I'm very happy. I think we are on the up. It is a great night for everybody here.

"I know its an old cliche but nobody wants to be in the bottom three. Nobody likes being in that position but if we can carry on now and get a second win then that would be great.

"If we can get a second victory back to back then it would be a completely different picture altogether, and it will give everybody a lot more confidence.

"It wasn't about how we played, it was about the three points - otherwise it would have been back to doom and gloom again. We got off to an exceptional start and it could have been four or five  but we looked a bit nervy after their goal. 

"We were just desperate to get a first win. We were robbed against Manchester City, we've been threatening to do it and it was in our favour to play so quickly again after Sunderland. It gives everybody a great lift, not least myself. 

"I go from day to day, to be honest. If the club gets sold, it will be up to the new owner.

"I am only on a month-to-month contract, that was the deal before I took over. I am well aware I took over because lots of people turned that contract down, but as we go on, I live like everyone else, day to day."

"I have got no idea who is going to buy the place, but I can throw my hat in the ring whoever buys it. I am not going to get another chance like this. But I really don't know, to be honest. I know it is obviously for sale, but who is going to buy it, I have got no idea.

"He
(Barton) would have been in serious trouble if he hadn't scored from it, because Oba Martins was the penalty-taker. It's normally Michael Owen, but Joey grabbed it.

"I think he wanted to prove a point and he put it away very well. I am really pleased for him. We can just let him play football now and get on with it.

"It's an opportunity not to get back into the good books, but an opportunity to have a relationship with the fans.

"He was bought for more than £5million, so he has got to play up to that price. He has got to be given every chance.

"I hate digging up the past and it won't ever make him any better in some people's eyes, but in football terms, he has done himself a power of good.

"He is a confident lad. He is a good, all-round footballer, a very confident person and as I said, he is an expensive buy and he has got to be given every chance."

They said


Tony Mowbray said:

"The secret was not to go behind early, but we gave them a dream start and generally our defending in the first half was woeful. It needed to improve. It did in the second half and that helped the team to play higher up the pitch.

"With a bit of good fortune we may have nicked a point. We had enough opportunities but didn’t really ask enough of their keeper

"We were playing a Newcastle team not thriving on confidence and, with the way we asked the team to play, it was an opportunity to go there and put more pressure on them.

"We threw that out of the window with some very poor defending in the first half.

"We gave ourselves too much to chase. We tightened up after the break and created enough chances to get something. It was a huge improvement on the first half.

"That’s got to be the standard for us week in, week out. Our second-half performance should give the players the belief we can cause teams problems in this league.

"But if you defend like we did in the first half, you probably don’t deserve anything.”

"We got back into it with Ishmael’s goal and Newcastle got a bit nervous for the last 20 minutes or so, but we’re just not clinical enough in front of goal. I don’t know what the shot count was but we had plenty of them.

"We haven’t been able to stick teams away.”
 

Stats


Magpies v Throstles - last ten in Toon:

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
1990/91 drew 1-1 L.O'Brien
1989/90 won 2-1 Quinn, Anderson
1989/90 lost 0-1 (LC)
1985/86 won 4-1 Reilly 2, McDonald, Clarke
1984/85 won 1-0 Beardsley

First victory for Joe Kinnear in what was officially his fourth match in charge.

In the absence of club captain Michael Owen and Nicky Butt, Shay Given took the armband.

United managed to score two goals in the same half for the first time in the league this season - and also built up a two goal lead for the first time this campaign.

Joey Barton's second goal for the club and first at SJP - like the other one, a penalty.  
 

Waffle

It may have taken his predecessor ten games to record his first win, but Joe Kinnear broke his duck at the fourth attempt as we celebrated a second success in ten league games this season. 

The victory should have been a straightforward one, with Shola Ameobi and Obafemi Martins both having chances before Joey Barton marked his first start of the season with the opener.

However United made life difficult for themselves with a somewhat patchy performance after finding a second goal; failing to then put the game beyond Albion's reach before allowing the visitors to force their way back into contention, after augmenting their attack with an extra man.

The first half saw Kinnear's side dominate with some pleasing sequences of fluid passing on the floor, with Guthrie in particular taking advantage of the space allowed him. We failed to make that count fully in terms of goals though by some poor final balls and a couple of miscues - notably one from Habib Beye, who blazed over when given time and space to compose and shoot.

Aside from one good stop with his feet to deny James Morrison an equaliser, stand-in captain Shay Given had a quiet night, with Barton noticeably organising and cajoling his colleagues from midfield.  

Whatever Joe Kinnear said in his half time team talk failed to inspire his side though and a slack start to the second half saw United seemingly caught in two minds as to whether a continuation of the attacking or a "what we have we hold" approach was required.

Having got one back, more pressure from Tony Mowbray's side failed to conjure up an equaliser, but it was evident that we would have perhaps been less fortunate against more incisive opposition.

The closing stages were messy, with Newcastle trying to shut up shop far too early and defending deeper and deeper as the clock ran down - and Gutierrez, Duff, Barton, Martins and Ameobi all ran out of steam.

"Spiderman" had made a successful return to action in what was his first start since August, with some of his running and dribbling in the opening 30 minutes a reminder of what we've been missing. 

JFK meanwhile opted to bring Xisco off the bench for the first time in four games, only for the Spanish U21 striker to shoot weakly when seeing sight of goal and generally look as insipid as usual. There's a rabbit off somewhere with this deadline day signing - and his allegedly-injured fellow latecomer, the lesser-spotted Gonzalez. 

Carroll also arrived to help run down the four minutes of added time referee Mike Dean found following Given's go-slow policy and the elongated departure of Spiderman from the field, before the whistle sounded to general relief.

Even without a second clean sheet of the season, the three points lifted United to 15th ahead of Wednesday's league programme. However that rise could be fleeting - and with United not in action until next Monday, it's possible that Kinnear's side could kick off at home to Aston Villa in last place.


That promises to be rather more of a test than this moderate Midlands bunch. 

Biffa

 

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Page last updated 07 February, 2017