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Match Report 2000-01 - Bradford City (h)
Newcastle United 2 Bradford City 1
 |
Date:
Saturday 16th December 2000 3pm.
Venue: St. James' Park. Conditions: Nervy. Crowd: 50,470. Lowest Premiership crowd of the season at SJP. Referee: Steve Dunn (Bristol). |
Teams:
NUFC
(normal home kit): Given, Marcelino, Barton, Hughes, Griffin,
Bassedas (Acuna 81 mins), Dyer, Lee, Speed, Solano, Shearer.
Subs Not Used: Harper, Lua Lua, Cordone, Glass.
Booked:
None.
Sent off: None.
BCFC
(normal home kit): Walsh,
Nolan, McCall, Blake (Beagrie 69mins), Carbone (Myers 87 mins), Molenaar,
O'Brien, Windass, Atherton, Petrescu (Saunders 74mins), McKinlay.
Subs Not Used: Lawrence, Davison.
Booked: McCall, Carbone.
Goals:
15 mins. Barton crossed from the right and the ball fell to Speed via a defender's half-clearance, and the Welshman crashed home a stunning volley off the underside of the Leazes crossbar. 1-0
Half time: NUFC 1 BCFC 0
70 mins.
Dyer was put through by a great Shearer flick-on. Still with plenty
to do, young Kieron bamboozled Molenaar before tucking the ball past the
advancing Walsh into the opposite corner of the goal. Solano for once
had the presence of mind to follow in, had the effort hit the post. It
didn't. 2-0
83 mins.
Robert Molenaar headed in a Peter Beagrie cross from the left, with
Marcelino hovering in attendance, but failing to make an aerial challenge. 2-1
Full time:
NUFC 2 BCFC 1
Match facts:
Saturday's crowd was the lowest league attendance of the season but didn't stop home attendances going through the half a million barrier.
Number of people to watch football at St.James' Park this season = 541,580.
We said:
Uncle Bobby said about his patched-up captain:
"That's the last injection. It's either extended rest or an operation. If it's rest it will be two months and if it's an operation it could be three. At least if it's an operation it should never come back again, so that may be the best option but we can't do that until we know Cort is fit.
"The injection has done the trick for now. But he's got tendinitis that could flare up again, so it's unknown to be honest. It's a worry for us. We've also been treating him for his back, and it was his back rather than his knee which might have put him out. I don't know if he will be able to play during the games through Christmas. I don't know if he will be able to play every one because they come so quick after each other, so we're just keeping our fingers crossed because we do have to rely on him.
"It was a deserved victory, a massive three points. We've gone up to seventh so we're not quite a club in crisis. It hasn't been the easiest of weeks, but you just have to ignore that. Obviously Kieron's goal was special and it was like his one against Liverpool, while he almost got us a penalty."
The much-maligned Marcelino also chipped in with this:
"After the week we've had it was very important
for us to get a result like this, we knew it would be a very hard game but
the important thing is that we've got the three points.
"Bradford play with the offside trap and that always gives us spaces
for runners and to put balls behind defenders and we had good chances. And
of course it was very important for me personally, I felt it was my debut
for a professional team.
"It was important for me to show people that some of the things that
have been said in the last few days are absolutely wrong. I hope this is
just the beginning of a new time for me at Newcastle and with these three
points at the same time it is the start of a good run of results and that
we climb as high as possible in the league."
"There was an atmosphere in the dressing room before the game that it
was a very important game. The criticism of the foreign players has been
very badly received. We have felt the support from all the teammates and
that has been very important. It's been very nice for us to feel that from
your teammates.
"There is a union in the dressing room and that's a very good
starting point for having success on the pitch. Now's the time to look
forward."
They said:
Jim Jefferies (who spent as much time on the pitch as Acuna) said this about his goalkeepers, Matt Clarke and Gary Walsh:
"I said when I came here three or four weeks ago if a player had gone off the boil I would not be afraid to drop him. Matt's a good player but he's not been doing too well and a couple of goals in recent games could have been avoided.
"I've been impressed with Gary Walsh in training this week. He's never let us down and deserved his chance. Matt's disappointed but like every other player here he's got to perform. I hope he will battle back and compete for his place."
Waffle:
Well, on
this performance, United can sit back and keep what money they have in the
bank, safe in the knowledge that a) there are far worse teams than them in
this league and b) Alan Shearer may well be a fixture of this team for the
next decade.
Whether the mere presence of the former England captain was enough to
unsettle Bradford is unclear, but he certainly seemed to lift both crowd
and colleagues by simply being on the field rather than in the stand. Most
of his input tended toward the stationary, but he was unlucky not to get
on the scoresheet with two late headed efforts, and again produced a cameo
of his last minute clock-running-down policy down by the corner
flag.
Had a linesman's flag not twice wrongly stopped him from bearing down on
goal in the latter stages, he may have gone on to add to the pair he
notched against Bradford in the Worthless Cup, but the distance he would
have been required to trot might have finished him off....
As criticism pours in from the ill-informed and loyalists alike about the
lack of spirit among the imported players, the performance of uncle Alan
continues to stand out like a beacon. Where many would by now have
abandoned ship, either permanently to another club or to the temporary
haven of sitting in the warm watching racing from Kempton Park, our man
was out in the thick of it on Saturday, defying injury to wear the shirt
and scrap for the points. The fact he barely ran didn't appear to hinder
his impact, which in theory at least means he could just go on, and on.
Quite how long he'll be able to manage it without assistance (or surgery)
nobody seems to know, least of all the player or his manager, but
certainly I for one didn't expect him to play the full ninety minutes, and
when Acuna appeared on the touchline, was surprised to see Bassedas troop
off.
Part of
that surprise was that i'd forgotten that £4m of well-hidden talent was
actually still on the pitch - his major action of the game up until then
having been to reappear for the second half without his mittens. However,
i'm obviously in the minority (or General Galtieri had snapped up some of
those Milburn seats) as his departure from the pitch was marked by a
standing ovation.
Just what the lad is meant to be doing remains a mystery - he doesn't get
forward, which allows the likes of Speed to do so (with devastating effect
on Saturday), but neither does he augment the defence when things get
hairy, he just seems to.....hang around. His one trick appears to be to
stand close to a colleague so he can receive a short pass, and knock it on
to another team mate, normally at the side or behind him. This may be a
useful role to fulfill, but I can't help but have expectations of
something better than competency for the amount of money we forked out.
Elsewhere, although Marcelino looked understandably rusty and didn't have
the hardest of opponents, his major rick being the goal, and Hughes
alongside him looked happier with a taller partner. Barton put in his
usual effort and his mini-sticky patch looks to be in the past, while
Griffin did his best to bring the ball out of defence when the opportunity
arose.
Dyer deserved his goal, and will be kicking himself for not having opened
the scoring in the opening seconds, when his attempt to lift the ball over
the goalkeeper was foiled. He revelled in the static offside-playing
attempts of the City defence and found space regularly to move forward
into dangerous positions. He also managed to maintain his efforts
throughout the whole ninety minutes, which is encouraging.
All well and good then, and a must-win game was thankfully won. Hopefully
this result is something of a morale-booster for the festive programme,
which will provide far more of a test than the shambles from Valley
Parade. How Bobby approaches the next few games will be very interesting;
early indications being that he will allow Shearer to play if he can walk
unassisted.
In a
fifteen day period, we have the opportunity to claim major scalps at home
(Leeds, Man U), advance in the FA Cup (Villa), push Derby back into the
bottom three and smash our London hoodoo at Spurs. If our number nine
plays through all of them, I suspect samples of his urine will be
collected by the FA. Assuming he doesn't, someone has to push themselves
forward to fill his shirt, in spirit as much as body.
Now is the time for careers to be launched and lost at Newcastle United.
Bobby's much-publicised failures to beg, borrow or buy new players mean
that a whole host of names could yet be called into action off their
well-upholstered rear ends.
Question
marks remain about so many of our squad's ability and inclination, but we
should all be a lot wiser in a month's time. If we are found to be lacking, the
January sales may be particularly hectic next year....
Biffa