Half time: Newcastle 0 Ventspils 0

Full time: Newcastle 0 Ventspils 0

Glenn Roeder said:

"It's job done in terms of getting to the Uefa Cup, it's just a shame we could not get the goal or two our dominance deserved.

"I think the reaction of the crowd at the end to a 0-0 draw, though, showed that they were pleased with the way we played and with some of our approach play. You get games like that when you are totally dominant but end up drawing 0-0, I'm not worried about our finishing.

"I'd asked the players to get more shots and crosses in and they did that and I thought the defence and the two centre-backs in particular, Titus Bramble and Steven Taylor, kept their concentration superbly.

"They never gave me any cause for concern and they have the makings of a very good partnership.

"I'm not being flippant, but I never expected anything less than for us to get through the Intertoto Cup and then into the Uefa Cup. 

"We have been favourites in all our games and we have not slipped up, but I will keep the pressure on the players by saying that I expect us to get through the next round as well and into the group stages.

"It is easy to be an underdog, but the best teams can cope with the pressure that comes with being expected to win and I expect us to win in the next round.

"That is an absolute must for Newcastle United as a club and it is an absolute must for me and the players. The players here want to be successful and they want to play in Europe and we are desperate to be in the group stage."

"From the first minute it was noticeable that Newcastle played more aggressively than in Riga - especially the performance of Duff - but we matched them in strength and endurance.

"We were over-cautious about attacking in the first half and at the break I had to speak with the forwards. I do feel that we should have had a penalty for the obvious foul against Kolefnichenko.

"This result will give us confidence for the rest of the season - it's a tough test of character to come to a stadium like this with its atmosphere. We worried before the game about how we would cope with the home fans but on the contrary, it gave us an adrenaline boost. 

We have spoken a lot about these two matches against Newcastle and how we would cope with the atmosphere. To play in front of over 30,000 fans was a terrific boost. Martins has only just signed for the team but was greeted with a great ovation from the entire stadium!

"Overall, this has to go down as a failure, as we were desperate to make it into the group stage.

"But taking into account who we drew in this Second Qualifying Round, we can be satisfied with our efforts. We didn't feel that we had much of a chance to get past Newcastle, but we knew it was important to play worthily for the good name of Latvian football. This I think we achieved."  

Watching from a box high up in the Milburn Stand, Newcastle's number nine doubtless kicked every ball, agonised over each spurned scoring opportunity and allowed himself to wonder how many goals he could have helped himself to in this tie - had he only been eligible to play.

Actually make that number nines plural.

Other than the celebrated squad number, it's not known what passed between Alan Shearer and Obafemi Martins when the two men sat together to watch part of this game.

One could picture a scene akin to the Milburn/Supermac meeting, when the battle-hardened veteran impressed upon the brash new out-of-tooner just what this place thrives on. Goals.

What's more likely though, is a shared frustration at not being out there getting on the end of the through balls and crosses that Duff, Milner and Zog were pumping over in vain.

And having not even had a training session together at that point, our new forward has most probably formed his own opinion about the non-performing Spaniard masquerading as a striker.

For the most part in this game, our defence had their least strenuous examination of the home campaign to date - and that includes both the Lillestrom tie and a recent public training session.

Despite the theatrical urgings of their sharp-dressed coach (who looked ready to jump into a quayside-bound taxi), Ventspils simply didn't exist as an attacking force. 

Their seldom-glimpsed forward line in Latvia was even less evident tonight, and on the odd occasions they did threaten our box, the moves ended with unconvincing attempts at winning free kick or a penalty.

Harper could have taken a library book on to the field as he kept a clean sheet with the minimum of fuss. In any game there's the chance of a fluked goal, a clearance cannoning off a team mate's backside or some such disaster, but this just never seemed a possibility at all tonight, as a rerun of the Partizan disaster was averted by some considerable distance.

In truth we've seen this pattern of game before in European competitions on our own ground, with total domination seeing us faced with the prospect of wading through lines of defence to get a sight of goal - the opposition never committing sufficient numbers forward to be caught on the break.

So often though in past times there's been a second of inspiration from Shearer to get the goal that would guarantee the win and banish the rest of the frustrating ninety minutes from the collective memory banks. Dubnica and Tbilisi spring to mind.

While James Milner once again proved he's a trier not a striker, Albert Luque barely even registered as a footballer. On a night when someone in his position could have filled their (shiny red) boots against the most mediocre opposition you're ever likely to meet in a competitive game, he failed utterly to stand out from the crowd.

Forget all that recent guff about a new start and the badge-kissing that followed his goals at the Gallowgate End in previous home games. In the absence of Ameobi and with the new boy in the stands there was a golden opportunity for him to show his value in the form of a committed and industrious performance.

Instead he shambled around the field seeming to have no notion of where he should position himself - in a word, unprofessional. 

With an attitude like this, playing for the stiffs at Kingston Park would seem beyond him - but that's exactly where he should be exiled to, were we (still) not so short-handed up front. It's tragic that we have nobody younger and keener coming through who could fill the number seven shirt better.

The lack of a goal though didn't cause serious problems for the crowd, who were in a bullish mood on the back of the Obafemi introduction. We peppered the end of the pitch ventspils were defending with shots, but none were of sufficient quality or accuracy to give their 'keeper serious problems - save for one sweet free kick from Milner that left him rooted to his line, but which thudded away to safety off the woodwork.

Watching Duff though was an entertainment in itself, as he took up position on the right flank to bob and weave through the opposition. With Zog showing up well on the opposite flank, all it needed was someone with an ounce of commitment or positional sense to get on the end of the service and we would have registered a deserved success.

If he was watching in his Cardiff flat, Michael Chopra doubtless allowed himself to wonder, what if?

In the end though, Bramble's first leg goal allowed us to saunter into the First Round proper with the minimum of fuss.

A good week then for the club and relief for manager and chairman alike that we managed to conclude some notable transfer business, a year on from the Owen capture.

That relief though has to be tempered with concern that Martins is the current plan A, B and C and we'll be unable to muster an effective enough side to meet our impending league and cup commitments when better teams than Ventspils come along.

After all if we end up substituting one Nigerian born-striker for another ailing one (Shola) we're no  better off than before, just a few million euro lighter.

Biffa

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