Tag: NUFC

Rolando Aarons – What could have been?

Our academy system has been a puzzle to me for many years now. Set up to take the cream of talent in the area and turn them into Premier League footballers, it has rarely covered itself in glory. There have been successes, of course with players like Sean Longstaff and to an extent Elliot Anderson being our more recent. But there have been so many false dawns and so many bright hopes that promised much, but ultimately failed to deliver.

One such example was brought to my attention recently by the fact that he was released by one of my local clubs, Huddersfield Town, down here in West Yorkshire. So, what happened to Rolando Aarons? And what could have been?

Having joined the club in 2012 from Bristol City’s academy, Aarons spent some time in our academy sides before making his first team debut as a substitute at the start of the 2014 Premier League season. In the game against Crystal Palace a couple of weeks later, Aarons really made his mark, scoring and assisting in a 3-3 draw. Described by then manager Alan Pardew as “the kind of player fans love”, Aarons looked set for a very bright future and it seemed that we’d unearthed a real gem. Here was an attacking player with skill, flair, power and pace; someone who would make the fans sit up and take notice and – as he’d sort of come through the academy – one of our own as well.

Amazingly though, he would then go on to make only 10 starts over the next 5 seasons, with substitute appearances bringing him to a total of 27 appearances in that whole time.

In 2016, Rolando signed a 5 year contract with Newcastle as the club put their faith in this bright young star. He was 20 at the time and we were preparing for a season in the Championship where Aarons could have played a big part in our campaign. By October of that year though Aarons had been involved in what was described as “a wild west brawl” while out celebrating his son’s first birthday and the controversy would drag on until over a year later when he was sentenced to a 10 month jail term that was suspended for 12 months.

In the season that the brawl happened he made just one start with controversy hanging over him and persistent injuries hampering him throughout the season. Then, in our next season back in the Premier League he once more managed only the single start.

Something had to give as we started 2018 and it was decided that a change of tack was best for the player. So, he was sent out on loan. In fact, during his time at Newcastle, Rolando was sent out on loan on 5 occasions to Verona in Italy, Slovan Liberec in the Czech Republic, Sheffield Wednesday, Wycombe and Motherwell. In those spells he made 48 appearances and again, never really made an impact because of injuries.

Rolando Aarons’ story is the quite a sobering one. Here was a young player with tons of natural ability and in both Pardew and Benitez, he had managers who believed in him. But all we ever saw of him were fleeting glimpses; yet enough to suggest that he could go on to be a top player. In fact, early on in his career he was compared to Raheem Sterling in terms of stature and ability, but sadly, he never lived up to that promise.

In two years with Huddersfield Town he made just 11 starts. Even then, friends of mine who support the Terriers talked of a player who obviously had huge ability. And while – again – there were glimpses of said ability, his time in Yorkshire just didn’t work out. A loan last season at Motherwell ended up being cut short and by the end of the season Rolando was released. As I write, he’s still without a club. No longer the bright young prospect, Aarons is now 27 years old and should be reaching his prime.

Rolando Aarons looked to be one of the stand out academy graduates of recent history and there were many of us who thought he’d go on to play an important part in the future of the club at a time when Mike Ashley was refusing to invest. With pace and skill being much needed requirements in the modern game it felt like he had a real chance of going all the way to the top, but it wasn’t to be .To hear of the latest setback in his career is very sad indeed.

Matt Ritchie: This is a Party Political Broadcast!

The dust has just about settled on one of the most successful seasons in Newcastle United’s recent history. The majority of our thoughts – and those of the players and staff – have inevitably turned to the prospect of top level European football next season. It’ll still that way for a while yet. However, there are other matters to attend to. Transfer targets seem to be emerging in their hundreds and as they do, we’re also being informed about players who are likely to be released.

One of those names is Matt Ritchie and while there are lots of fans who’d be happy for him to leave, I think he’s well worth at least another year. I think that there are lots of us who agree with that too.

So why vote Ritchie, so to speak?

Brought to the club for £10m by Rafa Benitez in 2016, Ritchie was a vital component in our promotion from the Championship a year later. He was a player I’d seen at Swindon and Bournemouth and always liked the look of. Seven years later and I think he’s been worth every last penny of that transfer fee and then some. A loyal and popular servant to the club and always a player that we could rely on.

I’ve always liked Ritchie at Newcastle. I’ve always liked wingers, so he fits the bill. But also, I like the competitive edge he brings, the creativity and even the odd spectacular goal, like the volleyed stoppage time equaliser at Bournemouth in 2019. Add in the penchant for lacing corner flags and over-enthusiastically slapping team mates on the back of the head and I’m sold! A few years back, I even managed to get his image up in every classroom of our school when I added him to our ‘Word of The Week’ posters – a personal highlight of my teaching career!

Ritchie will be almost 34 by the time next season kicks off. But let’s not worry about age; let’s put some value on experience, because experience can take you a long way in life. Every squad needs experience and positivity and Ritchie’s got both in spades.

Next season – everything crossed – we hope to be playing in Europe and while Matt Ritchie to my knowledge has never played in a European tie, he has played on the international stage with Scotland earning 16 caps and scoring 3 times. So, in my opinion his career experience at league level and his international experience make him a valuable asset to the squad and a player that needs to stick around.

Ritchie is versatile too, as we found out in the Bruce era. When Bruce finally discovered that tactics weren’t the little sweets in the flip top plastic box, Matt Ritchie became one of his first victims and he was deployed as a makeshift wingback. It worked in fits and starts, but I think Eddie would get more out of him if needed there. While most of his career has been spent as a wide midfielder, I think it’s safe to say that he can do a job in central midfield as well as operating as a wing back. And while I wouldn’t say he’s a perfect option as a wing back, he’s an option and a reasonably dependable one at that.

Now, before I go any further with my Matt Ritchie Pitch, I think it’s necessary to acknowledge the fact that Newcastle United are shopping at a different level of the market these days. So, yes, I understand fully that there are better options in terms of age and ability than Matt Ritchie, but those options cost money in what is undeniably an inflated market and with the club insistent, rightly, on adhering to the rules of Financial Fair Play it would seem pertinent to keep someone like Ritchie around. He knows the club and seems to love it, totally understands the manager’s methods and demands, is well liked by the fanbase and obviously a popular bloke within the squad. He might even be a good option to help out on the coaching side of things as the year progresses.

Ritchie is the kind of character who is invaluable ‘around the place’, as they say. The back-of-the-head slaps as goal celebrations, the corner flag kicking, the passion, the berating of linesmen, the honesty, the chirpiness, the energy and the fight; all vital in any team sport. And then there’s his experience. As we’re more likely to be bringing more younger, inexperienced players in someone like Ritchie would be sure to have a positive influence on them. As well as this, with the likes of Anderson, Miley, De Bolle, Kuol and others coming through the ranks the influence of such an experienced pro would no doubt be more than useful. Earlier this season it was Sean Longstaff who talked of Ritchie’s influence on his professionalism and mental health in the last couple of years and look at him now – a glowing reference if ever there was one.

Apparently Ritchie is a bit of a whinger and it’s borne out on the pitch where he’s always been vocal with his team mates and contested the majority of decisions that have gone against us. I kind of like that as it shows him as someone who won’t settle for second best. Yes, he’ll whinge, but just because he wants to be better.

For me, Matt Ritchie brings a wealth of positives. His influence on the pitch would probably only really be as a substitute, but he’s a solid ‘yes’ for me just for that. Add in his character and personality – he seems well loved by squad and staff alike – his drive and desire to win, his professionalism and his experience and I think a year’s extension sounds almost a no brainer.

Eddie Howe has already expressed his desire to keep Ritchie, alongside others like Paul Dummett. Someone like Ritchie helps to maintain our ‘evolution not revolution’ approach, while understanding exactly what it takes to play for Newcastle United and for me that’s the kind of thing that can’t always be bought and simply shouldn’t be disregarded.

My friends, I implore you, Vote Ritchie!

NUFC: Can we talk about the other night?

I used to write these pieces every so often during the Steve Bruce era. They became a good way of getting my anger and frustration out there without harming myself or anyone else. A good test of my imagination thinking of news ways to insult Steve Bruce as well. People seemed to like them too.

This one obviously has a much more positive feeling to it. Apart from anything else, we’re closing in on the end of a magnificent season and some kind of European football next season, although I’m far too superstitious to even speculate about the name. As well as that though, Thursday night was our victory against Brighton and Hove Albion and I think there’s a lot to talk about.

I wasn’t there; I watched on telly. And that’s part of the problem, really. After leaving work, I spent quite a long time taking in various media perspectives about the game, as you do. Big mistake. Listening to the radio, reading stuff on the internet and watching the Sky coverage tainted my night because it made me so angry. You’d have thought we were somehow playing Brazil ’70 from the tone of the national media, such were the glowing Brighton tributes and vague predictions made. Eventually it really got my back up.

There’s been a lot of bias this season. A lot of the national media seem to be against us and I don’t mind that so much, having gotten used to it over the years. It becomes hard to ignore though, when it’s the dominant factor in the coverage.

Brighton are a good side. Their league position suggests as much and I’ve watched enough of them to realise that they play lovely football. But, away from home against a side higher in the table? I couldn’t get my head around the praise that was being thrown their way. Recent losses seemed to be ignored in favour of talking up their win against Arsenal at the weekend, while our recent losses and the draw at Leeds were mentioned with a sense of doom. All very odd, if you ask me and really disrespectful when you think of the brilliance of Eddie’s Mags this season. But a lot of the media seemed to see a Brighton win as some kind of inevitability.

I turned off Talksport’s coverage after approximately four minutes after they’d got the name of the stadium wrong and then talked about something at the Gallowgate End that was clearly the Leazes. I know that the answer is just not to listen to that particular station, but I was away from the telly and just wanted a bit of pre-match build up. Bigger fool me.

The Sky coverage felt no better and there was a sense of doom about the whole thing. It didn’t seem to matter how well we were playing; Brighton had made four changes, there were a lot of young players playing and did you know they’d beaten Arsenal at the weekend? Call me paranoid, but it felt like the two clowns on commentary wanted Brighton to win, more than anything. The quality of our performance didn’t get that much airtime because Brighton played out from the back – largely unsuccessfully – and passed the ball round making nice patterns on the pitch. Personally, I’ll take our four goals any day of the week.

Which brings me on to a more positive note about last night. I thought we were excellent. Better than when we hammered Spurs, even though we didn’t score as many. As good as Brighton might be – and they are a good side – we were simply a lot better.

I felt that we bullied them. The Sky commentators seemed to think it was some kind of moral victory that Brighton stuck to their principles and kept on trying to play out from the back. Yet, our press was incredible and on another day, given the amount of times Brighton panicked and tied themselves in knots, we could have gone in 5-0 up at the break, just from chances created while pressing high.

It’s said that in the pre-match huddle Kieran Trippier tells the lads the same thing, every time; pressure is a privilege. And Thursday night must have brought with it a fair amount of pressure for those players. Unlike some former Newcastle United teams however, we didn’t fold. Instead, we rose to the challenge, reveled in the pressure and imposed our game on Brighton to great effect and a Brighton side that have outplayed both Arsenal ad Man Utd recently didn’t really have a kick in that first half.

Eddie’s tactics were spot on and I particularly liked the ploy of using Miggy to close down their keeper quickly. We obviously felt he had an error in him and he did. Sadly, we just couldn’t capitalise on them. Callum Wilson was excellent here too and Lewis Dunk was repeatedly forced to go back to the keeper for a way out of the holes he was digging.

Eventually, we succeeded in breaking them down with Trippier’s delivery proving too much for Brighton. Before that though, we’d harassed the life out of both full backs and I actually felt a bit sorry for Estupinan at left back as Miggy went past him time and again. The poor lad looked totally befuddled by it all. I’m guessing the atmosphere didn’t help either.

Funnily, having mentioned the commentary earlier, I initially thought that the bloke had called out ‘Oh God’ when we scored, rather than ‘Own goal’. It wouldn’t have been a surprise!

Later on, when Brighton managed to see a bit of the ball and pulled a goal back, we never looked panicked and it was a thoroughly professional display. Definitely one of Nick Pope’s easier nights.

As we went 3 and then 4-1 up, I allowed myself to think a bit about Europe. We shouldn’t be afraid, whatever competition we end up in. The media will talk of us being tested by the big boys, but I wonder what the big boys will make of the bear pit atmosphere of a midweek game under the lights at St. James’ Park?

A year ago we were fighting relegation. Two years back and we were in the depths of despair watching a team with no confidence play for a manager with no tactics and suffering transfer window after transfer window of disappointment. The balance sheet champions.

Now, we’re Eddie Howe’s black and white army. Bring on the European adventure, I say!

NUFC: Just Trust the Process.

There’s a lot said about opinions. These days, everybody seems ready to offer you theirs, on any subject regardless of their ignorance.

John F Kennedy once said that “we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought”, while my dad often used to quote the old saying that “opinions are like arseholes; everybody’s got one”. While both are – as far as I know – true, I think I prefer JFK’s.

I got to thinking about this when the story about Newcastle wanting to sign Scott McTominay surfaced. As an avid user of social media I was immediately made aware of the fact that this was a player that we shouldn’t sign. The only grounds for this opinion seemed to be either that fans like Keith from Gateshead didn’t like him or that, under the new ownership, we could afford to go out and buy ‘better’. The internet seems to mean that every other football fans thinks they’re ‘in the know’. I’m not sure they are though.

Misguided opinions have been around in football for a long, long time. In my own experience one of the first that springs to mind is when we signed Mick Quinn in 1989. Not good enough, came the cry from many, while a banner at a fan protest about sacking the board read ‘Who the f*** is Micky Quinn?’ Many were unhappy that, in their opinion, our new number 9 just wasn’t good enough.

Those of us old enough to remember know that Quinny scored four on his debut in a 5-2 home win against Leeds. He’d certainly answered the question from the banner pretty quickly and he went on to score 57 goals in 110 appearances. It’s safe to say that anyone who had a problem with his signing was guilty of what JFK was talking about – quick to shout up, but with no thought whatsoever.

In more recent times we’ve probably all been guilty of questioning some of our signings. Possibly none more so than the signing of Joelinton. Whatever way you look at it, we were wrong. Yes, there were times when it looked like we had a real point as he became guilty of miss after miss or tripped over his own feet once again. But what did we really know? I for one, hadn’t even heard of him before he signed and I knew very little even about the club we signed him from, Hoffenheim. Put simply, I hadn’t seen him play. Not even on every amateur scout’s favourite place, YouTube.

I think I’d be fairly accurate in saying that Big Joe wasn’t Steve Bruce’s signing. But Bruce was happy to work with him. And work with him he did, sadly almost ruining him in the process. Face it, Bruce would have made Messi look like a carthorse, so Joelinton didn’t exactly have the easiest of starts. But still we were happy to put forward nothing but negative opinions. While I was desperate for him to be a success, I just couldn’t see a player there.

When Eddie Howe came in as manager he was quick to stress the importance of Joelinton to his team. He was very vocal about the fact that they’d identified him as a major player from very early on in their time at the club. And while it took a sending off and a hasty re-arranging of the formation to put Big Joe back in midfield, it worked. Again, what did us fans really know?

“He’s Brazilian…” – The Remarkable Rise of Joelinton.

Being a club with rich owners means that we’ll be linked with a whole host of players, many of whom you or I won’t have heard of. Yet still people offer negative opinions. Not good enough, doesn’t score enough goals, lazy etc. If nothing else it proves that the internet, especially Twitter, is the maddest place on the planet. I simply don’t believe that 99% of the people who offer their expert opinion on the players that we get linked to know the first thing about them. I mean, how can you know? I have a family and a full time job; I just don’t have time for that many scouting trips. None, in fact. I’m sure most of you are the same.

Which brings me on to McTominay. I quite like him. He’s strong, physical, quite quick and has a good deal of Premier and Champions League experience. I’m not sure whether he’d be a signing that would excite me that much or where he’d fit in, but I quite like him. I’m of the opinion, like lots of others, that we’re in need of a defensive midfielder and he’s not it. I’m sure there are much sexier names out there too. But what do I really know?

Football has become a squad game, so McTominay fits in, whether we like it or not. The point is though, I don’t have the luxury of regular chats with Eddie Howe, Jason Tindall, Steve Nickson or Dan Ashworth, so I haven’t the first clue what the plan is. What I do know is that in the last week, McTominay has scored four international goals for Scotland, so he might just be proving himself to someone.

I trust the process and I don’t think I should be part of it. I don’t think you should either, with the greatest of respect. Eddie and his team are doing an incredible job. Personally, I’m just basking in the glow of not having to think about relegation for once and I’ve got Eddie and the team to thank for that.

So, while we’re all on social media offering scattergun negative opinions on 90% of the players we’re linked to, maybe we should all just sit back and allow ourselves ‘the discomfort of thought’. I wouldn’t want Eddie Howe or Dan Ashworth coming in to my classroom and telling me how to teach Macbeth to a room full of disinterested Year 11s. They’re happy to leave the Shakespeare to me. So, maybe I’ll leave the transfers to them.

Ed & Jase’s Sunday Night Takeaway!

Five things we can take away from the Carabao Cup Final.

It didn’t end the way that we all wanted it to, but last Sunday, however you watched the game, was a one that will live long in the memory. Once I’d stopped sulking I wrote a few things down about what we might take away from our Carabao Cup final. So, for what it’s worth, here you go.

  1. We’ve arrived. If we didn’t know it already, we’re kind of a big deal nowadays. It’s not that we haven’t been a big club before Sunday and it’s not like we weren’t getting noticed. But Sunday’s Carabao Cup Final appearance will have made a big difference. It’s not because of the performance on the pitch because while we were OK, we didn’t pull up any trees and certainly didn’t play to our potential. What will have made people sit up and take a bit of notice is first of all, the fact that we made it to a final. We were there. The effort put in by our fans will have been difficult to ignore too and I imagine that images of the black and white flags around Wembley, as well as the events around Trafalgar Square on Saturday night, will have gone right around the world. I mean, who could ignore a gazebo in a sea of black and white at a major London landmark? Sunday at Wembley will have been noted by potential sponsors, by kids around the world and by potential transfer targets and who knows; maybe some time in the next 10 years or so, when we sign some superstar wonderkid, they’ll be telling reporters about not about watching ‘Goal’ but about watching Twitter videos of fans coming off trains at Kings’ Cross singing about ‘that team we call United’ and thinking, I’d love to be a part of that some day.
  2. Our city has pride again. I’m no longer a resident of Newcastle, haven’t been for years. But it’ll always be home, always be my home town. And watching fans at Wembley, listening to players speak of their desire and their pride had me close to tears. Make no mistake about it, Sunday was a big deal despite what some will tell you about a Mickey Mouse cup, and we can be proud of every last minute. We’ve gone from being the laughing stock of football during the Ashley years to being a team, a club and a city that absolutely matters. We’re a talking point again and we’re competing in meaningful games at the top level of English football. Even the stupidest of mackems can’t deny that.
  3. The team have gained vital big game experience. It’s an obvious thing to say, but this team has come a long way in a very short space of time. And while the likes of Kieran Trippier have been there and done it, when you have a look around the squad there’s not a lot of that kind of thing knocking about. Some have made appearances at World Cups and Euros, but in terms of club football, big game experience is lacking. While the game itself clearly didn’t go to plan, the all round experience will be invaluable to our players. From young kids being around the squad for the week of build up to those players who got minutes at Wembley, it’s money in the bank so to speak. Let’s not forget the management team too, the majority of whom haven’t had such unique experience before. Eddie Howe’s notebooks will be like the complete works of Shakespeare after that one! There should be no doubt whatsoever that we’ll be back playing in big games in the near future. Now though, we’ll be armed with a bit more knowledge and a bit more experience and I feel sure that it will be vital in making a difference.
  4. The squad needs investment. Manchester United boasted game changers with genuine quality in their eleven. De Gea, Martinez, Casemiro, Varane, Fernandes and Rashford all just had a little bit too much for us on Sunday. Even their bench had real quality sat there watching. And Harry Maguire. Meanwhile, we might well have ‘Bruno in the middle’ but genuine star quality is a little thin on the ground. What we have is a good Premier League eleven that are overperforming. Don’t get me wrong, we have some fantastic footballers in Tripps, Maxi, Miggy, Isak etc, but six of our starters were at the club during the Ashley years. Some of the squad were part of our Championship winning squad. These are players that have been outstanding for the club and they’re players that we love. And while I still don’t wish to deviate from the ‘evolution not revolution’ stance and have no problem with what Eddie Howe and the ownership are doing, it’s clear that more quality is needed.
  5. We have to move on. For what it’s worth I thought we played reasonably well on Sunday. There were chances missed, blocks made and a little bit of bad luck going the other way. I mean, I think the better side won, but you’ll never convince that first goal was onside. You could make the VAR screen look like a child’s Etch-a-Sketch and I still wouldn’t say it was onside. Nor was it a free kick in the first place. What’s important now is that we move on quickly. There can be no hangover. Not with the likes of Fulham, Brighton and Liverpool chasing us and Spurs within touching distance in fourth place. Personally, I don’t want to settle for finishing 6th or 7th having also had a cup final appearance. I happen to think we’re better than that. I don’t think the players will sulk, but I hope some of our bigger hitters start grabbing games by the scruff of the neck now and pushing for one of those Champions’ League places. I hope that days like Sunday have whetted a few appetites.
  6. Can someone have a word with Loris Karius about those gloves please? I wasn’t concerned about his past mistakes. I didn’t dwell on the fact that it looked like he could have saved their second goal. But sweet Jesus, I couldn’t get those gloves out of my head. It looked like he was playing in the kind of driving gloves last seen in the 70s or on the hands of present day octogenarians as they drive incredibly slowly to the shops. Brown bloody gloves? We might have got beat, but Manchester United should hang their heads in shame at the fact that only scored twice against a bloke that looked like he’d borrowed his gloves from Alan Partridge.

Let’s hope that we get Sunday out of our systems as quickly and that we can and end the season as strongly as possible. It’s been a hell of a season so far and I really hope we can keep on putting noses out of joint!

Howay The Lads!

Another FA Cup nightmare: About last night…

If you’re a Newcastle fan of a certain vintage, you’ll have half expected that result last night. Similarly, if you’re of a certain mindset when it comes to our club, nothing really shocks you anymore. So crashing out of the FA Cup in an early round to lower league opposition is all part of the deal really. But it doesn’t make it any more palatable.

If the truth be told, I’m gutted. In fact, I’m almost thankful for my present health worries, otherwise I’d have really fixated on what we all watched unfold last night. At least I’ve got genuinely better, more important things to think about, even if they are a right royal pain in the arse.

I love the FA Cup though. Despite the many changes over the years, for me it still feels special. Newcastle United have played a big part in the history and the drama of the cup over the years, with a chunk of that being hugely positive. In my lifetime though, it’s been largely negative and at times it’s felt like a competition where we actively strive to plumb new depths. As I said, I was gutted to go out early again.

Last night was the just latest in a long list of underwhelming episodes. After all, we’ve won only four of our last ten third round ties with three of those victories coming after replays. It’s not even a new phenomenon for Eddie Howe, having watched his team go out with a whimper this time last year against Cambridge United. And oh, how football fans loved that one as the ‘richest club in the world’ were beaten by a team where the city is more well known for its university than anything else.

For me, there’s no need for anger after this latest failure. Embarrassment, yes but no point in getting irate and filming yourself shouting at a phone or a webcam all red faced, sweary and reduced to making noises rather than forming sentences. Please, leave that to fans of Arsenal or Everton or that daft mackem that dresses like an 11=year=old and spends lots of time in his videos with his head in his hands making noises like a tortured animal. If you insist on being that Toon fan though, then maybe up your life insurance premium and do some reading about heart health. Shouting and screaming like a child isn’t going to change what is really just a bump in the road.

Eddie Howe said that he thought “the performance was ok” and was of the opinion that we had more than enough chances to win the game. He was right, as he is most of the time. We had a number of good chances that on another night we would have converted and gone home happy. It’s still a worry that we missed so many sitters though. It was the same story against Leeds and to a lesser extent Arsenal and it’s to be hoped that it doesn’t continue.

For me, a bigger worry was the passing. We gave the ball away far too much and wasted possession on a number of occasions. Given that we made eight changes that might be expected, but changed team or not, these players train together every day and most of those who came into the side have been regularly involved this season. It wasn’t like Eddie had thrown a load of kids in. Even the bench looked solid last night and personally I’d have liked to have seen the likes of Turner Cooke and Stephenson given another chance. However, as the coach of an Under 14 team that are currently bottom of their league with no points and a heavily negative goal difference, I have no wish to offer Eddie Howe and Jason Tindall any footballing advice whatsoever. If only certain NUFC related Twitter accounts would take note…

A few players stood out and strengthened the argument for greater squad depth. And while not wishing to dig people out and come across like one of the ‘I told you so’ brigade that lurk around every corner of social media, it’d be remiss of me not to mention them.

I love Matt Ritchie. He’s been my favourite player since Nobby Solano and I think he’s been absolutely vital for the survival of the club in recent years. He’s one of those lads that’s come in and shown that he gets it. He understands the fans and loves the club. However, his presence in the starting eleven last night was indicative of our lack of depth. I actually thought his performance was pretty solid, but having steeled myself for his departure over the last few windows, I was surprised to see him starting.

It’s a similar story with Jacob Murphy. I actually rate him and I think he’s done well when called upon this season. Last night was pretty much an abomination from him though. He just didn’t seem to be able to do anything right. It felt like he gave the ball away far too much and as ever there was a huge question over his decision making with him repeatedly hanging onto the ball for a few seconds too long when there was an obvious pass just yards away. As for his finishing, let’s just say last night wasn’t his first rodeo in terms of missed one on ones. He was a young player that promised much when he signed. He’s not anymore and I for one haven’t a clue where his future lies.

Jamal Lewis was another that promised much when he signed. And while I have sympathy for a player that was so obviously ruined by the previous regime and its emphasis on neglecting training and tactics in favour of days off, it saddens me to say that he just doesn’t look good enough. The lad just looks terrified every time he sets foot on the pitch and it’s just not working out for him as a Newcastle player. I thought he might turn into one of those players that Eddie performed an Eddie miracle on, but sadly, it doesn’t look likely. And if he can’t cut it against League one opposition, then he’s never going to cut the mustard.

I was also disappointed with Elliot Anderson last night, but I firmly believe that his time will come as he seems to have obvious quality. Prior to the game I’d read some of Eddie’s comments about Anderson and the fact that he’s had niggling injuries and illness this season and maybe that was exactly what we watched last night; a player struggling for consistency in a stop start season.

And then there was the elephant in the room: Chris Wood. I’m not keen to say anything too bad and his history in the Premier League suggests that there’s a player in there, but maybe we all have to admit that he’s not got the quality we’re going to need if this team is to keep evolving. It feels like there’s a glaring miss from him with every appearance and perhaps it’s a confidence issue. But perhaps that’s just me being kind for the sake of it. Last night’s glaring miss felt horrible and on the end of a sweeping move like that one was, what you want is a clinical finisher. It wasn’t a particularly difficult finish and if we really are going to win something in the next few years – or ever again – then we need a quality of player that doesn’t miss sitters like that.

So, when push comes to shove, last night just wasn’t good enough. But a bit of perspective is clearly needed here and thankfully I’m not the only one who can remind you that we’re still in the Quarter Final of the Carabao Cup and that we’re third in the league (third, man!) and firmly in the hunt for a place in Europe next season. Everything about our club is on the up, everyone is together and we are at the very start of what promises to be an exciting future. Sheffield Wednesday pretty much deserved the win. Let’s leave it at that, not get too down and look forward to what’s still to come.

Tracking, swooping and discussing: Welcome to the world of transfer window jargon!

As fascinating as it is, the transfer window can be a frustrating and baffling place. As a fan of Newcastle United, during the Ashley years I lived in hope, despite the fact that every fibre of my being told me that it was a fruitless exercise. As if any of us didn’t learn our lesson after we signed Shefki Kuqi!

Yet still, we feel our hearts skip a beat at the mere sight of the yellow ticker at the bottom of the Sky Sports screen and we can’t stop ourselves from refreshing Twitter (and especially the NUFC hashtag) every minute of every day at certain times of the year! And don’t get me started on ITKs! I’m guessing it’s exactly the same with all clubs at this time of year though.

Although things have very much changed for my team on the transfer window front, one thing has stayed very much the same; the amount of hilarious jargon used in the reports relating to the window.

Recently, while I was having a scroll through the BBC Sport gossip section, I found that it was out of hand. And then when combined with places like the Chronicle Live website and listening at any length to Talksport, the language just seems to enter an entirely new dimension. Here’s a selection of what I found.

‘Tracking’ was something Newcastle did a lot while Ashley was owner and as far as I could tell, at most it meant watching a player and generally it seemed to just mean building your hopes up a bit but not buying a player. The verb tracking though brings to mind some kind of cowboy film scenario where native americans are using special skills to find the foot marks from a player’s Gucci trainers on a pavement outside a nightclub somewhere or a broken branch in a hedgerow where the player they’re searching for has passed. At best though ‘tracking’ seems to have meant scouting, which if I’m not mistaken has been going on for years! But, reading newspapers and websites, the amounts of players being tracked was quite something.

I also read a lot about clubs having ‘made contact with’ various players. Now firstly, I thought that was kind of against the rules. ‘Tapping up’ they called it. You’re not supposed to just make contact if a player has a contract with another club. I get it that clubs do, but it’s actually against the rules. Secondly though, it’s funny, because making contact could mean almost anything from sending a letter, a text, an email or even just shaking his hand when you played against him. Sadly, I have a feeling that during the Mike Ashley era, we probably attempted to make contact with players via carrier pigeons…blind ones.

Some new jargon seems to have emerged in recent years with phrases like ‘maintaining an interest’. Another ridiculous one for me, this. Basically, it sounds like a club have said they’re interested in a player and then a bit later, when they’re ‘maintaining an interest’, well they’re just still interested. So, all in all, a pointless report to make really. Great for those ‘clicks’ though eh?

Staying with matters of interest, it amuses me when I read that clubs have ‘cooled their interest’ in a player. How is that interest cooled? Does the coach get forced into a very cold shower? Are they subjected to the ice bucket challenge or just asked to make their minds up while sitting under the shade of a nice big parasol? A weird phrase really. Sadly, again I think that Newcastle’s interest was often cooled in the past when it looked like that carrier pigeon hadn’t been able to make contact with a player. Or just when Mike Ashley realised that he couldn’t sign said player for a bargain bucket price or traded for a box full of Lonsdale tracksuits.

One of the more vague expressions I read concerning transfers was that a club was ‘weighing up a bid’ for a player. Almost like a manager would go to the chairman, let him know that they’d been ‘tracking’ a player, had ‘maintained an interest’, but didn’t know whether to actually sign them. So the two of them were just going to sit their and ‘weigh up a bid’, looking quizzically at each other. Similar to this in terms of vagueness was reading that a club were ‘discussing the possibility of a deal’. Not the deal, but the possibility of a deal. Weird.

It amused me to read that a club was ‘exploring a deal’, conjuring up images of Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola in a big canoe going up the Amazon or Ralph Hasenhutll wandering round the jungle in the Republic of Congo, looking for a right back. Come to think of it though, Ralph Hasenhutll sounds way more like an old time explorer than a football manager so maybe it’s a more accurate phrase than we imagine.

Similarly vague is the new kid on the block as clubs are now often described as ‘preparing an offer’ for a player. I mean, how much preparation is needed? It makes transfers sound like one of those property shows where the house hunters really want the property but are encouraged to make low-ball offer after low-ball offer, pushing the money up by a thousand pounds every time until they get to a ;point where the seller will actually let the house go. Or is it just that so much money is involved in transfers these days that everyone at the club is encouraged to search down the back of their sofas to club together any pound coins they can find? Or do some managers just not really know what to say when it comes to transfers? Maybe there are some painfully shy bosses that we just don’t know about yet.

Some of the more old school phrases still get used around transfers today. One of them revolves around the idea that clubs have ‘swooped’ to make a signing. Again, it’s ridiculous, implying as it does that there is some kind of eagle-like quality to managers or even football clubs. Personally, I’d love to see some managers being urged to run off the side of a cliff wearing some home made wings, but that’s got nothing to do with the transfer window.

With a day or so still to go in the summer transfer window there’s still time for someone to invent some new jargon with which to entertain us. It’s certainly allowed me to conjure up some strange scenarios over the last couple of months. Anyway, here’s to my club Newcastle pouncing tiger-like or maybe even ambushing their way into one last signing before midnight on Thursday.

NUFC Season Tickets

So, another new era NUFC milestone was reached this week as the club put around 1000 season tickets on sale. It was reported that over 30,000 people were sat in an online queue at one point, all patiently waiting, Willy Wonka-like for the chance to get their hands on a golden ticket.

Given the hysteria around the club for the last year or so, the numbers weren’t that much of a surprise. If you take into account the whole feel good factor created by things that range from being as small as team photos and painting the concourses in the stadium to being as big as signing world class players or indeed any players in what I’m reliably informed is called a ‘transfer window’, then it’s no wonder people want to watch their team again.

However, while it might seem simple that people want to see attractive football again, a lot of people still aren’t particularly happy.

For me, it seemed a simple equation. If you sit in a massive queue – nothing like the numbers that Everton get for Under 23 games or the launch of new mugs at the club shop mind, but massive all the same – trying to get something that’s available in a limited amount, then you might well miss out. And yet, still people seemed outraged.

Some said that they had a greater right than others to getting season tickets, while others bemoaned the size of the stadium. So here’s my take, for what it’s worth.

First of all, I’m not that sure that anyone has a greater right to watch a football team than anyone else. I’ve always been a bit of an advocate for supporting your local team, but even then I realise that people from other parts of the UK and the world have a connection to the club. And that connection makes it perfectly natural to want to go to St. James’ Park and see your team. It might not be perhaps as obvious a connection as being local, but it’s a connection all the same.

I was born and bred in Newcastle, growing up in Blaydon while spending a considerable amount of time with family in both Byker and Walker. I never thought I’d leave, but then a combination of university and Margaret Thatcher deciding the region didn’t deserve investment or jobs happened and I moved away, first to Stoke and then back north to Leeds. So was I only passable as a season ticket holder or even a supporter to some while I lived in Blaydon? It’s a silly argument really, but I guess some people are a little blind to real life at times.

Then we come to the question of what some see as loyalty. Some will tell you that season tickets and indeed any kind of matchday seat should go to those deemed the most loyal. But then, how do you define loyalty? Is it a simple matter of attending every game home or away? It can’t be, surely because again this is an area where life can get in the way. What if you work shifts or occasional weekends? What if work takes you away for periods of time or what if you live too far away to make it practical to get to every game? And what about the fact that there’s only a finite certain amount of people that can fit into the stadium or an away allocation. What if you can’t be ‘loyal’ because of that?

And as for loyalty, what even is it? If you’re going to every game because we’re successful – probably difficult to imagine, I know – then that’s an easy version of loyalty. I’d hope I was loyal during enough of the awful football that I’ve witnessed over the years to be able to be respected for boycotting when I’d had enough of seeing how badly my club was being run and the foresight, perhaps, to see it was going to get worse. So while I’d salute (not literally, that’s be daft) those who stuck with it, I’d argue that the reasons myself and many others had for stepping away were equally admirable.

Lots of people have had a real issue with those of us who boycotted because of Ashley’s ownership. It was an early and reasonably easy choice for me to make. Having held a season ticket for years, I was driving up from Leeds and my first thought on taking my seat was often, ‘What am I doing here?’ I was getting more and more frustrated by the lack of ambition and by what I felt like I could see was going to happen to the club. To paraphrase a now famous banner, I didn’t want a team that won all the time, I wanted a team that tried and from the owner downwards, I couldn’t see that. Everything came to a head for me at the fateful home game versus Hull, just after Keegan had resigned again. Here was my childhood hero being roundly abused by Ashley and his cronies. In fact, we were all having the piss taken out of us. I’d had enough. That was my last game. Even during Rafa’s time, despite the pull of something a bit brighter, Ashley kept me away.

Staying away has genuinely hurt. There’s something missing in my life every time we play. Tears have been shed over all manner of issues – various protests, Rafa leaving, Wor Flags displays, the takeover, Wilson’s goal against Spurs after the takeover was done, sometimes even just the sight of someone like Justin Barnes was enough to bring a tear to the eye! I’ve missed the social side of games, I’ve missed the atmosphere, the expectancy, the hope, the sight of The Angel signalling that I’m nearly home again on the drive up, Local Hero…all sorts of things. But I knew it was important to stick to my guns.

For people to now be telling me (or us, the ones that walked away, heartbroken) that I have no right to a season ticket is a bit of a joke. In walking away, what we did was incredibly difficult, but it had a purpose and I’d argue it had to be done. I couldn’t continue to give my money to Ashley and the thought that if he was denied our money he might sell up seemed reasonably sensible to me. So, I gave up one of the biggest things in my life and something that I’d been utterly in love with from an early age. It wasn’t a simple matter of having had enough and waiting for us to start winning and signing big names again. It felt like it had broken my heart.

As it happens, I’ve not applied for a season ticket. Somehow, I’ve got to the age I’m at and found that I lead a bit of a busy life and the thought of driving up and down the motorway to get to games just felt a little bit too much at the moment. My health hasn’t been fantastic over the past few years and so this was an extra strain that I felt unwilling to put myself through. I suppose I’m finding out that sometimes in life, the time just isn’t right, no matter how much you want to do something. But, I’d defend anyone’s right to try and go back, who’s been in the situation I’ve been in. Ashley’s season ticket giveaway of a few years back suggests that there’s a lot of us too. Like me, a lot of those will have been long term season ticket holders when they decided to boycott. Like me, a lot of them would have done plenty of time following Newcastle home and away over the years. That love, that loyalty and that history can’t just be switched off. Nor can it be ignored or cheapened.

As Newcastle United fans, it seems odd that so many are determined to have us divided. I understand that everyone has a view, but I’d also suggest that people don’t criticise or judge too much when they haven’t walked in the shoes that they’re so eager to denounce. Everyone has a view, but everyone has a story too, whether it be about why we love Newcastle United or why we had to loosen our grip a little bit. When it comes down to it, we all want the same thing; the hope and the pride that comes with supporting a competitive and ambitious Newcastle United.

Newcastle United: Some reasons to feel the love.

It’s been an incredible season. A season that started out cloaked in a sadly all too familiar pessimism, has somehow (almost) ended in an almighty celebration. No trophies – and you’ve been following the wrong club if that’s what you got into it for – and nothing hugely tangible to show for it, but still every cause for celebration.

But this isn’t an article about the takeover. Nor is it about being ITK and pretending I’ve got the inside track on some stellar summer signings. There will be a bit about our owners and their takeover, but largely this is just inner workings of my mind whenever I think about Newcastle United at the moment and the fact that not so long ago I’d almost fallen out of love with them. It’s about the little things. And the little things are often the best (or so the anti erectile dysfunction advert campaigners say). So here’s a list of 20 little NUFC related things to make you smile.

  1. The owners – meeting and greeting anyone and everyone, smiling, engaging with the fans, going to the games, trolling each other on social media, looking like they’re pleased to be here, enjoying the club and the city and setting about running our football club professionally and like they care. And it’s been that way ever since Amanda Staveley emerged from a hotel in Jesmond smiling and waving to everyone there. God bless the bloody lot of them!
  2. Team spirit – it looks like a joy to play for our football club again and I for one can’t remember a team spirit like this. No bad eggs and no scurrilous stories in the tabloids. The squad and everyone around them have big, beaming smiles on their faces and it’s just utterly refreshing.
  3. Eddie and his staff – for the first time in a few years we have a group of people running the team that take great pride in what they do, see it as a privilege to work at our club and are more than willing to go the extra mile in order to bring us some kind of success. Eddie and his staff obviously appreciate the fans too and I think that to a man, woman and child, we love them right back!
  4. Player Renaissance – under the previous regime it felt at times like we had a squad full of players who were rapidly falling out of love with the game. Many struggled for form. It almost felt like paddling pool recovery technology, wheely bin ice baths and a sulky, face pulling coach just weren’t enough inspiration anymore. However, since the dawning of the Eddie Howe era several players have scaled new heights. Ryan Fraser, Fabian Schar, Sean Longstaff and Emil Krafth are all good examples of players who’ve discovered scintilating levels of form since January. But of course, we can’t forget Joelinton; a man who has found himself receiving nationwide recognition for the upturn in his form. I’d add more, but you can read precisely what I think on the link below.

“He’s Brazilian…” – The Remarkable Rise of Joelinton.

5. The future – I mean. I wouldn’t class myself as any kind of optimist, but it’s bright isn’t it? 6. Bruuuuunoooo – it’s been a while since a player of this quality graced our team. It’s all been said by others, so I won’t write too much, but the boy’s a bit special. Cabaye is probably the closest we’ve seen to someone of Bruno’s class for a long time, but I truly think that those comparisons do him a disservice. A current Brazilian international who scores back-heeled volleys and sings his own terrace song around the house – Bruno is the stuff that dreams are made of. 7. The return of Wor Flags – again, it’s all been said before really. But what a spectacle! What a place St. James’ Park is again! And let’s not forget there’s a ‘BMX4sale 42 kwid o.n.o’. Genius. 8. The Jealousy of other fans – Look, there are certain issues involved in the ownership of our club that people are going to pick up on. Rightly so, too. But in many cases it’s just the green eyed monster. The amount of fans of other clubs who seem to have developed an overnight social conscience is only just dwarfed by the amount that didn’t realise how transfer window worked up until January. And you can bet that these are the same people who said we’d be the richest club in the championship too. Get used to it fellow Newcastle fans; these people are going to be crying river after river after river for years to come! 9. Shearer’s statue – the victim of another petty decision by the previous regime, Shearer’s statue is back inside the boundaries of the stadium, where it always belonged. It was an easy win for our new owners, so they did it. Seems simple really, doesn’t it? What a shame Ashley never understood. 10. Team Photos after a win – the target of hilarious snide comments from fans of other clubs, but the thing that we love to see. Birthplace of our knowledge of the Burn/Fraser bromance, while also humiliating those of us that carry a little bit more timber than we’d like with just the sight of some of the abs on show. I mean, Paul Dummett…who knew? Eddie’s simple idea is another thing that has made us fans fall back in love with the club (those of us who fell or almost fell out of love with it anyway) and I for one have looked forward to them after every fantastic win that we’ve been able to put on the board! 11. Sean Longstaff’s defence of Joelinton – straight after the home draw with Man Utd, after Joelinton had been awarded Man of The Match, the interviewer told Big Joe, “I didn’t realise you were that good.” After Joelinton’s cheery but bemused reply up stepped Sean. HIs defence of Joe was fantastic and showed the spirit in the camp, something that has deserted Newcastle frequently over the years. Longstaff said that the treatment of Joelinton had been disgraceful, revealing that everyone wants to be on his team at training because that means they’ll win! In an age of media trained monotony, this was refreshing and would have had many of us Toon fans shouting at the telly! 12. Big Dan Burn – put simply, I’m not sure there’s much better than a successful Geordie coming home story. 13. The Fraser/Burn bromance – with their immediately noticeable difference in height, I’m sure Ryan and Dan were the first to find those pictures funny. Surely standing together during those team photos was done on purpose? Same with the order in which they come on to the field. It’s a beautiful thing! More than that though, I hope it’s a sign of the spirit in the squad – two players prepared to have a laugh at themselves in order to promote a bit of harmony. Alternatively of course is the fact that they might just really get on and that their height doesn’t affect them being mates whatsoever. Still, it’s put a smile on more than a few faces. 14. Sam Fender offends mackems – a home town gig, Wor Flags and Local Hero. Cue social media meltdown on Wearside. Apparently though, they didn’t like him anyway (presumably they stumbled into a ticketed gig by mistake, having boarded the Metro to Newcastle by mistake), he was far too full of himself, there was no place for flags at a gig (maybe atmosphere’s not a big thing in Sunderland?) and where Sam was from wasn’t allowed to matter to him…just them. Very strange. But remember, we’re the ones that are obsessed. 15. Actual transfer windows – for much of the last 14 years these have been the stuff of legend, the place where other football clubs did business and bought players to improve things. For us, these were pretty desperate, yet predictable times. Lots of futile speculation, little or no action. The birthplace of the phrase, ‘we just couldn’t get it over the line’. January showed us how things could be and this summer promises to be memorable to say the least. 16. Jason Tindall’s tan – often to be found standing near to Eddie in a technical area, Jason is the tall, dark, handsome one whose skin tone resembles lump of teak. A thing of beauty. 17. Bruno referring to Joelinton as “bastard” on social media – it doesn’t seem to happen too much anymore, but for a short while it was funny and showed that Bruno’s English lessons, although a bit left-field, were paying off. It made me think he might have been taking Spender as his English inspiration. 18. Hawaiian Joelinton shirts – a stroke of genius really. Castore could learn a thing or two from those lads. 19. Owners’ kickabouts – it’s almost like they’re enjoying owning the club. But surely that can’t be right? I mean, Mr. Ashley made it sound like really hard work and now these lot are out after the game having a kickabout and filming it for social media. I do worry about their expensive shoes on that pitch though… 20. No more Sports Direct signs, talk of ground expansion and training ground improvements – there’s a lot that could be said about this, but for me it just shows that a top flight football club should be loved and invested in and not just treat as the world’s biggest billboard. Our owners seem to have fallen in love with the club and they are more than keen to improve it. It’s the stuff of dreams!

So there we have it. 20 daft things to love about the Toon. It could have been a ridiculously long list as well. For the first time in well over a decade times are good at Newcastle United. I hope you’re enjoying the ride!

Poetry Blog: Kieran Trippier, over the wall.

I make absolutely no apologies whatsoever for the partisan nature of this poem. I regularly write poems and blogs, but only occasionally blog about my football team, Newcastle United. This week, I witnessed a performance and a moment that captured a great deal of what I love about my club. So what better way to remember it than with a poem?

Kieran Trippier, over the wall.

Once the outrage of the indiscretion has cleared, a buzz of expectation 
echoes round, filling the stadium like the hum of a million black and white bees.
Twenty five yards further down the field, a short armed keeper toils,
crouching low, shuffling this way and that, pointing, shouting,
the very definition of futility, as he attempts to arm himself against the inevitable.
A wall of bewildered men, where even a wall like those of Berlin or China would fail.
The referee directs traffic, keen eyed as grown men push and shove to pinch an inch wherever they can.
And then, as if in a parallel universe, three magpies stand;
Shelvey, Targett, Trippier, surveying all before,
debating height, angles and which one of them will fire the missile.
A hush descends and is then punctured by a whistle,
Shelvey ambles away, exiting stage left,
Targett twitches, as if to strike,
but Trippier strides forth, striking the ball, up and over the wall,
a curling exocet that pierces the air before whistling, untouched into the net,
beyond the despairing hands of the short armed man in green.
Continuing his run, Trippier arrows for the corner of the stadium,
leaving team-mates in his wake,
unadulterated joy and passion etched across his face,
eyes wild, already hooked on this feeling as he slides over the touchline,
fist punching the excited air now filled by the gutteral screams 
of every man, woman and child who ride this ride,
dream this dream, support this team.

I exiled myself from the club years ago now. I never stopped supporting them, but the love that I’d grown up with had changed, thanks to our new owner of that time. Over the years, Mike Ashley’s Newcastle United sucked the love from me until it was just a shell of what it had once been. But, as you might well know, Newcastle United is an addiction so I could never completely let go.

Last October, when the club was bought by our new owners, I took a step back. Yes, I was delighted, excited, overwhelmed, like we all were. But it’s the hope that kills you, so I didn’t dare hope too much. The last few months have changed that. My love has been re-ignited, a bit like the club. As we’ve heard loads of times before, we’ve got our club back.

Tuesday night’s game against Everton felt special. The noise, the atmosphere, the way the team represented the club and the fans. Even when we went behind, it didn’t feel that it would matter. We’d be OK.

Kieran Trippier’s free kick felt iconic. It still does. It feels like the spark that will iginite a fire that might just roll out of control. And in terms that aren’t quite so eloquent or intelligent, it was bloody brilliant. So brilliant that I had to write about it. I hope my poem does the moment justice.