Source: SKY_Sports
Keane blasts defending
// A bit of a hack but it works// The article snippet is wrapped onto a second line, even when #article-sub is emptyif( $("div#article-sub").children().length == 0 ) {$("div#article-sub").remove();} Roy Keane pulled no punches after seeing Ipswich Town embarrassed by Newcastle 4-0 at Portman Road.[LNB] Keane's winless troops started brightly enough but a blistering three-goal blitz inside four minutes effectively ended the game as a contest.[LNB]Kevin Nolan bagged a brace before Ryan Taylor's thunderbolt free-kick put Newcastle in firm control with ex-Bolton man Nolan completing his hat-trick after half-time.[LNB]Keane insists Ipswich's defending was simply not up to scratch and that Nolan must have thought Christmas had come early.[LNB]The former Sunderland manager came under fire from home fans at the end, although he has no plans to throw in the towel and has vowed to continue fighting.[LNB]Dead and buried"The game was dead and buried by half-time," said Keane. "We conceded some unbelievably bad goals and we just have to defend better.[LNB]"I don't know if Nolan has scored a hat-trick before but he won't get an easier chance to get one. He must have thought it was Christmas.[LNB]"I'm not daft, a lot of supporters voiced their opinions at the end but that is fair enough. They pay their money and they are entitled to that. But we will keep going. [LNB]"There are no magic wands and confidence comes with results. The longer this run goes on then the harder it will get.[LNB]"We have our pride and it has been massively dented. It is hard to take but we have the chance to start to put it right against Sheffield United on Tuesday.[LNB]"But if we give goals away like we did today, we will get beat on Tuesday. There is no doubt about that."[LNB]SpecialNewcastle's caretaker manager Chris Hughton was full of praise for his troops, who look good to make an immediate return to the Premier League following their surprise relegation last season.[LNB]"It was a special result and a special performance," said Hughton. [LNB]"It's a wonderful feeling to go in at half-time with the cushion we had and it doesn't happen very often.[LNB]"It's a massive boost to go top. The most important thing is that we are fighting at the right end of the table.[LNB]"There are a lot of teams around us who are not dropping many points so to go top is testament to this group of lads."[LNB]
