Keeper Harper confident ahead of Old Trafford trip

16 August 2010 09:17
IT has lasted 449 days, but tonight it will finally be over.[LNB] Newcastle United's Premier League exile has proved a chastening experience for everyone involved with the club, but when new skipper Kevin Nolan leads the Magpies out of the tunnel at Old Trafford this evening, the redemptive process will be complete.[LNB] In the eyes of some, Newcastle are back in their natural environment. To others, they are embarking on a survival campaign that will be all but impossible to win given the lack of transfer activity that followed the lifting of the Championship title.[LNB] To the members of the Magpies squad, however, the overriding emotion will be one of anticipation. This is what they worked so hard last season to achieve.[LNB] We are under no illusions,[LNB] said Steve Harper, the longestserving member of the Newcastle side, and a player who started 45 of last season's 46 league matches. We know how tough it is going to be, but this is what last season was all about, both on and off the field.[LNB] Last year was fantastic. It was great as players to win more often than not, and I think the fans enjoyed going back to places they had not visited for a long time and watching us win a lot.[LNB] But you want to be playing in the Premier League and you want to be playing against all the top teams.[LNB] Newcastle will certainly be doing that, with tonight's game providing the harshest baptism imaginable against a Manchester United side that limbered up last weekend by claiming the Community Shield at Wembley.[LNB] West Brom's 6-0 defeat at Chelsea underlined just how difficult it can be for a newlypromoted side to take on one of the Premier League's established Big Two', but despite James Perch being the only summer signing available to start at Old Trafford, Harper is confident Newcastle can cope with the challenges that will be thrown at them.[LNB] They will kick off the campaign with many pundits expecting them to suffer an instant return to the Championship, but having confounded the critics last season, their closely-knit squad is confident of upsetting the odds once again.[LNB] I think we have the squad to cope, said Harper. Last year, people thought it was easy because we won the league by ten or 11 points, but it certainly wasn't.[LNB] There were some tough battles week in, week out, and there was the expectation of having to win more often than not. Now, the expectation from the outside is that we're going to get turned over more often than not, but we have a strong bunch with experience across the board and hopefully that will stand us in good stead.[LNB] Our first aim is to get enough points to stay in the Premier League, so if you're offering me enough points to stay in there now, I'd be daft to turn it down. But that is the minimum we would be hoping for.[LNB] Two seasons ago, Newcastle kicked off their relegation campaign with a spirited 1-1 draw at Old Trafford.[LNB] A similar result tonight would be welcome, even if no one would want a repeat of the rest of the 2008-09 season, and at the very least, Harper is looking for a quieter night than on one of his most recent visits to the stadium.[LNB] Back in October 2006, the overworked goalkeeper suffered a hernia injury while unsuccessfully trying to prevent Newcastle slipping to a 2-0 defeat.[LNB] The problem eventually resulted in an operation that kept him on the sidelines for more than two months and, if nothing else, the 35-year-old is hoping to escape this evening unscathed.[LNB] I remember that game from a while ago, said Harper.[LNB] I popped a hernia and needed a double hernia operation because I was that busy.[LNB] I think I was overworked.[LNB] I've seen us keep clean sheets there before, but I've also seen us be drawing 0-0 at half-time and get beat by six.[LNB] I've seen all sorts.[LNB] We know it's going to be tough, but if we get something there, it will stand us in good stead.[LNB] Obviously, as players you target those teams that are in and around you, but you never set out with an attitude to lose a game. It would be criminal to do that.[LNB] Having successfully fielded a five-man midfield in a number of away games last season, Chris Hughton is expected to select Andy Carroll as a lone striker tonight with Kevin Nolan given licence to push forward and support from midfield.[LNB]

Source: Northern_Echo