Source: SKY_Sports
Magpies thrilled by start
Chris Hughton admits he has been surprised by his Newcastle side's surge to the top of the Championship.
Danny Guthrie's 52nd-minute strike secured a fourth successive league win to take them two points clear despite the absence of several key men.
Hughton later revealed he hopes to make "one or two" signings, including Dane Peter Lovenkrands, ahead of the transfer deadline after Xisco became the 12th player to leave the club, in his case, on loan to Racing Santander.
But he has been delighted with the way his remaining squad members have adapted to life outside the Premier League.
Hughton said: "What I did believe was that this group of lads could show a real desire to want to do well, and I never felt it would be through lack of effort or lack of conviction [if they did not].
"What we didn't know was the division and what we would be up against on a game-by-game basis.
"I never felt they would show any less than they have shown; whether that would be enough to get us the amount of points we have got, I didn't know."
Newcastle found themselves in a battle before the break, and it took two fine saves from goalkeeper Steve Harper to keep his side level, the 34-year-old palming away Steve Howard's header and then parrying Paul Gallagher's free-kick.
However, it was the Magpies who took the initiative after the break to force their way ahead in fine style with 52 minutes gone.
Kevin Nolan laid off Harper's clearance to lone striker Nile Ranger, and he in turn fed Guthrie to step inside defender Jack Hobbs and smash home an unstoppable shot.
The final whistle was greeted deliriously by another good crowd of 38,813, although the uncertainty surrounding the club off the pitch remains.
