Source: Northern_Echo
Plenty of drama at St James' Park
THEY might not have been involved in 'Survival Sunday', but you can always rely on Newcastle United to conjure up a bit of unnecessary drama on the final day of the season.[LNB] [LNB] With the clock ticking into the last minute of the campaign, the Magpies found themselves defending a 3-2 lead that would have guaranteed a ninth-placed finish in the Premier League.[LNB] Sixty seconds later, and Somen Tchoyi's third goal of the afternoon earned West Brom a 3-3 draw that sent Alan Pardew's side tumbling back down into 12th position.[LNB] An irrelevance Not to the supporters who booed their side off the field at the final whistle having learned that Sunderland, 3-0 winners at West Ham, had leapfrogged Newcastle to finish the season as the North-East's top dogs.[LNB] And not to owner Mike Ashley and managing director Derek Llambias, who effectively lost around £2.5m as their side slipped three places in the space of a minute. Even with the Andy Carroll money in the bank, one wonders what effect yesterday's dramatic denouement could have on Pardew's summer spending plans.[LNB] In truth, the final chapter of a largely satisfying season encapsulated where Newcastle find themselves a year on from their promotion from the Championship. Good, but nowhere near good enough to take anything for granted ahead of a vital close season.[LNB] Cruising courtesy of a three-goal lead that was established via first-half goals from Steven Taylor and Peter Lovenkrands, and an own goal from Jonas Olsson, Newcastle wilted alarmingly in the second half as Tchoyi's hat-trick hauled the Baggies back into the game.[LNB] When they are on the front foot, the Magpies can compete with just about anyone in the division, and Pardew has built on the firm foundations he inherited from Chris Hughton to establish the core of a squad that should be good enough to guarantee the club's top-flight survival for many years to come.[LNB] But, as West Brom's comeback proved, things change quickly in football, and Newcastle cannot afford to presume they will be equally as comfortable on the final day of next season with just a handful of additions.[LNB] The squad lacks depth, and while the likes of Shane Ferguson and Kazenga LuaLua, who finished yesterday's game, will progress in the future, they are not yet ready to form the basis of the first team.[LNB] What that first team will look like at the start of August is open to debate, with Jose Enrique and Joey Barton both poised to enter post-season discussions that will determine their future.[LNB] As well as book-ending the season, final-day encounters are often a useful tool for gauging the likelihood of a coveted player returning to his current employers in the following campaign, and with that in mind, Barton would appear a more likely returnee than Enrique.[LNB] The former was beaming from cheek to cheek during the traditional post-match lap of honour, laughing and joking with Kevin Nolan, who hobbled around on his crutches. Enrique, on the other hand, couldn't leave the field quickly enough. The lure of Liverpool, it would appear, is strong.[LNB] If, as now looks likely, Enrique leaves this summer, Newcastle will lose one of the most talented attacking full-backs in English football.[LNB] On the other hand though, Liverpool will gain a £10m signing with questions to answer defensively, as highlighted by yesterday's early aberration that led to Steven Taylor making a goalline clearance from Marc-Antoine Fortune.[LNB] Sidelined for most of the season because of injury, Taylor has returned to replace Mike Williamson in the last three matches and delivered a compelling reminder of the form that persuaded Pardew to offer him a new five-year deal earlier this season.[LNB] As the man in possession, he will expect to partner Fabricio Coloccini at the start of next season, with his recent performances as notable for what he has achieved in the opposition's penalty area as for anything he has done in his own half of the field.[LNB] Yesterday's 16th-minute opener, a scruffy close-range strike after Lovenkrands twice profited from West Brom's failure to clear a corner, made him the only Newcastle player to score in three consecutive matches this term.[LNB] He was called upon defensively three minutes before the break, producing his second goalline clearance of the game to deny Fortune after the West Brom striker eluded Enrique on the right side of the box.[LNB] Newcastle were two goals to the good at that stage, with the lack of pressure on both sides contributing to an open encounter that saw the action oscillating from one end of the field to the other.[LNB] Scott Carson tipped Danny Guthrie's long-range drive over the crossbar midway through the first half, but the former England goalkeeper blotted his copybook spectacularly six minutes before the break.[LNB] Lovenkrands' rising drive should not have caused too many problems, but Carson palmed the ball into the air, scurried backwards, and caught it a yard or so behind the goalline. Even with Ben Foster having announced his international retirement, it will be a dark day for England if the Cumbrian finds a way back into the team.[LNB] In fairness, he was not the only West Brom player shooting himself in the foot, and the game looked over as a contest when Olsson produced a late contender for 'Howler of the Season' two minutes after the break.[LNB] Enrique sent over a teasing cross from the left, and Olsson's attempted clearance sliced off the outside of his foot and gave a startled Carson no chance.[LNB] Tchoyi reduced the deficit in the 62nd minute, beating the offside trap to slot past Krul, and the game took on a different complexion when the Cameroon international lashed Steven Reid's cross into the roof of the net with 19 minutes left.[LNB] Suddenly, Newcastle were hanging on, and their resistance cracked for a third time in the final minute. Ishmael Miller back-heeled the ball to Olsson, and after the defender crossed from the left, Tchoyi evaded Enrique to flash home a powerful diving header.[LNB] [LNB]
