I don’t know why I expect anything other than disappointment from following United, they have never failed to kick me in the balls in all the time I’ve been watching them. Rafa Benitez had done the impossible and made me care about the club again. I’d walked up to SJP for the Swansea game expecting us to capitulate and meekly fall out of the league but we won 3-0. Rousing performances against Man City and Liverpool made me believe that our players really cared. The vital 1-0 win against Palace made me believe that we had a bit of luck on our side but as usual, Newcastle United thought fuck it, let’s make him miserable (again).
Villa Park is in a shit part of Birmingham and the fans match the surroundings. They really are a set of charmless fuckers. 
The way they celebrated having one of the worst teams in PL history confirms all of the above. I really don’t know how fans get off supporting the mackems from a home game in Brum but it seemed to make these bellends happy. As a steward said on the way in, ‘if you can’t beat this shower of shit, then you deserve to go down with them’. ‘That just about summed it up and pretty much covers the whole season as well. As you can probably tell, I didn’t enjoy it at all.
The first half (of another must win game) was a complete non-event. We let Villa have possession far too often and were ponderous and slow when moving up the pitch ourselves. I can’t think of anything that really happened with Cisse, Winjaldum (how the hell he stayed on the pitch for the full 90 minutes I’ll never know) and Colback being particularly culpable for just being shit. Cisse was absolutely rank until he was taken off. His touch was terrible, he couldn’t pass the ball to a team mate and he never looked like causing any threat at all on goal. All he did was run about. If that’s what we expect from a bloke who is there to score goals then it’s no wonder we’re doomed. Winjaldum looks like he has already got a move organised for the summer. He really sums up the modern day pampered footballer who really doesn’t give a shit about anything other than the large amounts of cash filling his bank account every week. Colback is just average at best. What the hell do we expect from a player who we got for nowt from the Mackems? Even players like Townsend and Sissoko (who looked really up for it previously) struggled to create anything at all in the first half.
I think everyone in the away end expected a second half performance akin to the others under Benitez. We expected an upbeat start and for us to start to dominate a team who would crumble if we scored. We didn’t. We should have two minutes after the re-start but Colback fired well over when he absolutely should have scored. Thankfully, Cisse was hooked in the 52nd minute to be replaced by the prolific Mitrovic (I know, a poor attempt at sarcasm there) and he had the only other two chances of the second half. The first came from a Tiote hook back into the box which bounced over / though the Villa back four and which he lobbed over the bar. It was a shit effort and he should have scored. The second came from a cross from our left. Mitrovic outmuscled Lescott and planted a free header wide of the left hand post. He should have scored (a theme here?). A last minute free kick from Townsend was comfortably saved by Bunn and the final whistle blew to great celebration from the home fans as they managed to not become the worst Villa side in their club’s history but not making it 12 losses in a row.
Only Darlow, Mbemba and Lasscelles came out of the game with any kind on credit but to be fair, they really had nowt to do as Villa’s front line looked about as likely to score as ours. It was a surprisingly cautious approach to the game which cost us in my opinion. We seemed reluctant to throw everything at them which surprised me the most. It’s sad to say but this is the second time we have walked away from this bloody ground knowing we are relegated and it’s never any easier to take. I think I’ve just about had enough to be honest. Even drinking my head off around Broad Street all night didn’t help. To cap it off, we ended up in a bar where a welsh choir kept bursting into song. It wasn’t the best end to a shit day to be honest. You can only take so much close harmony singing / Newcastle United before you want to slash your own wrists!
Newcastle United:‘Darlow 7, Anita 5, Lascelles 6, Mbemba 6, Dummett 5, Tiote 6 (Perez 68 7), Colback 4 (De Jong 90), Townsend 6, Sissoko 5, Wijnaldum 3, Cisse 3 (Mitrovic 52 5).
Unused Subs:‘Shelvey, Janmaat, Taylor, Woodman.
DAVE TED EDWARDS’
This match’s newsletter, The Special is still available.’You can get at The Special just by clicking here.
The Special is packed with matchday reading from your friends at true faith and is the ideal way to get in the mood for the match be that reading it on a coach, in the back of a car or with a nice big fat bacon sarnie in front of you and a pot of tea. There is some fantastic fanzine writing here and its right up to the minute and ready for you now.
To make sure you get copies of The Special zapped into your in-box every match day morning, just click here.‘There are no catches or anything of that nature. Its completely FREE and works brilliantly on any device you care to mention.
We had’a ‘Podcast as well ahead of the game.‘Just click here to get it.
Of course, if you want a longer and more in-depth read about Newcastle United and the world around it, just click on the image below and you will get instant access to 120+ pages of our club’s biggest and best fanzine. The true faith fanzine is absolutely FREE of charge and available exclusively in digital format. We are the pioneers of a very modern style fanzine but one which is absolutely completely in keeping with the finest traditions of the fanzine movement. It works superbly on any device.
I am definitely in the don’t give him your money camp. I had the pleasure of speaking to a Sunlund supporter this weekend who claimed I wasn’t a proper supporter as I hadn’t been to a game for two years. I explained that I couldn’t bring myself to go whilst Mike Ashley is running the show.
It isn’t ideal giving up something that’s a big part of your life but on the other hand its a nonsense when people complain about Ashley still being at our club but continue to pay him for the privilege.
Its also not true that the players need our support, they’re not bothered in the main. All the games are on at the pub now so you can still watch and meet up with your mates rather than go shopping at the MetroCentre. Turning up and paying is a vote of confidence to Ashley as a paying customer which is how football fans are thought of now. But a protest, as in a strike only works if the majority join in. I’m surprised how many people still buy our tacky Wonga strip as well, kids excepted as I don’t expect them to be interested in boardroom politics. or aware of Wonga. For me Ashley is the only one to blame, not the managers, since running the club we have turned from a regular top 6 team with speels in midtable into perennial relegation strugglers.
I’m sure all the Initial anger towards Ashley will dissipate again if we have a good start to next season and pull off a few signings. And the cycle starts again.
This is just my opinion, I don’t expect everyone to agree and I understand that many fans will have no intention of not going to the match as they still enjoy it.
Here comes the abuse again for the fact that someone has a different view! Andy and David have made their point and we can all agree that it is up to each of us to do what we believe to be right. But just as you preach not to claim the moral highground because some of us have boycotted because we believe that is for the best for the long-term future of the club, please do not try and claim that your support is somehow better. I do not pity you, that would be condescending, but I do think it is time for us all to seriously review what we do. Ashley is going nowhere unless our support finally rises to the challenge. If your conscience is clear in pro-longing Ashley’s tenure that is your right! Abuse of fellow fans somewhat weakens your argument.
Andy Bee.
Agree mate. Black and white is in our DNA, we don’t need or want or revel in pity. Fuck that leave that for the soft shites.
What we do need though, is root and branch surgery and get rid of the fat parasite and most of the so called players, most of who couldn’t give a flying fuck, for the club, the fans or the city?
Just look at Chicken town, they wanted it more than us and a quality striker (Defo) could have just about kept them up?
Says it all about the money we have spunked on shit??
Ian summers – fuck off ! Myself and countless fans pay our hard earned to back NUFC not cashly or any other cunt. We were brought up by our fathers and grandfathers to follow follow and follow ……do not feel feel sorry for me . Pour souls…….bullshit! Pity is fuckin pathetic not accepted we are Geordies .
Six points ((from 18) from our nearest relegation ‘rivals’ is never going to keep us up. One goal against Vile in two games, never going to work, is it?. I could go on but you all know the rest…..I’m Miserable as sin, and would say it is deserved, but when the mackems escape again after spending another season in the bottom three, you have to wonder what we’ve done to deserve this.
Anita 5 Perez 7?? Don’t think so
If Rafa stays there is reason for us to stay and support his rebuilding process. Regardless of Ashley, McLaren, Charnley etc. yesterday was down to the half hearted clearly disconnected players. A staggeringly disinterested performance beyond belief given the opposition. I feel sorry for all the poor souls who will have already paid 1/2 of next years season ticket before the season even starts? If relegation is confirmed perhaps it is worth considering cancellations of those direct debits if Rafa does not stay. With Rafa we have a future and can rebuild in the Championship but he is professional enough to only stay if Ashley and his tea boy give him their full committed support. If he were to leave then it is obvious nothing will change and no lessons have been learnt within our club.
There are two roads ahead of us now.
Rafa stays and rekindles the soul of our club in his own image.
Rafa goes and there is a fire sale of our assets as we plummet down the leagues.
He MUST stay
Rafa wont stay. Ashley will start cost cutting like never before, everything & everyone will be for sale. This is an absolute disaster put in place by Ashley & carried out by self preserving cowards, I don’t know what Rafa is earning but I do know that Ashley wont pay it in the 2nd division. Our only hope is a sale, then start again as sporting club which aspires to the best it can possibly be, or Ashley dies. I would be equally happy with either scenario.
Bollox!
That performance was atrocious and we deserve to be relegated on the back of that display !
We couldn’t beat a side who basically didn’t force any corners or barely have a shot at goal all afternoon and they still looked better than us lol.
We could go into all the why’s and wherefores and we all know what they are so why bother ?
Ashley and his appointed “Football Board” are to blame for this whole fiasco and it really is a self inflicted wound !
The only positive is seeing Ashley struggling to comprehend how his master plan has failed again. He’s not as clever as he thinks he is. The money saved on cheap French signings is nothing compared to the money lost for relegation. I wonder which gems we’ll pluck from the French league to help our promotion push. And Saivet and Doumbia? Possibly the two most pointless signings in history. Townsend who has been a success was a McLaren signing. They never learn from their mistakes including the fans who were praising the signing of Thauvin this season when it was obvious an experienced premier league player was what we needed. Mclaren was useless but when players can’t even be arsed to break sweat in a must win game like yesterday how much is down to the manager? No one seems able to motivate cisse sissoko winjaldum for more than a one off game. If we are down before Sunday there should be a boycott to start the process of removing Ashley. One player who doesn’t deserve criticism is Townsend who has shown skill and commitment to our club
If Rafa stays there is hope. If he goes we are left in the worst possible position. In some ways, I hope we are down before the last game so that Ashley might finally get some comeuppance! @ashleyout.
Mike Ashley hating Maggie thatcher loathing boycotts memoirs of European trips head scratching hope and dreams . Shared it all on this site with great fans who know the game and it makes it no easier . We are royally fucked even if the pink seat brigade fuck up with a paltry draw in two games can’t see our shower toppling Spurs. We fucked up today even buy our historic and monumental fuck up standards sort of now accept our existence is to suffer……. One plea give us hope Rafa and lead the rebuild – if fatty stays screw him for immortal power and cash we will follow you far and wide.
Awful today if we do go down don’t blame Mclaren blame Mike Ashley. Mclaren is undoubtedly a poor manager but Benitez despite the improvement has only mustered two wins from fixtures including norwich palace swansea Sunderland and villa. We were never in genuine relegation danger under shepherd it’s Ashleys fault. Winjaldum Sissoko Janmaat and Collocinni have been a disgrace in the away games. I would make Lascelles captain and rebuild. Heres hoping Everton and Watford do us a favour. I think we will lose Townsend as well which is a shame as he has been our best signing for years. We need to scrap our under 25s only policy and we might well come straight back up. Defoe is the only reason Sunderland are above us but he was too old for our genius board to consider signing.