A little bit of newcastle lore [historical article]

just browsing the guardian and came across this article that made me smile. some old characters well and truly departed but some common themes which i think give pause for thought. HWTL

Roeder's rearguard finds it's good to talk

Michael Walker at St James' Park
The Guardian, Sunday 26 February 2006 20.40 EST

Last Wednesday Shola Ameobi powered a four-yard header over the Charlton Athletic crossbar with 15 minutes of the game remaining. Had Ameobi been accurate Newcastle United would probably have won the game 1-0. On Saturday Emre Belezoglu twice cleared David Weir headers off the Newcastle goalline. Had they gone in Everton would probably have gone on and won for the seventh time in eight matches.

In a division in which the difference between a dozen sides on any given day is small, the cliche about margins is pertinent. Minor improvements can be a major matter and in Glenn Roeder, Newcastle's caretaker, the club have found a coach who has shown he can tweak corrections from a team that was deteriorating rapidly under Graeme Souness.

That ability has meant that in the three weeks since Souness's dismissal, Roeder has assembled the same players for four league games and three have been won and one drawn. Under Souness Newcastle lost five of the previous six matches , the other being a draw secured by Lee Clark's last-minute equaliser against Middlesbrough.

The turnaround under Roeder has seen Newcastle move from 15th place to, on Saturday night, 11th place; from six points off relegation to 13 points off. Newcastle have not been higher than tenth this season but they are now seven points off fifth-place Blackburn - the Lancashire club proof, incidentally, of what can happen post-Souness.

"It's not rocket science," Roeder said, and David Moyes, who has reorganised Everton after their traumatic beginning, would agree. But with Alan Shearer again absent, Moyes must have left Tyneside thinking this an opportunity missed, especially as it was missed by inches.

But, noting that Newcastle have conceded one goal in their four league games under him, Roeder was prepared to take a sliver of credit for organising some cohesion among the back four.

"The defence were playing as individuals," Roeder explained of his first contact with them. "I was surprised; there was no communication. They all speak English: Boumsong does, Babayaro does, I think Ramage does and Elliott does. But there was no talking to each other. Where I come from, I don't know how you can play as a defender without giving information and covering each other's backs. It is that simple."

Roeder added that those who had been critical of Jean-Alain Boumsong should be man enough to say that Boumsong played well here - by his standards. But feet should be kept on the ground, like the Frenchman's as Weir rose unchallenged to meet two Mikael Arteta corners as Everton pushed Newcastle back in the first half. Twice Emre came to the rescue.

Peter Ramage had already performed an acrobatic interception to deny Kevin Kilbane a tap-in and in the 53rd minute Leon Osman eased past Boumsong and should have done better with his shot. So this was no demonstration of the arts of Franco Baresi from Boumsong and Co, but three weeks of Roeder's work on the training ground has brought a dividend.

The clean sheet enabled Newcastle to go forth and prosper. Emre, Scott Parker and Nolberto Solano were all lively, while Charles N'Zogbia again had an important contribution to make. On 64 minutes it was the Frenchman's cross that allowed Solano to bundle Nuno Valente and the ball in.

Twelve minutes later Solano wrongfooted Valente on the edge of the area and with the outside of his right foot curled the ball around Sander Westerveld. Some goal, and at the end where Michael Owen was unveiled last August, to chants of "One Nobby Solano". The Peruvian has come home.

Man of the match: Emre (Newcastle United)

 

Remember Nobby's goal - brilliant!!

 

Nobby was better than 10 Michael Owen's would have been.

 

might be in here somewhere..
amongst all the other amazing goals.

[video=youtube;huGe1xMRbCs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huGe1xMRbCs[/video]

 

more importantly though is the snapshot of nufc defending and roeder trying to build on that. thought it was a great allegory for what pardews done.

 

I thought Roeder was quite good, especially his first half season. Would have preferred him to stay rather than Fat Sham coming in

Oba Martins banged the goals in under his management