1876 John Fraser born, Dumbarton, Scotland. (1899-1901)

Outside left who began his playing career with his hometown club before moving to Motherwell during 1897.

Signed by Newcastle for £70 from Notts County in the summer of 1899, Fraser made his first team bow in a 2-0 home win over Everton in September of that year.

After two seasons on Tyneside, Jack was sold to St Mirren and later appeared for both Southampton and Dundee - wining a single Scotland cap while playing for the latter.

Coaching Dundee following his retirement from playing, Fraser later had an association with Chelsea as both a scout and their assistant manager. He died in 1952.

1895 Alf Hagan born, Durham.
(1919-23)

Inside right who netted on his Magpies debut during a 1-2 defeat by Manchester United at Old Trafford in December 1919.

Alf had signed for United some seven months earlier, Washington Colliery receiving the princely sum of £10. 

Leaving SJP in 1923 in favour of Cardiff City, Hagan later played for Tranmere Rovers and appeared in local league football back in the region at the end of his career.

Living on wearside, Alf's death was recorded in June 1980.

1928 Thomas Thompson born, Fencehouses, Durham. (1946-50)

Joining United in August 1946 at a cost of £25 from Lumley YMCA, inside right Tommy worked as a joiner on a building site and played his football at reserve team level. 

His senior team call-up came in a 1-1 draw against Coventry City in February 1948 and he then netted in a 2-0 success away at West Ham the following week.

Another goal then followed in his fourth outing - against Doncaster Rovers - but he lost his place in the closing weeks of the promotion season to George Stobbart.

Similar cameo roles over the next two seasons in the First Division followed and Tommy was in the United party that toured North America in May and June 1949.

Linking up with former Magpies boss George Martin at Aston Villa saw Thompson become a first team regular and his scoring form brought him selection for England against Wales in October 1951.

However, a second and final international call-up didn't come until April 1957, against Scotland (although he did also play at "B" level for England and also appear in Football League and FA representative XIs.) 

Moving on to Preston North End in 1955, Tommy (nicknamed "Topper") scored within two minutes of his debut and enjoyed great success playing alongside Tom Finney.

A later spell at Stoke City - and Stanley Matthews - then followed, before injury saw him end his career at the start of the 1964/65 season, by which time he'd moved on to play for Barrow.

Having settled in Preston while playing at Deepdale, Tommy bought an ironmongers shop and focused on that after hanging up his boots - although he did make a brief return to the PNE coaching staff at one point.  

Thompson passed away during September 2015 at the age of 86.

1946 Geoff Allen born, Walker.
(1964-70)

Scrogg Road's most famous son, cruciate knee ligament damage would wreck the promising career of left winger Geoff just as the former Magpies junior had made his breakthrough on to the European stage.

Showing great potential when appearing for England's youth side, Allen made his senior team debut for Newcastle in the final game of the 1963-64 season - a 2-0 victory over Norwich City at SJP.

His devastating display in United's first-ever Fairs Cup fixture then helped Joe Harvey's side to a 4-0 home victory over the Dutchmen of Feyenoord in September 1968.

Allen featured in the away leg in Rotterdam and then scored against Spurs at SJP in the following game, before a strong tackle from Nottingham Forest defender Peter Hindley wrecked his knee.

A comeback against Sheffield Wednesday in April 1969 lasted barely 10 minutes and Geoff was advised that he risked his future health by continuing to play top level football.

Taking the job of youth team manager at United, Geoff later scouted for the Magpies. 

A return to the Gallowgate coaching staff during the Bill McGarry era saw him look after the reserves, while Allen acted as assistant to Stuart Boam when he took over as Mansfield Town manager in 1981. 

Settling in Nottinghamshire, Geoff joined Italian crane manufacturers FASSI(UK) as a sales executive in 1995.

2021 saw Allen's teenage grandson Elliot Anderson make his senior Magpies debut.

1969 Faustino Hernán "Tino" Asprilla Hinestroza born, Tulua, Colombia.
(1996-98)

Gloves, goals, guns. From the day he walked into SJP amid a snowfall, clad in a fur coat,  nothing was ever simple in the world of Tino.

Signed in February 1996 for £7.5m from Italians Parma, the Colombian international striker was among the most talented, frustrating and entertaining players to ever wear a black and white shirt.

Kevin Keegan called him his "wild card" and that summed up his erratic on-field brilliance and colourful off-field behaviour.

Asked later about his move to United, he said of Tyneside: "I knew nothing. I’d only been to London before – and to Leeds because they tried to sign me. But the women were divine....I don’t know how many girlfriends I had in Newcastle. At the beginning I didn’t even understand what they said...." 
 
Introduced from the bench in an away game at the smoggies (after flying in to the UK and enjoying a glass of wine with his lunch as he met his new colleagues for the first time), it didn't take him long to bamboozle lumbering defender Steve Vickers out on the left wing and centre for Steve Watson to score.

Asprilla's first goals for the club were then accompanied by controversy, netting twice in a 3-3 draw at Manchester City and then tangling with Keith Curle at full time.

Accused in some quarters of upsetting the team's balance and consequently costing Newcastle the title, the following season saw him add further to his cult status - scoring twice at home to Metz before memorably uprooting the corner flag to hoist his shirt.

The 1997/98 season saw him leading the line in the absence of the injured Alan Shearer and departed Les Ferdinand. And in that role he wrote his name into club history with a Champions League hat trick at SJP against Barcelona - two headers and a penalty.

His post match comment to journalists in the mixed zone? "Three goals - not bad".

However, that proved to be a high point as Tino's relationship with manager Kenny Dalglish deteriorated and his form dipped - surgery on a stomach problem and an ongoing dislike of cold weather not helping. 

What proved to be his final appearance came in an FA Cup Third Round tie at Goodison Park in January 1998, with a deal soon struck taking him back to Parma - Dalglish later revealing the player had asked to leave. 

Later spells with various clubs in Brazil, Mexico, Colombia and Chile were interspersed with phantom moves - clubs in Russia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and even Scotland (Dundee) failing to agree terms with the maverick.

The most famous of all though came when a contract was agreed for him to sign for Darlington in August 2002 - aged 32. 

Tino claimed that the deal he'd been verbally offered by Darlo Chairman George Reynolds didn't match the one he was given to sign. And despite having been paraded in front of the Quakers fans and his name appearing on the squad list in the programme for a game at Kidderminster, he did a vanishing act.

Subsequently, Asprilla has led a quiet life in Colombia, if you call appearances on reality TV shows, a nude magazine photo shoot, horse riding, shark fishing, salsa dancing and more firearms offences quiet....

Returning to Tyneside for various reunions, a Tino Ale was also brewed in his honour by Byker's Brinkburn Street Brewery.

1976 Shefki Kuqi born, Vushtrri, Kosovo.
(2011)

Having sold Andy Carroll to Liverpool in early 2011 and almost instantly lost fellow forward Shola Ameobi to injury, Newcastle took free agent Kuqi on a short-term contract during February of that year.

The 34 year-old played for Derby County on loan from Swansea City earlier that season, but had been released and was without a club after the transfer window closed, bringing him to Alan Pardew's attention.  

An ethnic Albanian born in Kosovo, Shefki grew up in Finland after fleeing there along with his family in 1989 and successfully claiming asylum.

Kuqi's first taste of English football came with Stockport County in 2001 and he went on to play for Sheffield Wednesday, Ipswich Town, Blackburn Rovers, Crystal Palace, Fulham, Swansea City and Derby - with a brief excursion to German side TuS Koblenz after leaving Craven Cottage.

Debuting for Newcastle in the final moments of a 0-0 draw at Blackburn, he went on to make five more substitute appearances totaling just 25 minutes without scoring.

Two reserve starts also failed to bring a goal, Kuqi marking his debut by missing a penalty against Arsenal's second string at SJP.

Following his departure from Gallowgate, Kuqi joined third tier Oldham Athletic and soon rediscovered his goal touch, netting 16 times in 49 appearances the following season. 

He also had a spell in Scotland at Hibernian before returning to Finland in 2016 and beginning a club coaching career there.

2021 found Shefki back in the UK searching for a management role - and linked with the vacant U23 Coach position at SJP before that was filled by Elliott Dickman.

Internationally, he won 63 senior caps for Finland between 1999 and 2010, scoring eight times.

1978 Kashka Walker born, Kingston, Jamaica. (1997-98)

Attacking midfielder who spent time with Newcastle's Academy after arriving from Canada, featuring for the reserves in a pre-season game at Chorley in 1997. 

After his release by United, Canadian youth international Walker had short spells with Colchester United, Stevenage and Swindon Town and also studied in Manchester. 

Returning to Canada, he played for Oshawa Flames, Toronto Lynx, Metro Lions, Hamilton Thunder and Toronto Lynx again.

1993 Death of Doug Graham, 72.
(1940-50)