|
Ticket
news:
30.07.13
St. Mirren (a) - see St. Mirren's
website
Season Ticket applications now open
MD gone:
Llambias resigns
Derek Llambias has resigned as Managing Director of Newcastle United
it was announced on Wednesday morning.
The news came via SkySports News and a statement on the official site that
read:
The Club can announce that Managing Director, Derek Llambias, has resigned
from his position with immediate effect.
Derek said "I have had an incredible journey during my five years at the club,
including some challenging times. I will reflect with great fondness on my
time in the North East and, in me, Newcastle United have a lifelong supporter.
"I want to thank the staff for their hard work, our fans for their support of
the club, and wish them all well for the future."
The decision from Llambias apparently came from his holiday home, so all of
this has seemingly been done via phone, suggesting some level of annoyance
rather than contemplation.
Whether anyone will follow him out of St. James' Park is the next big
question. Graham Carr and Alan Pardew must be doing some very serious thinking
and talking at the moment.
For anyone wanting a slightly different slant on all the recent madness,
Oliver Holt has written an interesting piece for The Mirror
here.
2013/14:
Away
start
for United
The Etihad - that's where it all starts in August....
Newcastle's 2013/14 Premier League season will open at the Etihad with a tough
away fixture at Manchester City starting the campaign.
Two home games follow, against West Ham United and Fulham and then a trip to
Aston Villa before our first meeting with a newly-promoted side when Hull
visit SJP.
The first derby meeting is at the end of October when we make the trip to
wearyside and the Tyne-wear clash is scheduled for the start of February.
Boxing Day sees us entertain Stoke City and then Arsenal visit SJP a couple of
days later before New Year's Day sees us at The Hawthorns, facing West
Bromwich Albion.
The season ends with a trip to Anfield after we close our home programme
against Cardiff the week before, having just faced Manchester United and
Arsenal in April.
As always, the fixtures will be mangled beyond all recognition by TV
schedules. The first set of live TV games were announced in the second week of
July last year.
Full fixture list for 2013/14:
Aug
17/08/2013 15:00 Manchester City (a)
24/08/2013 15:00 West Ham United (h)
31/08/2013 15:00 Fulham (h)
Sep
14/09/2013 15:00 Aston Villa (a)
21/09/2013 15:00 Hull City (h)
28/09/2013 15:00 Everton (a)
Oct
05/10/2013 15:00 Cardiff City (a)
19/10/2013 15:00 Liverpool (h)
26/10/2013 15:00 mackems (a)
Nov
02/11/2013 15:00 Chelsea (h)
09/11/2013 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur (a)
23/11/2013 15:00 Norwich City (h)
30/11/2013 15:00 West Bromwich Albion (h)
Dec
03/12/2013 19:45 Swansea City (a)
07/12/2013 15:00 Manchester United (a)
14/12/2013 15:00 Southampton (h)
21/12/2013 15:00 Crystal Palace (a)
26/12/2013 15:00 Stoke City (h)
28/12/2013 15:00 Arsenal (h)
Jan
01/01/2014 15:00 West Bromwich Albion (a)
11/01/2014 15:00 Manchester City (h)
18/01/2014 15:00 West Ham United (a)
28/01/2014 19:45 Norwich City (a)
Feb
01/02/2014 15:00 mackems (h)
08/02/2014 15:00 Chelsea (a)
12/02/2014 19:45 Tottenham Hotspur (h)
22/02/2014 15:00 Aston Villa (h)
Mar
01/03/2014 15:00 Hull City (a)
08/03/2014 15:00 Everton (h)
15/03/2014 15:00 Fulham (a)
22/03/2014 15:00 Crystal Palace (h)
29/03/2014 15:00 Southampton (a)
Apr
05/04/2014 15:00 Manchester United (h)
12/04/2014 15:00 Stoke City (a)
19/04/2014 15:00 Swansea City (h)
26/04/2014 15:00 Arsenal (a)
May
03/05/2014 15:00 Cardiff City (h)
11/05/2014 15:00 Liverpool (a)
Here are some
other dates for your diaries:
League Cup Round Dates:
1st Round w/c 05.08.2013
2nd Round w/c 26.08.2013
3rd Round w/c 23.09.2013
4th Round w/c 28.10.2013
QF w/c 16.12.2013
SF(1L) w/c 06.01.2014
SF(2L) w/c 20.01.2014
Final Sun 02.03.2014
FA Cup Round Dates:
3rd Round w/e of 04.01.2014
4th Round w/e of 25.01.2014
5th Round w/e of 15.02.2014
6th Round w/e of 08.03.2014
SF Sat 12.04.2014/Sun 13.04.2014
Final Sat 17.05.2014
Joke in 'ere:
JFK - it's official
Update: There has finally been an official announcement from the club of Joe Kinnear's appointment as Newcastle United's new Director of Football.
The statement on the official website says:
Newcastle United have appointed Joe Kinnear as the Club's new Director of
Football on a three-year deal.
Joe will report directly to the club's Board as the senior executive in charge
of all football-related matters. Chief scout Graham Carr and manager Alan
Pardew will report into Joe.
Managing Director Derek Llambias said: "The board are pleased to welcome Joe
back to the club. Joe has many years of experience working within the game,
and this experience will be of great benefit to the Club in achieving our
objectives over the coming seasons."
Joe Kinnear first arrived at United in September 2008, initially as Interim
Manager, following the departure of Kevin Keegan.
Joe had previously had a successful seven-year management spell with Wimbledon
and as a player enjoyed a fine ten-year career with Tottenham, during which
time he won 26 Republic of Ireland caps.
Meanwhile, Kinnear appeared on Talksport on Monday evening and seems to have
started assembling a new squad already.
New players on the clubs' books are apparently:
Gultierrez
Amanoby
Seesee
Hateem Ben Arfa
Hateem Ben Afry
Cabards
Kebabs
And he seemed to claim that Managing Director, (Derek) Lambeezy, had resigned.
He also had the cheek to suggest he had signed Tim Krul which is interesting,
given that Krul signed in July 2006 when Glenn Roeder was manager. Sam
Allardyce and Kevin Keegan were in charge before Kinnear....
Earlier: Things had been quiet... too quiet.
Shock news on Sunday afternoon that Joe Kinnear has returned to Newcastle as
Director of F*******.
That F-word is apparently Football but for most of us it was the other
F-word that sprung to mind as the news broke that the foul-mouthed one had
returned to Barrack Road.
Quite what Alan Pardew makes of all this isn't yet known but at least Kinnear
has only been given a three-year deal, not the eight dished out to everyone
else last year....
The relationship with the much heralded Graham Carr is going to be an
interesting one - Kinnear already claiming some of the roles that Carr has
recently undertaken, working directly with Mike Ashley.
Was Carr, Pardew and his staff consulted at all? If not, the club risk a
re-run of the Kevin Keegan/Dennis Wise farce that proved so catastrophic.
Already Kinnear has managed to forget his boss' name - it's Derek Llambias,
Joe, not Dave, David, or Larry the Lamb.
We wonder which of our recent acquisitions will follow Charles Insomnia
N'Zogbia out of the door after Joe gets his name spectacularly wrong.
Suggestions on a postcard....
We have our own thoughts on Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa but good taste prevents us from
sharing that one with you.
JFK's worrying utterances were broadcast to the nation live on SkySportsNews:
Asked who will have the final say on transfer targets he simply said, "It
will be me."
"If between the three of us (Kinnear, Pardew and head scout Graham Carr) we
sit down and iron it out and them two decide that he's not that good, then my
ears will be wide open. It's not a case of lump it or like it.
"But if there is a close decision to be made and we are running out of time
and it's something we have to do and I see a specific job...
"Footballers come in all shapes and sizes and if there is a specific job that
we need to add some meat or beef to the team, we'll do it. I believe that's
what we have to do.
"If there is somewhere that we're lacking pace in wide areas, then we'll add
that to the team. If there is somewhere where we are short of people scoring
goals, and we see people who will guarantee us 20 goals a season, then we will
take that chance and I will buy those players.
"First and foremost, once I have clarified that with Alan - this is for the
good of Newcastle, this is quite clear what needs to happen here - that will
be the area I will work in, it's as simple as that.
"I'm going to do the best I possibly can to make Newcastle a far better team
than they are now.
"The transfer kitty, I am going to assess that next week with Mike.
"I will sit down with Alan first and once I find out what needs to be shifted
out of the club - maybe we can get some money back if we need to shift four or
five of them, then so be it - we can then look at the targets and present a
business plan to Mike to say 'This is what it's going to cost us, this will
make us a better team and this will put us up in the top 10'."
Pre-season:
Braga friendly confirmed
The official website of Portuguese side SC Braga has confirmed that
they will play a Friendly at St. James' Park on Saturday 10th August
with a 6.00pm kick-off.
Newcastle played Braga last season as part of the mini-tournament in the
Algarve, beating them 2-1 thanks to goals from Demba Ba and Ryan Taylor and
Demba Ba.
Old boy, Hugo Viana featured in that game as a substitute but he has left the
club now and has just signed for Al-Ahli in Dubai.
Braga play Norwich the previous week on Friday 2nd August in Portugal.
Compo:
Win an iPad mini -
two days left!
 Obviously
suffering from a severe case of close-season fever,
NUFC.com sponsors
and local iPad/iPod/iPhone menders MJS Computer Services have decided
to give away another brand-new iPad Mini device to one of you lot.
An iPad in every way, shape and slightly smaller form as its bigger brother,
the mini has a 7.9-inch display, A5 chip, FaceTime HD and iSight cameras,
ultra-fast wireless and up to 10 hours of battery life. At the last count, over
300K downloadable apps were compatible with the Mini.
Keeping it simple, there's just a football question to answer and no purchase
required. All you need to do is visit the MJS website
here
and fill in the competition entry form
towards the bottom of the page. Please only
use the competition form, not their regular email address.
The successful winner will be selected at
random on Thursday June 20th and can be collected from the MJS emporium at 7 Durham
Road, Birtley DH3 1PB - where they don't just repair iwhatevers but also do PC repairs, data
recovery etc.
NB: the competition is open to UK residents only.
2013/14:
Fixtures 9am Wednesday
We'll be publishing the club's Premier League fixture list here shortly
after 9am on Wednesday (19th).
As always, it will bear absolutely no resemblance to the actual dates and
times that the games will eventually be played, once the TV companies get to
carve them up....
Ex-Mag:
Ferrell jailed
From Monday's Northern Echo:
A former Newcastle United academy player is one of a gang of drug dealers
jailed for a total of 44 years after police seized £1.5m worth of cocaine and
amphetamine.
Andrew Ferrell was arrested as part of Operation Wexford, which focused
on an organised criminal network of drug distribution across the North-East.
The 29-year-old, from Benwell, Newcastle, was jailed for four years after
working as a courier transporting drugs and large amounts of cash between
dealers.
He was one of ten men sentenced at Newcastle Crown Court after all admitted
key roles.
A further five men were spared jail for lesser roles. All pleaded guilty.
His Honour Judge Hickey said the gang ran an extremely "organised and complex
criminal operation" to source and distribute drugs.
The court heard Ferrell had worked for the gang from May 2012 to June 2012 to
pay for his gambling addiction.
Midfielder Ferrell joined Newcastle United in 2002 under Sir Bobby Robson
before being released in the 2003/2004 season having played a handful of
reserve team games. He was never picked for the first team.
His career gradually spiraled playing for Watford, York, Hereford and
Kidderminster before returning to Tyneside to play for Gateshead in 2009 until
his release in 2011.
He played for Northern League side Bedlington Terriers, being paid
£250-a-week, at the time of his arrest in October 2012.
Incoming:
Kemen: home Newcastle?
French under-17 international, Olivier Kemen, is set to join United
from FC Metz, according to French media sources. The France info
website report:
"Newcastle continue to shop in France and for ever younger players. The
Magpies have done their shopping in Metz where the young French hope and u17
international Olivier Kemen has been signed. According to our sources, the
attacker who is quick and adept in front of goal, only 17 years old, should
soon sign with the northern English club."
The player looks uncannily like Louis Saha, who also joined us - on loan -
from Metz in January 1999.
|
Olivier Kemen - the new Louis?!
|
 |
Internationals:
Country
calls -
Cisse double!
Papiss Cisse
was on target again for Senegal, scoring twice in the 2-0 World Cup qualifier
victory against Liberia on Sunday.
Cisse netted from the spot in the 19th minute and then doubled the lead in the
54th minute before being substituted in the 64th minute.
Also in action was Fabricio Coloccini who played the full game for
Argentina as they beat Guatemala 4-0 in a friendly.
Gael Bigirimana featured for England U20s in a practice match against
Uruguay. Bigi started but was substituted at half-time and then returned to the
field in the 78th minute.
International
action for Magpies:
Papiss Cisse (Senegal):
Sat 08.06.2013 Angola (a) (Luanda) WCQ 1-1
Cisse got Senegal's goal in the 23rd minute. He almost played the full
game but was substituted in the fourth minute of added time.
Sun 16.06.2013 Liberia (a) (Monrovia) WCQ 2-0
Cisse scored both goals and was substituted in the 64th minute.
Fabricio Coloccini
(Argentina):
Fri 07.06.2013
Colombia (h) (Buenos Aires) WCQ 0-0
Colo didn't feature at all in the 23-man squad.
Tue 11.06.2013 Ecuador (a) (La Paz) WCQ 1-1
Colo was an unused substitute for this one.
Fri 14.06.2013
Guatemala (a) (Guatemala City) FR 4-0
Colo played the full game.
Cheick Tiote (Ivory Coast):
Sat 08.06.2013
Gambia (a) (Bakau) WCQ 3-0
Cheick played the full game and was... you guessed it, booked.
Sun 16.06.2013 Tanzania (a) (Dar Es Salaam) WCQ 4-2
Cheick wasn't involved.
Yohan Cabaye, Mathieu Debuchy (France):
Wed 05.06.2013 Uruguay (a) (Montevideo) FR 0-1
Cabaye came on as a 76th minute substitute for Blaise Matuidi while Debuchy
remained on the bench.
Sun 09.06.2013 Brazil (a) (Porto Alegre) FR 0-3
Cabaye started and was relpaced in the 82nd minute while Debuchy played
the full game.
Youth level call-ups:
Lubo Satka (Slovakia U19):
Thu 06.06.2013
Serbia (a) (Novi Sad) ECQ 0-4
Lubo played the full game.
Sat 08.06.2013 Rep of Ireland (n) (Belgrade) ECQ
2-2
Lubo played the full game.
Tue 11.06.2013 Switzerland (n) (Belgrade) ECQ 2-0
Lubo played the full game and was booked. Slovakia didn't make the finals,
Serbia winning the group.
Brandon Miele (Republic of Ireland U19):
Thu 06.06.2013 Switzerland (n) Belgrade ECQ
2-2
Brandon played the full game.
Sat 08.06.2013
Slovakia (n) (Belgrade) ECQ 2-2
Brandon started and was subbed in the 69th minute.
Tue 11.06.2013 Serbia (a) (Novi Sad)
0-0
Brandon played the full game. Ireland didn't make the finals, Serbia
winning the group.
Curtis Good (Australia U20):
Mon 10.06.2013
New Zealand (a) (Wollongong) 5-0
Curtis started and played for 60 minutes.
Sat 22.06.2013 Colombia (n) (Trabzon) WCF
Tue 25.06.2013 El Salvador (n) (Rize) WCF
Fri 28.06.2013 Turkey (a) (Trabzon) WCF
(Competition continues to the final on Sat 13.07.2013)
Gael
Bigirimana (England U20):
Sun 23.06.2013
Iraq (n) (Antalya) WCF
Wed 26.06.2013 Chile (n) (Antalya) WCF
Sat 29.06.2013 Egypt (n) (Bursa) WCF
(Competition continues to the final on Sat 13.07.2013)
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Staying put 1:
Captain Colo commits
The Independent are reporting - and quoting - that Fabricio
Coloccini has told his manager Alan Pardew that he will be staying at
Newcastle United for at least another season:
The pair have held talks since the end of last season, in which Pardew
reiterated his desire to keep the 30-year-old at St James' Park. The defender
told his manager yesterday that he would be staying as a Newcastle player next
season.
Pardew is delighted and believes the faith he showed in the former Deportivo
la Coruna star has been repaid by Coloccini's promise to stay on Tyneside next
season.
Coloccini did admit on Argentine television last night that he still has
aspirations to move back to San Lorenzo but that he would not be moving there
this summer.
"I’m a grateful person and Newcastle have given me the opportunity of playing
in the Premier League, which is the elite of football, so I will stay at
Newcastle,” he said.
"I have talked many times with San Lorenzo about moving back with them.
"My desire is to move back but that's not going to happen next season.
"I didn’t move to San Lorenzo last season because Newcastle didn’t want me to
leave.
"I’m not going to move to San Lorenzo now because Newcastle don’t want me to
go. I have to respect that decision."
Not yet?:
Cabaye denial
The Independent also claim that Newcastle have rubbished claims that
Yohan Cabaye is in Monaco undergoing a medical ahead of a £23m
move.
Assuming the paper's source is a good one, we're reading this as Cabaye isn't
going to Monaco at this precise time. They said:
"However, sources at Newcastle have insisted Cabaye is not in Monaco and
that a deal has not been agreed to sell him to the Ligue Two champions.
Instead they insist there have been no offers for a player who spent large
parts of last season as their captain and that he remains a part of Alan
Pardew's plans."
2013/14:
Seasiders on Sunday
United's pre-season visit to Blackpool's Bloomfield
Road for a first team friendly will go ahead on Sunday July 28th.
Kick-off time is 3pm and Blackpool have now confirmed the
fixture.
Wages:
Below the mackems...
Some interesting financial statistics have been released by Sporting
Intelligence in their 2013 report on average wages paid in the 2011/12
season.
Here's the full list of Premier League sides, showing us surprisingly behind
Aston Villa and the mackems in terms of average wages paid. Figures show
average annual salary per player (and weekly average):
| 1 |
Manchester City |
£5,239,750 |
(£100,764) |
| 2 |
Chelsea |
£4,058,742 |
(£78,053) |
| 3 |
Manchester United |
£3,921,987 |
(£75,423) |
| 4 |
Arsenal |
£3,666,158 |
(£70,503) |
| 5 |
Liverpool |
£3,356,639 |
(£64,551) |
| 6 |
Tottenham |
£2,628,000 |
(£50,538) |
| 7 |
Aston Villa |
£2,170,280 |
(£41,736) |
| 8 |
mackems |
£1,868,800 |
(£35,938) |
| 9 |
Newcastle |
£1,810,400 |
(£34,815) |
| 10 |
Queens Park Rangers |
£1,693,600 |
(£32,569) |
| 11 |
Everton |
£1,622,031 |
(£31,193) |
| 12 |
Fulham |
£1,579,131 |
(£30,368) |
| 13 |
Stoke |
£1,467,600 |
(£28,223) |
| 14 |
Blackburn |
£1,419,287 |
(£27,294) |
| 15 |
West Bromwich Albion |
£1,416,200 |
(£27,235) |
| 16 |
Bolton |
£1,375,739 |
(£26,457) |
| 17 |
Wigan |
£1,109,600 |
(£21,338) |
| 18 |
Wolverhampton Wanderers |
£1,080,400 |
(£20,777) |
| 19 |
Swansea |
£1,022,000 |
(£19,654) |
| 20 |
Norwich |
£1,010,560 |
(£19,434) |
Icons:
Gallowgate-gate....
An iconic gate. Yesterday.
Some slightly baffling frivolity and froth
has been emanating from Barrack Road in recent days about the return of the
"great" and "iconic" St. James' Park gates.
As regular SJP attendees for more decades than we care to mention, those icons
have mysteriously passed us by over the years.
We can recall some dodgy old corrugated iron barriers from the dark old days
of Division Two and then some unspectacular wrought iron obstacles, when the
Milburn Stand was first built.
However, the "old friends" being carefully recovered and restored from cold
storage on farmland at Woolsington Hall leave us slightly non-plussed and
distinctly underwhelmed.
The relatively new club badge on them suggests they first appeared some time
around the early 90s and then disappeared not long after. A bit like most of
the big-money signings from that period.
Iconic? Really??
An unnamed Fans United spokesperson, positively effervesced:
"NUFC Fans United views this as an ongoing and lasting tribute to every
Newcastle United supporter, player and club official who has ever entered the
hallowed shrine that is St James' Park. Over time the gates can become a focal
point that all Newcastle United supporters, as well as visitors to this great
city will embrace."
Fair enough, but their lack of cynicism suggests that they probably can't
recall the gates' first appearance or anything pre-Premier League....
The Mag's Jackie Smithfield has written an
excellent piece on this, with some great photos, that confirms our
recollections, or lack of them!
Staying
put 2:
Cheick chat
Midfielder Cheick Tiote has been speaking to the Shields Gazette
while away on International duty and has committed his future to Newcastle,
despite reported interest from Lokomotiv Moscow:
"I have a good opportunity next season – and I will prepare for that after
the two international games.
"The most important thing is to start next season well. Hopefully, it will be
a good season.
"I think we can again challenge for Europe. I think it will be different to
this season. It was really difficult for us.
"We didn’t have a massive squad, and we played in Europe as well as the
Premier League. I think next season is going to be much better.
"I’m just thinking about being ready for next season.
"I have a contract with Newcastle. Unless they want to do business with
another club, I will be a Newcastle player.
"When you do well, you are the best manager and the best players.
"When the team struggles, you are criticised. That’s football. The manager and
the players understand this.
"We have to believe in him and stay together. I think he is a very good
manager, and I think next season will be different."
Pre-season U21s:
'Heed
and Saints games for Reserves
Gateshead confirm that a Newcastle XI will visit the International Stadium
on Friday August 2nd (NB note change of date and time) as part of the Blue Square Premier league side's
pre-season programme.
The Magpies will send an under-21 side to face the south Tynesiders and
kick-off will be at 7.30pm. Prices will be £10
adult, £5 concessions and £2 for U16s.
The game at St. Mirren Park is on Tuesday July 30th and is a 7.30pm
kick-off.
Prices will be £15
adult, £8 concessions and £5 for U16s.
They are now on sale from St. Mirren and in the absence of anything from NUFC
they will probably have an allocation to sell for away fans.
Anyone wanting to confirm their ticket may want to act now rather than wait
for further news.
The club have now announced a full
programme of under-21 pre-season friendlies:
Tues 16.07.13 Hamilton Academical (h) (bcd)
Sat 20.07.13 Southampton (h) (bcd)
Weds 24.07.13 Workington (a) (ko 7.30pm)
Sat 27.07.13 Kilmarnock (a) (ko TBC)
Tues 30.07.13 St. Mirren (a) (ko 7.30pm)
Fri 02.08.13 Gateshead (a) (ko 7.30pm)
Pre-season:
'well fixture confirmed
SPL side, Motherwell, are advertising a friendly against Newcastle United on
July 16th as part of their pre-season fixtures.
Kick-off at Fir Park is 7pm and admission is being advertised as £15,
which suggests to us that this might be a first team friendly.
Newcastle are still announce their full pre-season programme, although games
in Portugal plus fixtures against Blackpool and Rangers seem likely (see
below).
2012/13 review:
Ten
month sentence
Inexplicably
ignoring our suggestions of "Short-handed" and "Glad
it's all Over", the snappily-titled Newcastle United Season Review
2012-13 has now been released. (NB: contains scenes of mild
peril).
We've teamed up with online DVD retailer Leisure Time Direct to offer NUFC.com
readers a special price of just £12.99 including UK postage* order
online here
(Still available is the NUFC 1,000
goals DVD at £14.99)
* Free UK postage is via Royal Mail Second Class. Orders elsewhere are
dispatched via airmail at a cost of £1.95 per item (Europe), North America
(£2.95) & ROW (£4).
PS: Also available from Leisure Time Direct are a range of local
interest titles including three volumes of The Way We Were (Bygone Days in
North East England) and the Portrait of a Miner compilation of
short films. Further information and order details are online
here
Ex-Mag:
Tommy takes over Saints
Former Magpies 'keeper, Tommy Wright, has been appointed the new
manager of SPL side, St. Johnstone after previous boss, Steve Lomas headed
South of the border to manage Millwall.
"The Barman" had been assistant to Lomas after spells in charge at Ballmena
and Lisburn Distillery. He will be joined by Callum Davidson who played as
left-back for the Saints last season.
Fairs fair:
Harvey fund raiser
A group of Newcastle fans have gained
permission from the club for a plaque commemorating Joe Harvey to be
displayed at the Gallowgate End of St.James' Park - and two associated
fund-raisers are taking place soon.
Members of The Fairs Club have co-ordinated efforts for an overdue
recognition of the man who served United as both a player and manager and
organised two talk-ins.
The first event is on Thursday June 20th, when local journalist John Gibson
will host an evening at The Barking Dog in Wallsend featuring former
players Vic Keeble, Dave Hilley, John McNamee, Keith Dyson and Ron McGarry. A
few tickets are still available for this.
Thursday July 11th then sees a massing of ex-Magpies at the High Howden Social
Club, Wallsend. John Gibson will again act as MC and among those already confirmed
are Stan Anderson, Tommy Robson, Jim Iley and Frank Clark.
Tickets for the June event are £10 and £20 for July. For further details and
bookings, please contact Bill Bruce on 0775 3573613 or william.bruce6@btopenworld.com
Ground force:
SJP make-over
While the sun shines and the close-season rumbles on,
St. James' Park is having some cosmetic surgery:
Not only is the pitch being re-seeded but the roof is also getting a new paint
job:
The Gallowgate roof being restored to its former glory - battleship grey....
Thanks very much to Rob S and Andy C for the snaps.
Internationals:
Cabaye
cobbleurs...
Some interesting quotes
from Yohan Cabaye widely reported on Friday following an interview with
Canal+.
When asked about whether a move to Manchester United would interest him:
"Yes, of course. I've liked this club for a long time, I like what they
do.
"The boss has left but they have appointed a very good successor and he did
some good things with Everton.
"They are always well placed among the big clubs. Yes, for sure, it would be
an interesting challenge.
"I have no direct contact with anyone; maybe my agents are currently in the
know.
"As for me, I am here listening. I like England as well. I will need to look
at the situation but you never know."
He went on about the harmony of the squad and the French contingent:
"It is always complicated to all arrive together; the club did as much as they
could to help, with an interpreter to help them settle.
“It helped, but in some ways it didn’t, as they constantly had to rely on
things being translated, and also speaking French.
“But with regards to the overall group, there were never any tension. If
anything, the group lived well together, and we all stuck together to avoid
relegation.
“There is no doubt that if the group was working well, people would have said
‘ah that’s great, that the French have come to help the club’.
“Unfortunately it did not work that well, so obviously it became our fault,
for the ones who arrived in January.
“It is a good job that we managed to save ourselves before the last match as
playing at home with the pressure of the public would have made it harder.
“Also, it would have led to some bad publicity for the French players.
“They arrived in numbers in January, and at the beginning it worked well, and
then we went through a bad period. If we had been relegated it would have been
very difficult, and we needed to avoid it come what may.
“It is important not to attribute all this negativity to the group who arrived
in January. We will use this to help us for next season.
“It was a complicated season. To pinpoint reasons for this, I don’t really
know, it is a bit of everything.
“We did not particularly prepare well in pre-season; the beginning of the
season; Europe and the extra matches; plus a smaller squad and a younger one.
“We encountered difficulties in playing in two competitions, also physically a
lot of injuries and players were missing.
“We rarely managed the same starting XI in consecutive matches - all this
added to the complication.”
So, Cabaye manages to blame almost everyone except himself for our poor
season. And as for the pre-season preparation, Cabaye is speaking mainly as an
observer having only featured for 18 minutes against Braga....
NB The original translation of this interview featured on The Mag's
website and was accompanied by the following caveat:
If/when what Cabaye has said is reported elsewhere, it will no doubt be
used to say how he is angling to leave and it is a ‘come and get me’ style
interview but when speaking he does sound a bit low and while he isn’t
declaring undying love for Newcastle, he doesn’t appear to want to leave
Newcastle.
Academy Dates:
Milk Cup schedule confirmed
The organisers of the annual Milk Cup tournament in Northern Ireland have now
confirmed Newcastle's schedule in the Premier U17 section of this year's
event:
Mon 29.07.2013
NUFC v O'Higgins (Chile) @ Coleraine Showgrounds,
3.30pm.
Tue 30.07.2013 NUFC v County Armagh @ Ballymena Showgrounds, 8pm.
Wed 31.07.2013 NUFC v Liverpool @ Riada Stadium, Ballymoney, 7pm.
The competition then enters a knockout stage with games on Thu 01.08 and Fri
02.08 - the draw for which takes places on the evening of Wed 31.07.
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Fanzine:
The Mag -
Summer Special
New bumper Summer Special issue of The Mag is now on sale, featuring an
exclusive Steve Harper interview, as well as an expert diagnosis of United’s
injury problems and the results of the annual fans’ poll including what’s gone
wrong at NUFC.
On sale in all Tyneside newsagents, copies can also be bought online (only £3
plus postage) in The Mag Shop, subscriptions from £23 also
available.
Visit the main Mag website
here.
2013/14:
The
Sp*rts D*r*ct Derby?
With the
proposed pre-season visit to South Africa now seemingly biting the dust for
another year, it's yet to be officially confirmed where Alan Pardew's side
will visit in advance of the 2013/14 campaign.
However, hints have now started to be dropped, with press claims of a visit to
Portugal to play games against two as-yet unspecified teams.
Blackpool
Chairman Karl Oyston has gone public with news of a visit to Bloomfield Road
by Newcastle on a date to be confirmed for what we dubbed the w*nga derby,
with both sides sharing the same money lending shirt sponsor.
And a similar story is emerging north of the border, where Rangers
are set to announce a friendly against United at Ibrox - pitting the club Mike
Ashley owns outright against the one that he bought an 8.9% stake in last
December.
No date has yet been mentioned for the Rangers game, with some complicating
factors.
The reduced status of the home club sees their first competitive fixture
scheduled as early as July 27th, a Ramsdens Cup tie. And while SPL sides can
apply to play friendly matches after the start of their season, we're unsure
whether SFL sides enjoy the same facility.
The Gers have publicly confirmed only one warm-up game to date, a midweek trip
to Sheffield Wednesday in late July. Newcastle's last visit to Govan saw them
lose 1-2 in August 2010, with 30,000 fans in attendance.
PS: reseeding of the SJP pitch would seem to indicate that no home
friendlies will be staged ahead of next season, but that's yet to be 100%
confirmed and a possible date on August 10th has been rumoured.
2013/14:
Dates, times, places
The 2013/14 Premier League season fixtures
are published at 9am on Wednesday June 19th and hostilities resume on Saturday
August 17th. The final day of the season is yet to be officially
confirmed.
United's players will return to the club in early July for the usual fitness
tests, although the extended international seasons endured by messrs Cisse,
Debuchy, Cabaye, Tiote, Coloccini and Bigirimana will presumably see them
allowed to link up later with the rest of the squad.
League Cup Round Dates:
1st Round w/c 05.08.2013
2nd Round w/c 26.08.2013
3rd Round w/c 23.09.2013
4th Round w/c 28.10.2013
QF w/c 16.12.2013
SF(1L) w/c 06.01.2014
SF(2L) w/c 20.01.2014
Final Sun 02.03.2014
FA Cup Round Dates:
3rd Round w/e of 04.01.2014
4th Round w/e of 25.01.2014
5th Round w/e of 15.02.2014
6th Round w/e of 08.03.2014
SF Sat 12.04.2013/Sun 13.04.2013
Final Sat 17.05.2014
2013/14:
Fringe
foursome -
Richardson signs
Contract
extensions were offered to four Newcastle United reserve players whose
current deals at SJP are due to end imminently.
Brad Inman, Michael Richardson, Paul Dummett and Conor Newton all
spent time out on loan last season, with defender Dummett becoming the first -
and so far only one - of the quartet to feature at senior team level for
United when featuring at Brighton in the FA Cup.
Update: Richardson has now signed a one year extension but the other
trio are yet to make their intentions known.
PS - recent claims of Celtic's interest in Newton and Dummett were
laughed off by our sources in the East End of Glasgow....
You're a
Scholar:
New kids on the block
The club have announced
the latest Academy scholars to join the Club on a full-time basis before
next season:
Adam Armstrong, James Atkinson, Daniel Barlaser, Kyle Cameron, Jamie Cobain,
Ben Drennan, Andrew Hall, Joe Kerridge, Adam Laidler, Brendan Pearson, Callum
Roberts, Jordan Storey, Callum Williams and Freddie Woodman.
Some of those names will be more familiar than others, with several already
featuring for the U18 side and having represented their countries at Youth
level.
Premier League:
Glad
it's all over
Newcastle 0 Arsenal 1
Match
report is online here
TV
dosh:
Telly tally
Figures released show
that Newcastle's total revenue from the live TV transmission of Premier League
games in the 2012/13 season was £45.2m - down almost £9m on their earnings
for the previous season.
The Magpies finished 13th in the overall Premier League revenue table alongside
Fulham, Aston Villa and Stoke City but well
behind the champions Manchester United who raked in £60.8m.
Revenue figures are calculated by an equal
division of half the domestic TV revenue among all Premier League clubs, along
with sharing out all of the overseas rights wedge.
25% of the domestic fund is awarded based on league placing and the remaining
25% recognises the frequency that a team has their game transmitted live in the
UK.
Earnings for the 2013/14 campaign are expected to increase by around £20m per
team, following the agreement of lucrative new contracts.
NB: United partially offset the reduced Premier League TV earnings by
receiving
additional revenues from cup games. They consisted of £135K for the FA Cup tie at Brighton
and undisclosed fees for the Manchester United League Cup tie and all fourteen Europa League
ties.
Update:
Departures
Confirmation of Academy and reserve team
players to be released by United is awaited, but we understand
that defensive trio Alex Nicholson, Alex Kitchen and Lee
Desmond have been declared surplus to requirements.
Book addition:
Ultimate Record update
Following the
success of the free 2011/12 season update for the Newcastle United Ultimate Record,
the author Paul Joannou confirms that a similar update will be made available
during the close season for 2012/13.
All UR subscribers and those receiving a copy of the 2011/12 update will
automatically receive the new update. Anyone else wishing to be added to the
mailing list can email info@newcastleultimaterecord.com
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