News
    General
    Transfers
    Rumours List
    St. James'

Archives
   Club History
    Articles
    Memories
    Video clips
    What happened to?
    1892-2000

Club Info
    General
    Honours
    Records
    Kits

Date:   Tuesday 9th Jan 2001, 7pm Venue:   Hillheads, Whitley Bay  Conditions:   Cold, clear, brief rain shower and a total eclipse of the moon - your average night in the North East

Newcastle United (away shirts, white shorts)	2 - 1	Whitley Bay (blue & white stripes)
Half time:	1 - 1
Score Sheet:
Coppinger (19) Bonvin (71)		Cuggy (20)
Teams:
Karelse McGuffie Beharall S.Caldwell G.Caldwell Kerr Gavilan Green Bonvin Coppinger Dimas		Neil Fairbairn Karl Muir Mark Walmsley Chris Neil Brian Smith Lee Picton Steve Cuggy Tony Burgess Ian Irving Gary Middleton Andy Bowes
Substitutes:
Boyd for Kerr (58) Gall for Coppinger (75) unused: Cowan unused: Grindlay		Dawson for Walmsley (73)  Carr for Muir (75) Bowman for Irving (80)
Bookings:
Gary Caldwell (68 )		Ian Irving (68) Andy Bowes (86)
Sendings Off:
		Lee Picton (71)
Referee: C.W. Oliver
Attendance: 514

10 mins The referee spoke to Bryan Kerr following a strong challenge on Tony Burgess that resulted in a melee of jostling players. Somewhat fortunately he chose not to show a yellow card.
19 mins A speculative pass to the onrushing Coppinger caused momentary confusion in the Bay box, with defenders and 'keeper each leaving the clearance to the other. Coppinger seized on the ball and had the relatively easy task of rolling it home from the left side of the six yard box.1-0
20 mins Within a minute of the restart, a cross from the right fell to Bay forward Steve Cuggy, who tried to connect with it first time, but missed narrowly. The ball appeared to strike a defender's hand but dropped again on to the foot of Cuggy, who made no mistake the second time with a shot from ten yards into the top left corner of Karelse's goal.1-1.
31 mins United raised themselves from a slack period of play to challenge the Bay goal, Gavilan's shot passing well wide of the goal.
35 mins Some invention from Bonvin, who saw his backheeled attempt on goal stopped by the 'keeper. The chance had been created by Gavilan's run and centre from the right wing.
37 mins Another shot on goal, this time just narrowly over the bar from Coppinger.
43 mins Almost a rare set piece success from the reserve side, as Gavilan's corner was met by the head of Gary Caldwell, but he was unable to direct the ball on target. 
  
Halftime: Whitley Bay 1 Newcastle 1

57 mins Another chance from a set piece, as Gavilan swung over a free kick from the right, given after Beharall had been bundled over. Dimas managed to get his head on the centre but couldn't stop his effort from rising over the bar.
68 mins More work for the referee as Gary Caldwell and ex-united junior Karl Muir tangled, with the latter requiring treatment on his ankle. Irving took exception to Caldwell's robust challenge and another bout of pushing and shoving followed. Irving was then booked for laying his hands on the United player and Caldwell carded for the original offence.
71 mins At the third attempt a goal from a set piece. Gavilan played in a free kick from the right hand side of the field just outside the Bay area. It initially looked too strong and long, but dropped steeply on to the head of Steve Caldwell. His nod back across the area fell perfectly for the advancing Bonvin, and his well-struck half-volley beat Fairbairn to register a first competitive goal for the Argentinean.  2-1
71 mins Before the match could restart, the referee dismissed Bay player Picton, presumably for foul and abusive language.
79 mins With the home side a man down and tiring, United began to expose gaps in the Bay rearguard. In the move of the match, Gavilan and Green exchanged passes as they moved toward goal, and Green saw his fierce shot from outside the box well saved by Fairbairn.
82 mins Green again was denied by the home keeper, as his dipping shot from distance was tipped over the bar at the expense of a corner.
87 mins Substitute Kevin Gall's persistence on the right flank eventually saw him wriggle past a defender and pull the ball back to Dimas. His effort was blocked, but he did well to latch on the the centre and and fire in an attempt on goal.

Final Score: Whitley Bay 1 Newcastle 2

We said: Reserve coach Tommy Craig commented:

"I was delighted with the result for different reasons than normal. It was not a night to attempt to play football, so I was looking for another kind of quality.

"I was looking for courage, determination and commitment, and our performance was full of that. Whitley Bay applied themselves very well and it was a case of matching their commitment.

"I was pleased with our attitude. If we'd given any less we would have lost the game. I've got to pay tribute to Whitley Bay for their resilience."

Waffle: 

A hard-fought cup tie in front of a decent enough crowd, giving Bay at least the consolation of a few extra quid from the gate money and pie sales etc. While the non-league club never looked like dumping their more illustrious opponents out of the competition, they at least gave a better account of themselves than in September's 0-3 friendly defeat by Newcastle.

With the promotion of Ameobi to the first team and loaning out of fellow front man McMahon to Darlo, Coppinger lacked support against the burly Bay backline, and most of United's goal attempts came from long range efforts by their midfield players.

Referee Oliver just about kept things on an even keel, with a minor flare-up in each half just stopping short of becoming a brawl. Bay were clearly intent on making up for any deficiency in class with battling effort, and this occasionally spilled over into reckless tackling that thankfully didn't cause any injuries amongst the toon ranks.

However, the dismissal of Lee Picton immediately after the winning goal looked a slightly harsh judgement against the underdogs, even if it didn't have a major bearing on the outcome of the contest.

Robson and Wadsworth were watching from the stands (along with fellow members of the Politbureau Charlie Woods and Gordon Milne), but won't really have learned a great deal. The quality of the Caldwells is evident, and it's now a matter of gaining further experience and building on the raw materials. Further upfield, Green again showed some good touches, while Kerr faded after the break. Dimas and McGuffie at present are doing a little more than making up the numbers, but have a wide margin for improvement, while Bonvin shows the odd touch of class and may well mature into a useful squad player. Beharall captained the team tonight and looked ok, but for those of us who saw his previous forays in the first team, doubts remain about his ability and calmness against better players.

Possibly most heartening for the watchers was that Gavilan at least showed that he hadn't forgotten how to cross a ball, and he may yet have a part to play in the first team when Solano and Dyer take their enforced timeouts. A few months ago, Gavilan looked a country mile away from a senior recall, but he has gradually improved and shown flashes of the form that saw him make two first team starts last April. Of course, the fact he's South American will also doubtless count in his favour.... 

Biffa