West Bromwich Albion (h) Premiership
Date: Saturday 5th October 2002, 3pm. Venue: St. James' Park Conditions: Script-adhering
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| Newcastle United | 2 - 1 | West Bromwich Albion |
| Half time: | 1 - 1 | |
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| Score Sheet: | ||
(45)
Shearer (69) Shearer |
Balis (26)
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Teams |
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Given Hughes Griffin Solano O'Brien Dabizas Speed Dyer Shearer Bellamy Robert |
Murphy Moore Gilchrist Gregan Balis Clement Johnson McInnes Marshall Roberts Dobie | |
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| Substitutes: | ||
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(82) Jenas for Solano (82) LuaLua for Bellamy (89) Bernard for Robert |
Hughes for Dobie (69) Koumas for Marshall (77) | |
| Subs not used: | ||
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Harper Ameobi |
Wallwork Sigurdsson Jensen |
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| Bookings: | ||
| O'Brien |
Roberts Gregan | |
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| Sendings off: | ||
| None | None | |
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| Referee:
Chris Foy (St.Helens) Bit
limp really. Foy was right to give the free kick for the back pass, probably right not to give the Solano penalty or the Shearer third and incredibly charitable to leave O'Brien on the field after his rugby league-inspired halting of the onrushing Jason Roberts after 15 minutes. He seemed to struggle with the mechanics of free kicks, incapable of either pacing out the required distance or moving back players. |
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| Attendance:
52,142 including 3,000 Baggies. The away contingent was sold out and impressively noisy. However, us old sages of the Premiership have seen this all before and the new boys and girls made the required noises - "it's just like being in church", "2-1 and you still don't sing", "shall we sing a song for yow" etc. etc. Yawn. Assuming they stay up, let's see how many of the throng return for a second visit on a wet Tuesday in February. You can't have it both ways though my Black Country buddies - either we're the occupants of a library or we're a seething cauldron of noise that intimidates referees into making incorrect decisions. A faint air of new-fangledness certainly, but at least a lack of the "worthier than thou" sentiments of the greatest fans in the world from Maine Road. They also sang "The Lord's my Shepherd" a few times and boing-boinged in familiar style after their goal. Hard to dislike really - celebrity punter Frank Skinner however preferred to sit in the home section. Half-time guest was Ron McGarry, although a more modern day hero was on the pitch when most folk weren't in the ground. David Kelly presented the club with a "Show Racism the Red Card" award before kick off, staying for the game and signing autographs for punters over an hour after the final whistle. Why he didn't take a well-deserved bow in front of a full ground is a mystery. |
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Goals |
26 mins Jason Roberts turned in the right hand side of the Newcastle area with Nicos Dabizas behind him, arms aloft to signal no contact. The ball ran to Igor Balis who avoided a half-hearted attempt to intervene from Laurent Robert and fired home a low shot between Shay Given and the near post at the Gallowgate end. 0-1
45 mins
With both sides seemingly dreaming of a half-time cuppa and more than one
or two home fans away from their seats (ha!) goalkeeper Murphy picked up a ball
from Balis that was either a four yard backpass or an unfortunate
deflection from Solano's right wing cross, depending on your viewpoint.
The referee thought the former and blew for an indirect free kick. After
several moments of strong-arm protests from the Albion where the referee
appeared to be manhandled, the wall was formed on the goal line (i.e. less
than 10 yards) and two defenders broke out to occupy dead ground either
side of the ball - a costly error. Also involved was Bellamy, who shielded
the ball from the keeper.
Solano then feinted to roll the ball to Shearer, only to pause and point
at the Albion defenders who had broken from the wall. In the next breath
he then rolled the ball and Alan Shearer walloped it in with a cracking
low drive to the left of the Leazes goal. Once again the Albion players
dashed after the referee for a further bout of moaning. 1-1
Half time: Newcastle
1 Baggies 1
69 mins Classically simple, beautifully executed - Gary Speed left hand side of box, sweeping ball to right hand byline, Nolberto Solano nod back, Alan Shearer knocks in low from eight yards. 2-1
Full time: Newcastle 2 Baggies 1
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We Said |
Sir Bobby commented:
"There were controversial
incidents, yes, for sure, no doubt about it.
"We had one on Tuesday night
and got nowt, so I'm not complaining, we had one against Leeds and got
nowt, so I'm not complaining, we had one again today with Nolberto Solano
on the penalty and got nowt, so I'm not complaining.
"It went for us in that situation, if it went for us in that situation. I think it would be extremely difficult for the referee not to give that backpass.
"The fella was in trouble, the goalkeeper had the chance of booting it out first time anyway if he'd thought about it. I know it came quick, but how many referees would not have given that? One or two might not, one or two might have. We got the one today who said 'It's a backpass' which we exploited.
"It's a big victory for us. We had a tough game and I'm delighted to have won it, I'll tell you that, after coming out of Italy and playing pretty well and getting nothing.
"We've done it again for the
third time. I don't think it was easy from start to finish, but we played
until the last minute and again came from behind.
"We weren't spectacular,
but we've given a pretty workmanlike and pretty solid performance."
About his two-goal striker:
"It's my job to protect Alan (Shearer). I have to look after him.
"I knew that if we got him through Saturday's game, then he wouldn't have to play again for another fortnight. If I'm honest, the break has come at just the right time for Alan because he needs a good rest.
"He hates to miss games and doesn't like to be taken off but that time will come. If I have to force his hand, then I'll do it. Nobody admires Alan more than I do but I'm not afraid of a fight and he must realise it's in his best interests.
"Alan is 32 and he's playing in the most difficult league in the world.
"I have to be selective and realise when it is time to rotate. There will come a time, towards the beginning of December, when the first stage of European games are over and I'll have to rest some senior players.
"I'll have to assess which players are still up and running and which ones just don't have anything left. That will be the time to look at a few youngsters and in Alan's case there are plenty of players ready to take his place.
"Young Michael Chopra must come into the equation and Carl Cort will be fit by then.
"Alan's touch
is as good as ever and I don't think he'll ever lose that, but Michael
Owen's been getting a rest, Ruud van Nistelrooy has had a rest and no
doubt Thierry Henry will get a good rest.
"Alan is older than all of them
and he needs a break, too."
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They Said |
SJP old boy Gary Megson got his
excuses in early:
"I can understand Jason Roberts being upset. We fine our players for
dissent, but he won't be fined for that because you'd have to be a saint
to keep your patience when that happens.
"We've lost our last two league games both in controversial circumstances, but nowhere near as controversial as today. Yes, we're aggrieved. You can start picking holes in people's performances, but I've not seen that decision given for I don't know how long.
"If Igor was trying to pass the
ball back with his foot there in the six-yard box, he would be in big
trouble at our football club because you don't do that - and he wasn't
trying to do that. It hit him on the foot. It wasn't a backpass.
"Those
kind of things may happen from 20 yards, but I don't see anybody passing
the ball back froom six yards. It doesn't happen. It hit him on the foot and the
lad just picked it up, and I think everybody was as surprised as we were
that the decision was given.
"We're going to have to take this on the chin, but it just shows you the fine dividing line between succeeding and failing. If other decisions had maybe gone the other way, Jason isn't a bad finisher when he's allowed to keep his feet one-on-one going through, and that's not the first time that's happened.
"I spoke to a manager of a club
similar to ours when we were promoted and he said the thing that you're
going to have to get used to is that, as a smaller club in the
Premiership, things go against you when you're playing bigger clubs and
I've seen nothing to dispel that."
Rookie keeper Joe Murphy added:
“I didn’t have time to kick the ball and there was no reason to because it wasn’t a
backpass, It just hit Igor on the shin or the foot and it flew back to me.
“I just knew it wasn’t a backpass, if it was I would have reacted differently and given myself time to kick it out. It’s just common sense - I don’t think anyone’s going to pass it back from five yards when the ball's come across from the
wing
"It’s tough for the referee when he’s got 50,000 fans screaming at him telling him it was a
backpass, but we defended well in the first half and if we had gone in one up it would have given us a lot of confidence.
"We deserved a lot more and decisions like that are hard to take but they’re going to come round and hopefully they’ll swing our way.
“It came at a vital time - we were one up and it would have been good to go in at half time like that. It gave them a boost but we had to battle back and we were told not to say anything to the ref about the decision.
"You’ve just got to get on with it because if it sticks in your mind you can’t concentrate on the game.
Maybe a couple of penalty decisions and other incidents have gone against us in the last two games but the gaffer’s told us we’ve got to learn to deal with things like this.”
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Match Stats |
299 club career goals in the bag now for Alan Shearer, who returns to Ewood Park looking for number 300.
Gary Speed played his 200th Newcastle game in all competitions and Andy O’Brien played his 50th Premiership match as a Magpie.United played (and won) a first Premiership game against West Bromwich Albion.
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Waffle |
We may have failed to gather points in our Champions League campaign
so far, but as European excitement gives way to domestic mundanity, we're having no such
problems in the league.
However it's open to considerable speculation as to whether our three-match
Premiership winning streak would have been achieved given a different set of opponents.
Certainly both baggies and bluenoses would also contend that an alternative choice of official may have influenced the destination of
the points on the last two Saturdays.
Such moans though have been our stock-in-trade for far longer than the
present campaign (just mention the words Trelford Mills in any Tyneside
drinking establishment).
While one can have a certain sympathy with Albion
over the fortunate escape from sanction Andy O'Brien enjoyed at 0-0, the
infamous back pass seemed clear enough from my seat - a case of inexperienced goalkeeper being betrayed by his instincts.
And having seen a dubious goal awarded against us when Leeds came visiting
and then an equally harsh re-interpretation of the same offside rule in Turin, then perhaps we were due some good fortune.
For Gary Megson to devote his post-match energies to hinting at a plot against his club by the big boys of the Premiership in cahoots with
the referees may appease his followers, but has little foundation in the real world.
He's better off leaving conspiracy theories to the truly demonic Graeme Souness.
A Solano penalty appeal looked more worthy on TV than it had in real time at the ground - which would have been an interesting test of the
proposed "third umpire" or "eye in the sky" thingy, while it's a major shock that someone on "The
Premiership" didn't say "i've seen them given" when discussing the third Shearer "goal."
Of greatest concern to the manager though must be the problems that the lone
attacking figure of Jason Roberts caused us at times, in particular Andy O'Brien.
Despite being a long way from the most sieve-like backline in the league, there seems to be a general air of desperation about our middle two
defenders among those who pay to watch the lads, as opposed to smug pundits and Opta stat fetishists.
Dabizas and O'Brien don't engender confidence at all as a pairing, and while the
former seems to be more combative and would always make an
arm-waving select XI, the latter looks weak on and off the ball.
Worse still, Harrogate's most-capped Irishman seems to be learning some bad habits from our
Greek defender, and
now looks to be labouring under the delusion that he's a master of the dribble. All well and good, but if
you're into that sort of thing at least make sure your first touch is assured - again in this game we
saw him turn out of trouble, knock the ball too far in front of him and lose out to a predatory opponent.
The sighing though extended to Bramble when he was let loose in our back four earlier in the season - the feeling remains we're still short-handed at the back and easy prey for the big guns. I don't know what
the answer is, short of spending yet more cash, but it's difficult to recall a time when we haven't had this problem.
On the positive side, it's nice to be able to write positive things about Solano, who followed up his goal at St.Andrew's with two able
assists in this game.
Looking back a season, we were commenting on his slow start and a lack of decisive touches from the Peruvian, slightly masked by the goals
being laid on from the opposite flank. Again this season he's looked out of sorts and this time Robert's influence has been lessened, partly
by injury of course.
The timing of the touch and distracting motion for the Shearer opener though was first-class, and the astute movement and return ball for
the second equally admirable.
Less wonderful though were some of the balls to Shearer at other times in the game, with Robert and Speed amongst
the transgressors. Quite what big Al was meant to do with some of the flighted efforts directed
at him outside the box was unclear - but the position of Bellamy would have required monumental efforts to register anything approaching a
layoff or knock-down.
Speaking of Bellamy, after a quiet opening half, he looking more like his scampering self, making headway down the left flank and trying to
cause mayhem in the final third. One centre of rare quality and anticipation from Robert saw him unable to direct his header down on
goal, but the movement from each was praiseworthy.
Some credit for the post-half time improvement must also be directed towards Dyer, who showed a couple of flashes of talent with quickly-despatched balls of
exemplary direction and weight to galvanise attacks.
However, for great swathes of the game he again looked as if he didn't quite know where he fitted in to the team - if it's a free role he's
been tasked with, he needs more specific instruction. Having failed to inspire against Juventus and with England selection again on the
horizon, one might have expected that he'd impose himself more on proceedings today - maybe he just didn't want to get injured....
It's to Shearer again though that we must turn - two more goals to add to the collection, and both typical of the man in their own way. That
he didn't spend the final few minutes goal-hanging for a possible third or trying to earn a penalty was equally characteristic of his
single-minded approach.
With Albion still lively and time remaining on the clock, out went the ball to the
left flank and there was the number nine, industriously going nowhere down the touchline and earning two free kicks within a minute - someone
should include that passage of play on a striking master class video, it was classic stuff.
Whether any of his alleged successors would have been capable of scoring either goal or running the clock down though
in that manner is a moot point - Bellamy and Lua would seem too excitable while I can barely remember what Carl
Cort looks like.
As for Shola, I'd rather talk about Chopra if it's all the same to you. We'd be
short-handed without our number nine, not just in the goalscoring
department.
When the visitors threatened late on and Lee Hughes unleashed an angled blast, the safe hands of Given tipped it over - he barely
featured after picking the ball out of the net, but earned his money in those closing moments.
Sir Bobby spoke earlier in the season of playing well and losing while at other times seeing a dip in form accompanied by a three point haul.
Thanks to Solano, Shearer and Given, today was firmly in the latter category.
Not a classic by any means, but a valuable three points to propel us up
the table.
PS: Was it just me or did you half-expect their away kit to have Greenalls on the front?
Biffa