Unexpectedly overseeing last season's KC success following Alan Pardew's touchline antics, John Carver emerged triumphant from today's clash of the genial Geordies - marking his appointment as Head Coach until the end of the season with a longed-for first victory.

For opposite number Steve Bruce though, there was nothing but increasing exasperation and desperation as to the fate of him and his beleaguered team. Out of contract after the next 15 games, City have won just twice in their last 15 and failed to score in almost seven hours.  

And if he harbours delusions of managing his "boyhood heroes", then the abuse he received today should be enough to deter him from throwing an amply-proportioned hat in that mythical ring. It's fair to say that the wearside section of his CV still haunts him, at least in the eyes of his fellow Tynesiders.

Of course Newcastle's recent form is hardly earth-shattering, but this victory put clear daylight between themselves and third-bottom Hull, who now trail the Magpies by a whopping 11 points.

Putting aside a forgettable opening half hour when City were denied an goal through an amazing combination of Tim Krul's fingertips, Fabricio Coloccini's chest and Mike Williamson's knee, the destination of the points seldom looked in doubt after Cabella's opener and the intervention of linesman Darren Cann in first half added time.

The flagwaver who wrongly chalked off a Papiss Cisse effort in the April 2013 derby spotted that Ahmed Elmohamady had punched the ball in Maradona-style - the ex-mackem receiving a booking for his misdeed and subsequent celebration while Jelavic recovered from being floored by Krul.

With Anita especially benefiting from the space afforded to the visitors in midfield, United took control of the game once Cabella curbed the needless tricks and flicks, began playing properly and opened his scoring account in fine style.

And although the hapless Tigers seemed incapable of scoring, there were slices of luck and some good officiating to thank for the blank, even after Sammy looked to have sealed the win with 40 minutes still to play. 

In terms of good fortune, Coloccini almost sliced an amazing own goal from the byline but Vurnon Anita cleared off his line, Krul saved his captain after a woefully short backpass almost let City back in and Jelavic spared Krul's blushes when failing to knock home a rebound from close range.

Cheick Tiote may remain in Africa, while Siem De Jong and Gabriel Obertan continue their comebacks in the reserves and Rolando Aarons is yet to start his, but there were substitute cameos for both Papiss Cisse and Mehdi Abeid. 

There was some doubt that the man from Senegal would make it back from the African Nations Cup, but he arrived in back Newcastle from Paris on Friday. The Algerian midfielder meanwhile is now back in contention after the toe problems that prevented him featuring in Equatorial Guinea, ready to build on seven appearances so far this season without defeat.  

There was to be no farewell appearance for unused substitute Davide Santon however, who made a loan return to his former club Inter Milan two days later as the transfer window closed.

Reward then for those those who made an early departure from Tyneside and beyond on a day when snow and ice made conditions tricky en route and the floodlights were necessary, except for the brief periods of sunshine that were right in the eyes of many in the away section.

The majority of those fans then remained in their places after full time to applaud the team for their efforts, with several shirts tossed into the throng and a more positive atmosphere evident than for some time - underlining the different mindset - and sobriety of home and away travellers. 

Carver duly joined in the celebrations with a brief clenched fist salute - and although that was reciprocated with applause, isolated chants of "Johnny Carver's black and white army" were in jest. 

It would be wrong to think that his outburst before Southampton was completely consigned to the history books however, while it's less than a month since JC faced jeers after the Leicester farce.    

Quite where we'd have gone from here though had the result gone against us is open to question, but thankfully Hull were so utterly awful that it would have been difficult for Newcastle not to win this game - unless it was in the FA Cup.... 

As it is, we appear to have reached a plateau. 

This victory and the three point haul against Everton look to have banished any threat of relegation, while bland talk of upward mobility in the league wasn't reflected in transfer window investment. 

Instead, an opportunity to further trim the wage bill was taken, following a squad review that presumably concluded we could make do and mend if required. We already know that the future head coach won't have that old "transfer war chest" at his direct disposal, so there's no angle of stockpiling cash ahead of a summer influx of "his" players. 

In terms of that role, results like this will add credence to the cost-free, in-house solution that has been arrived at. Carver has played a part in this box-ticking exercise, deliberately distancing himself from transfer dealings in public and resisting the temptation to fill the "communication gap" that the club recently admitted to. The job of chief apologist remains a poisoned chalice. 

Unlike his predecessor, he has no vested interest in team selection based on previous attempts to influence the identity of signings - and therefore no issue in aligning himself with the wishes of the other influences on the side, whether they come from the chief scout, the captain, or the owner.

There's also the Geordie heritage card to play (along with the tiresome evocations of a managerial previous era), but to most they are a needless distraction. Our Premier history simply isn't glorious enough to hark back to. 

A brief excursion to tenth at full time soon became eleventh following other results, but victory against Stoke next Sunday would see us leapfrog the Potters.

When the novelty of looking forward to watching us on Match of the Day wears off though, it remains to be seen whether Carver is any more adept at marshalling or motivating his forces for the rest of this meaningless season than Pardew was last year. 

Taking six points from a possible thirty after winning at Hull last March, issues with Ben Arfa, concerns over the Coloccini/Williamson partnership and the failure of the De Jong experiment meant a desire to get the season over and done was the only common bond between players and fans.