Newcastle's interest in the FA Cup ended at the first time of asking on Saturday, after Arsenal twice found the net during 30 minutes of extra time.

However United only have themselves to blame for allowing the tie to reach that point, Andy Carroll missing two glaring chances to end an Emirates goal famine that is now an interminable 507 minutes.

The returning Martin Dubravka was the busier of the two goalkeepers in a first half when Carroll's best work was done in his own area, defending.

An improved showing from the visitors after the break came with Matt Ritchie on in place of Jamaal Lascelles and Paul Dummett switching to centre back.

The first of Carroll's two opportunities came on 56 minutes, when the striker reached Jeff Hendrick's hopeful ball across the box only to shoot wide. TV replays confirmed that the linesman's offside flag was incorrect.

Carroll did get a 92nd minute effort on target after debutant Elliot Anderson couldn't exploit Jacob Murphy's low centre from the right - but agonisingly crashed the ball off Bernd Leno when a goal seemed certain.

(Our anguished reaction to that latter miss may have been related to the fact that Newcastle to win 1-0 with a Carroll goal was a mammoth 70/1....) 

Having survived a red card that was downgraded to a booking, substitute Emile Smith Rowe profited from Ciaran Clark's mis-control to fire home in the 109th minute - a goal that arose in similar circumstances to the one that put us out of the League Cup at Brentford last month.

A ninth successive defeat at the Emirates for United was confirmed eight minutes later, when an exchange of passes between Kieran Tierney and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang saw the latter stab home from close range.

Winless in seven league and cup games, the Magpies now relocate to Bramall Lane on Tuesday teatime, facing a Blades side who won for the first time this season, beating League One Bristol Rovers 3-2.

They do with with gathering clouds over their inability to score - netting from open play just once in almost ten hours of league and cup games.

With Andy Carroll having run himself into the ground here, injury doubts over Callum Wilson, and neither Joelinton and Miguel Almiron offering a hint of a goal threat that's of grave concern - amplifying every costly error made at the other end of the field.

After six substitute appearances so far this season including tonight, Dwight Gayle's time to take a place in the starting line-up may well have arrived - despite facing an uncertain future on Tyneside as his contract nears expiry.

The outcome of Tuesday's meeting with Sheffield United may not be pivotal to the future Bruce, but a failure to collect three points will further diminish his standing among fans - if that were possible.

Regardless of the outcome or level of performance. We know that we're not alone in struggling to watch our games on TV without feelings of regret at not being there, mixed with envy of those who were granted access.

For the most part we've shied away from referencing that, but the "what if" factor was at a level today that we can't ignore it. As our centre forward was missing horribly, his fans were horribly missing.

Ordinarily, the prospect of three away games in ten days - all in evening slots -would prompt inevitable bellyaching about TV schedulers targeting our fans. That all seems like something from a previous era now though and we harbour genuine concerns of ever going back to how it was for away fans.

Despite much of it being negative in our lifetime, so much of our collective memory of this competition is of the fervour, the support, the days out: be it the stand bouncing at Old Trafford, the Geordie invasion of Anfield, the infamous overcrowding at White Hart Lane or the fruitless Wembley visits.

If 54,500 hadn't been at the Forest game in 1974 and some of them not rampaged down the pitch then we'd have gone out that day - and those two Supermac goals (and that Terry Hibbitt pass) wouldn't have happened.

Similarly, our Room 101 moment at Hereford two years earlier - inevitably shown as part of this weekend's Third Round coverage - is rooted in the crowd reaction, those small boys in parkas etc.

The fact that Carroll's two misses here came in front of what would have been the away end emphasised what was missing today. The drama of that 92nd minute one would have been heightened still further from a semi-obscured view behind that goal rather than the front room.

And as for the outpouring if he'd actually scored....think cracked limbs versus a ruffled carpet, or a re-run of the epic day he did score here and we won as we reported then.

Gone also was the sense of injustice that would have been felt at witnessing the reversal of the red card from the other side of the ground was gone; nullified by the fact that instant replays confirmed the decision was flawed.

It's harder to give this Newcastle side the benefit of the doubt when deprived of the emotional content and context of a first-hand matchday experience. Regardless of that though, it's tough to defend our shortcomings; be it the weakness in midfield, general lack of imagination in possession, recurring failures from set pieces - or the same old tired patter from the gaffer.

PS: Spare a thought for Elliot Anderson, making his senior career debut live on national television, but with none of his friends or family actually present. And having watched the laddie on windswept Academy pitches and then at the likes of Shrewsbury and Port Vale, we were a bit gutted also.