The ten best goals from the 2006/07 campaign:
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Newcastle United 5 - 0 Manchester United (1996/97)
During the 1990s, under Kevin Keegan, Newcastle continued to succeed, impressing with their attacking flair and a third place finish during the 1993-94 season, this was their first season back in the top flight. The attacking philosophy of Keegan led to Newcastle becoming labelled by Sky television as "The Entertainers". The following season Newcastle sold top scorer Andy Cole to Manchester United and finished 6th that season.
With the transfer money in 1995-96, Newcastle rebuilt with the signing of David Ginola and Les Ferdinand amongst others. The Toon came very close to winning the Premier League that season, and were at one time 12 points ahead of nearest rivals Manchester United, but eventually lost out. One match in particular from that season stood out, the 4-3 defeat at Liverpool, which is commonly voted the best ever game in the first 14 years of the English Premier League. The following season saw Newcastle finish in second place again, despite the signing of Alan Shearer (a then world record transfer of £15 million). However the blow of a second successive failure to win the Premiership was softened as Newcastle defeated Manchester United in this famous 5-0 victory on 20 October 1996.
With the transfer money in 1995-96, Newcastle rebuilt with the signing of David Ginola and Les Ferdinand amongst others. The Toon came very close to winning the Premier League that season, and were at one time 12 points ahead of nearest rivals Manchester United, but eventually lost out. One match in particular from that season stood out, the 4-3 defeat at Liverpool, which is commonly voted the best ever game in the first 14 years of the English Premier League. The following season saw Newcastle finish in second place again, despite the signing of Alan Shearer (a then world record transfer of £15 million). However the blow of a second successive failure to win the Premiership was softened as Newcastle defeated Manchester United in this famous 5-0 victory on 20 October 1996.
Faustino Asprilla: A South American Legend
The Colombian is unfairly bracketed with Rodney Marsh as a signing that stopped a team’s momentum to the title. Kevin Keegan added the Parma forward to his fantasy football lineup in 1996 just as the Magpies began to implode on the championship run in. Known as ‘The Octopus’ in Colombia for his loose-limbed, unorthodox approach, Asprilla provided a walking definition of the word enigma.
The international striker didn’t have a word of English and being a Colombian saw nothing unusual in carrying a handgun- something his Toon minders soon had to have words about. Always unpredictable, he once drew a suspension after being booked for celebrating a goal by removing his shirt and hoisting it skyward with the corner flag.
He remains a Tyneside legend for an unforgettable hat-trick that beat Barcelona in St. James’ Park's first Champions League game but these were his last goals for the club. Never likely to be Kenny Dalglish’s sort of player, ‘Tino’ returned to Parma in early 1998. He couldn’t recapture the form that made him one of Serie A’s most exciting talents – he won UEFA Cup and Cup-Winners Cup medals in his first spell in Italy where he played with another player who became a misfit in English football, the Swede Thomas Brolin.
His career took him on to Palmeiras in Brazil and he had an excellent scoring record for the national side with 20 goals in 57 internationals. His last port of call has been for his hometown team Tulua, although he nearly came back to the North-East for Darlington. Asprilla agreed a deal with chairman George Reynolds only to make an early morning flit on a flight to Colombia, complaining that he couldn’t live on the wages offered.
The international striker didn’t have a word of English and being a Colombian saw nothing unusual in carrying a handgun- something his Toon minders soon had to have words about. Always unpredictable, he once drew a suspension after being booked for celebrating a goal by removing his shirt and hoisting it skyward with the corner flag.
He remains a Tyneside legend for an unforgettable hat-trick that beat Barcelona in St. James’ Park's first Champions League game but these were his last goals for the club. Never likely to be Kenny Dalglish’s sort of player, ‘Tino’ returned to Parma in early 1998. He couldn’t recapture the form that made him one of Serie A’s most exciting talents – he won UEFA Cup and Cup-Winners Cup medals in his first spell in Italy where he played with another player who became a misfit in English football, the Swede Thomas Brolin.
His career took him on to Palmeiras in Brazil and he had an excellent scoring record for the national side with 20 goals in 57 internationals. His last port of call has been for his hometown team Tulua, although he nearly came back to the North-East for Darlington. Asprilla agreed a deal with chairman George Reynolds only to make an early morning flit on a flight to Colombia, complaining that he couldn’t live on the wages offered.
Feyenoord 2--3 Newcastle (UEFA Champions League 2002-03)
Down and out after the first three group games, who could believe that the boys would go to Holland and get the victory that they needed?
One of the all-time famous European victories!
One of the all-time famous European victories!
Friday, May 18, 2007
The history of a legendary club
Enjoy some images from the marvellous history of our legendary club…
King Alan: Alan Shearer 1996-2006
Alan Shearer was born on August 13 1970 in Gosforth, a local council estate in Newcastle. When he was a boy, Shearer was known as 'Smoky' as he had a fondness for smoky bacon crisps! His family has long supported Newcastle United for generations and the young Shearer once queued for hours just to catch a glimpse of his boyhood hero, Kevin Keegan.
At 12, Shearer was captain of his school's football team. Even then, his skills were so remarkable that his sports teacher remarked, "If Alan was ill, we tried to get matches called off." He once scored 13 goals in one game. Yet, during his Newcastle trials, Shearer played in goal! Needless to say, Newcastle failed to notice his goal-scoring abilities, a mistake which has cost them £15m. Joe Hixon, Southampton's talent scout however, saw his potential and signed him as an apprentice for the club.
Shearer then left Newcastle at age 15. His only school qualifications included a CSE in English Oral, his chosen topic being unsurprisingly, football. He has joked that his massive thighs were to "make up for my lack in intellectual ability!" During his 1988 league debut, Shearer became the youngest player ever to score a first-class hat-trick. However, Shearer never really made an impact at the Dell. Yet his strong work ethic was renowned - he used to get up before dawn for three-mile runs and practised by himself after training until he had to be dragged away! It is this quality of sheer hard work that has turned Shearer into one of the best footballers today.
On a more personal note, Shearer met his wife Lainya on a blind date in a Southampton pub. Funnily enough, she hated football and couldn't understand his strong Geordie accent. Shearer, then earning £25 a week, was always broke, so she ended up paying for the two of them most of the time. They married at age 20 and have 2 girls, Chloe and Hollie, both of whom can beat him at video games!
In 1992 Shearer moved to Blackburn Rovers for a British record of £3.6 million. He became the only player in English football history to score 30 or more goals in three consecutive seasons, helping Blackburn win their first Premiership title in 81 years in the 1994/95 season. This despite sustaining a few injuries throughout the seasons. At Euro 96, Shearer became the top scorer with 5 goals in what were some of England's most memorable performances at home soil.
After the success of Euro 96, Shearer rejected lucrative offers from other top clubs to fulfill his childhood dream of playing in the black-and-white jersey. "All I ever wanted to do was play for Newcastle. I'd stand on the terraces dreaming of the day I would walk out on that hallowed turf." That day arrived on August 6 1996, when Shearer's return home shattered records worldwide, making him the world's most expensive player at £15m. But it was a move made for sentiment and not money as Shearer not only returned to his roots but got to play under idol Kevin Keegan. The move was a crowning glory for Geordies and a remarkable part of English football history as 15,000 people stood in a rainstorm just to watch him wave.
Sadly, Shearer's Newcastle seasons have been plagued by injury woes and by the sudden departure of Keegan. His rather quick recovery from a career-threatening injury suffered in 1997 helped his team avoid relegation. More about the man's hard-working attitude - Shearer was often seen shifting impatiently on the bench and shooting his manager with piercing glares in order to get playing time even though he had just recovered!
In 1998, Shearer was inducted into the FA Hall of Fame for his 1994/95 season with Blackburn. He also received the England captaincy in 1996, a task which he has carried out with tremendous pride. In fact, Shearer is seen by many to be the perfect embodiment of the nation. He also captained England into France 98. In a touching move, Newcastle fans crowned him the Angel of the North by placing a giant Shearer jersey replica on the 65-ft Tyneside statue before the FA Cup Final.
Off the pitch, Shearer has been deemed bland and boring. His deadbat television technique and taciturn PR skills are largely responsible for this tag. One magazine described him as having "all the personality of a suet pudding" while 2 infamous Newcastle directors, labelled him 'Mary Poppins'. Former Blackburn team-mate Tim Flowers too has dubbed him 'Mr Mogadon' while another has commented that he kept Shearer's season diary next to his bedside as it put him to sleep. Shearer was once challenged by team-mates to incorporate the title of an Abba song into an interview. So he answered a question with: "Yes, but the winner takes it all." In a now famous comment, Shearer said that he would be celebrating Blackburn's triumph by "going home and creosoting the garden fence".
Still, Mark Lawrenson who worked with Shearer at Newcastle says, "That's Shearer. Put a microphone under his chin and a camera in front of him and he switches off. But I can tell you now that he has got one of the most outstanding personalities in football." Shearer himself says, "There is another side to me which people don't often see, but it's very hard for me to show that. When I do interviews, I'm talking to people I don't know and when you speak to a stranger you don't open up, do you?"
There are stories that Shearer is a dressing-room prankster, subjecting his clubs' and England teammates to various jinks and laughing his boots off each time they discover that the toes of their socks had been mysteriously cut off. Journalists too have been shocked when Shearer was heard cackling on the phone everytime former Southampton friend Neil Ruddock (they are godfathers to each other's children) told him of a new career setback.
While he may be one of the most famous strikers in the world, Shearer remains fiercely proud of his working-class background. His father, Alan is still a sheet-metal worker and his mother Anne, works as a home help. He maintains a close relationship with his parents and Joe Hixon, keeping contact with them almost every day. Shearer still prefers sharing a pint with his pals from his boyhood to mixing with rich and famous stars. He is a keen golf-player, owns 2 Jaguars (courtesy of his sponsors), gets free food from McDonald's and unfortunately, listens to Rod Stewart (could be worse, really).
Thanks to the author of this biog.
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