FA Cup Third Round
Saturday 6th January 2018
Despite a certain myth which exists about Newcastle United, it IS a massive football club which should be right amongst the very best in the country.
Their stature is huge; their stadium phenomenal whilst some of the players who've pulled on the black and white stripes over the years were amongst the very best of their generation.
Despite the issues hindering their progress, the club's 'pulling power' is still huge and to football supporters of clubs across the country, an away day at St James Park is one which is relished.
Their stature is huge; their stadium phenomenal whilst some of the players who've pulled on the black and white stripes over the years were amongst the very best of their generation.
For years under Mike Ashley's long and tumultuous ownership, the Magpies have been neglected, downtrodden and forced to accept mediocrity with a successful season being considered as being in the top half of the Premier League. A sleeping giant? Definitely... but they've been sleeping for a while now!
Despite the issues hindering their progress, the club's 'pulling power' is still huge and to football supporters of clubs across the country, an away day at St James Park is one which is relished.
With this FA Cup Third Round tie against Luton Town fitting in with my schedule and with tickets reasonably priced, it was too good to turn down my first visit to Newcastle since Doncaster Rovers' defeat there in the 2009/10 season.
Because there's so much to do in Newcastle - whether it be chilling out in some of the pubs on the waterfront by the River Tyne, shopping in Eldon Square, or taking in some of the many sights close to and around the city, I also made a day of it as well.
The weather wasn't the best (as to be expected for an early January FA Cup tie) but the lower league underdogs were backed by an incredible 7,000+ strong following who were housed in the 'heavens' in the upper section of the stadium and made a racket.
Despite a spirited enough performance by the then-League Two promotion hopefuls, Nathan Jones' men were undone by a disastrous spell starting on the half-hour mark when they conceded three goals in quick succession with Ayoze Perez (2) and Jonjo Shelvey on target for the Toon.
Rafael Benitez's team could have been forgiven for taking the foot off the gas after half-time and that's exactly what happened - almost to their cost as Danny Hylton pulled one back then had a goal disallowed for Luton, before his team-mate Olly Lee (son of NUFC legend Rob Lee) struck the post from a set-piece when a goal really would have put the cat amongst the pigeons.
It was a great day out and whether it was being amongst a 'buzzing' 40,000 crowd, spending the whole day in such a brilliant city, my mental state at the time, or hearing Harry Styles' song 'Sign Of The Times' in a bar near Newcastle Station afterwards (which, for some reason stands out vividly in my mind) in a bar, the day left such a mark that I actually bought a Season Ticket at Newcastle for the 2018/19 season.
Writing on the third anniversary of this game, during the Coronavirus crisis and just as the country has entered a third national lockdown, then normal life will return at some point - whether that be through a mass vaccination programme or the Tory Government being ousted by frustrated folk fed up of restrictions, who actually cares? But when life is normal again, it'll be these occasions and the excited feeling at just before three o'clock on a Saturday as the teams enter the pitch to the first few bars from Mark Knopfler's 'Local Hero' which will mean so much to so many people.
In the meantime, it's these days which will always be looked back upon with great fondness.
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