Aussie Mags - AZ Alkmaar v Newcastle United

	UEFA Cup Round of 16 2nd Leg
	Season 2006-2007

	AZ ALKMAAR	2 v O	NEWCASTLE UNITED
	Arveladze 14 Koevermans 56


	Date:	Thursday 15th March 2007
	Venue:	DSB Stadium, Alkmaar
	Kick Off:	7:35pm
	Australian Live TV:	None
	Attendance:	8,015
	Referee:	Anton Genov (Bulgaria)
	Read the match preview


	AZ Alkmaar: Waterman, Jaliens, De Cler, Steinsson, De Zeeuw, Donk, Martens (Boukhari 90), Dembele, Koevermans (Opdam 84), Arveladze, Jenner (Lens 80) Subs Not Used: Bulters, Luirink, Vormer
	Booked: Jaliens, De Cler

	Newcastle: Given, Solano, Bramble, Taylor, Huntington (N’Zogbia 86), Dyer, Butt, Parker, Duff (Emre 59), Sibierski, Martins Subs Not Used: Harper, Moore, Milner, Luque, Carroll
	Booked: Given, Bramble, Butt


	Match Report:
		I knew it, I think I knew it from the moment they scored from the rebound of the penalty. It is easy to say this with hindsight but anybody who was in the Match Day Chat Room for the 1^st leg will have seen my caution and negative reaction to conceding a second away goal. If I’m being honest with myself I staring to feel more like I’m never going to see my team win a meaningful trophy. I like to stay positive but I think I know I’m kidding myself. We have no divine right to win a trophy, you need ability and luck to do so and at various points in the past we’ve had the ability but luck is something we’ve never been very good at. The match itself got off to the worst possible start, as the live stream linked from the Live Footy website didn’t seem to be working. Once I heard DjBigK was having exactly the same issue, it was time to fire up good old BBC Radio Newcastle. Not ideal though but it was my decision to move to the other side of the world, so I’m not going to whinge. However can I just say, it’s sodding bloody typical that SBS are apparently going to show live coverage of the UEFA Cup from the Quarter –Finals onwards.
	I have no intention of running through the entire game blow by blow, cos quite frankly I can’t be arsed and if you didn’t watch it or listen to it on the radio, what the hell were you doing instead! What I will say though, we may have not performed at all and were outclassed by AZ but despite all their pressure and chances, they didn’t get a 3^rd goal to kill us off. We still had hope to the end and we did have a few decent chances as well, Martins missed another good one on one, Parker had a goal disallowed and a Dyer shot slipped just wide of the goal. Overall we weren’t good to progress through and we have to accept that. We had much better teams than this one over the last 10 years, who haven’t won a trophy, so we were daft to think other wise with this team. On the forum we had a thread about the UEFA Cup Final even before the 1^st leg of this game was played, how crazy is that. Now I’m not having a go at the person who started the thread because we all got caught up in high expectations, I’ve even applied for ticket to the final for christ sake. This was always going to be a transitional season, especially when you take into consideration it’s the managers first full season, we’ve had hardly any money to spend and we’ve been crippled with injuries. After this game I know there will (and has been already) be questions asked about whether Glenn Roeder is the right man to take this football club forward. Good question and even I’m not 100% sure but I think you have to give him two full seasons before you can really judge him. We need some stability at the club, chopping and changing managers every year or 18 months doesn’t help take any club forward. We have to show some patience’s in Roeder and back him. I’m not talking blind faith here but just some trust because there is nothing we can do about it, we are in his hands whether you like it or not. I appreciate and understand not all of us will agree on this subject but with not a lot of other good candidates out there, we could do a lot worse than a man who knows and loves this football club, the city and the fans. I know it hard but keep the faith everyone.
	AUSSIE MAGS