| Barclays Premiership - Match 34 |
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Season 2008-2009 |
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NEWCASTLE UNITED |
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PORTSMOUTH |
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| Date: | Tuesday 28th April 2009 | ||
| Venue: | St James' Park | ||
| Kick Off: | 5:00am (AEST), 4:30am (SA), 3:00am (WA) | ||
| Referee: | Mike Riley (Leeds, Yorkshire) | ||
| Australian Live TV: | Foxsports 2 | ||
| Internet Live TV Coverage: | Check www.justin.tv on-line closer to kick off | ||
| Weather Forecast: |
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11c | |
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| Yet to be announced. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pre-game comments: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Newcastle manager Alan Shearer:
"It's my biggest game for a long, long time. We all know the stakes, so we need to go out and get three points. "It sounds easy, but it won't be. We all know the importance of it. Now we just need to go out and do it. We have to go at it and grab those three points. "I think nine points could just be enough, looking other teams' fixtures. "I
might be wrong, but I'm asking the players to win their three home
games, starting with Monday against Portsmouth." “Someone reminded me about breaking the scoring record against Portsmouth three years ago. “And I am now hoping Portsmouth will be the team when I get my first three points as a manager. “I don’t really want to talk about that goal. It’s not important — but what is important is this game. “There is a chance for someone to go out and... I wouldn’t say be a hero — hopefully we will have 11, 12, 13 — but certainly a chance to make people sit up and say maybe Newcastle are going to fight, to scrap for everything.” It is three games without a win so far for Shearer but he added: “I want smiles. I want people happy. I want people with a buzz, I don’t want any morbid faces around the training ground. “I am asking the fans to do exactly the same. “It has been very difficult to ask them to smile when they have been beaten. “Yeah, it’s been hard but there is no time for people to feel sorry for themselves. “We know the situation, we know the stakes. And now we have to produce.” Portsmouth
manager Paul Hart:
"It was never a case of us going there and lying down and thinking we can just turn out when we want. "We showed we can turn out in every game and I was delighted with the attitude, especially in the second half. "We've done this in
every game so far since I've been here apart from the one against West
Bromwich Albion when there were a few complaints I have to say, but we
are over that and the aim remains the same - to stay resolute and
difficult to beat for the rest of the season." |
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| Last Season's Result | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Form - Last 5 games | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Match Preview: |
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Newcastle United
entertain Portsmouth at St James’ Park this Monday night (GMT), with
Alan Shearer’s men having 5 games left to avoid relegation. Shearer should be able to welcome back defender Jose Enrique and Peter Lovenkrands, while Joey Barton, Steven Taylor, and Fabricio Coloccini are all still doubtful, but strikers Mark Viduka and Obefemi Martins have suffered no reaction after the Spurs game last week. Portsmouth have doubts over forward David Nugent and defender Younes Kaboul, who both have thigh injuries, while midfielder Niko Kranjcar is still missing due to his injured ankle. The 2008-2009 season will not be remembered for it’s on-field events by the Toon Army. Claiming only 6 wins out of 33 games, Newcastle currently have the lowest number of victories of any club in the Premier League, a stat in itself that demonstrates how woeful this season has been. Newcastle’s normal good home form has deserted them this season. Without a home win since December and having lost its last three games, Newcastle are in danger of losing four home games in a row in the top-flight for the first time in 31 years. That year was the 1977-78 season, a year they were relegated to the old Division Two. Portsmouth themselves have been struggling of late. Having won only 3 of the last 18 Premier League games, Portsmouth are 19 points down on this same stage last season, and a failure to win here will make it their longest winless run away from home in the Premier League. The results at the weekend went in favour of Newcastle, with defeats for Hull City, sunderland and Middlesbrough meaning victory against Pompey would see the Toon only 1 point behind 17th place. Whom will Shearer pick, and in what formation, and what will the approach be? Well first things first, my personal opinion is if these results do not pick up the players, then nothing will. Lose and we are down, win and we have a good shot at survival. The return of Enrique at left-back should see the end of the 3 man defence, and with Martins and Viduka remaining fit, playing 3 strikers will certainly be considered. For everyone who was around back then, the parallels to April 1992 are obvious and very familiar. An underperforming club with a recently appointed former superstar player with no managerial experience, that is in dire need of a victory to stand any chance of survival and with a pivotal home game against Portsmouth to do it in. Yours truly was one of the 25,989 people who turned up to St James’ Park on the 25th April 1992 for that game against Portsmouth and the moment of David Kelly’s goal will live with me forever. Being a teenager I was standing in ‘The Corner’ (Gallowgate) like most other youngsters of the day, and everyone standing there was lucky enough to be in the perfect position to witness Kelly’s strike. (Really gutted I couldn’t find any YouTube footage of this goal) On 85 minutes substitute Micky Quinn flicked on the ball for Kelly inside the box, who hit a perfect shot that from the moment it left his boot it was obvious to everyone in ‘The Corner’ it was going in. Spark pandemonium among the Newcastle fans as a major out pouring of relief was felt around St James’ Park. That atmosphere that day was of unconditional support, the fans never gave up, and neither did the players. So fast forward to 2009 and again somebody has a chance to write their name in Newcastle folklore, the team has the opportunity to right the wrongs of a season of underperforming, and a city has a chance to unite in a sea of Black & White support that will make us all proud. We do not support Newcastle United because they are in the Premier League, we support Newcastle United because it is part of us, part of our lives, and therefore, whatever happens from now till the 24th May, the light of this football club will never go out. |
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HOWAY THE LADS!!! By Row 'S' Army |
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Did you know? - Portsmouth have the unusual distinction of holding the FA Cup for the longest uninterrupted period after winning the competition in 1939 and because of the out-break of World War II the competition wasn't played again until 1946. |
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