Derbyshire’s push for new signings continues with the appointment of Andrew Brown, their former batsman, as assistant coach to John Morris.It is Brown’s fourth spell on the staff, having had two stints as a first-team player in the ’80s and early ’90s, and then he was the second XI captain/coach from 1997 to 2000.Morris was delighted with the signings and he said: “Andy has been coach of Suffolk in Minor Counties cricket for the last five years culminating in them winning the MCCA Trophy last season and I am delighted to have someone with local knowledge, bags of experience and lots of enthusiasm joining our staff.”Brown said: “It is a pleasure to be back after seven years away from the club. Working at Suffolk and at Chesterfield CC has been fantastic but this is the level of the game that I want to be involved in. Derbyshire is a club close to my heart and as soon as I got the call from John I knew that the County Ground is where I want to be.”
The turbulent times at Yorkshire show no signs of abating with Anthony McGrath, one of the club’s senior players, set to try to leave Headingley despite being offered the captaincy for next season.This news comes in the wake of Chris Adams’s last minute decision to turn down a move to Yorkshire in favour of staying at Sussex. McGrath had been lined up as the new captain, alongside a new three-year contract, but is instead focusing his interest elsewhere. However, Yorkshire have made it clear to McGrath that he is still under contract and they are not willing to release him, which leaves the situation heading for a legal battle.Stewart Regan, the chief executive, told the club’s website: “We are bitterly disappointed that Anthony has turned down this opportunity. He has been a Yorkshire player since his teens, and it is sad that he no longer wants to be part of this club.”I have personally spent several hours with him over the past few weeks, offered him the captaincy and a very attractive contract, but he still wishes to go elsewhere. I have therefore reminded him that he is under contract with this club, and we are not prepared to release him from his obligation.”Unfortunately, it is my understanding that he intends to try and break his contract. If he does not want to play for the club it will ultimately end up in solicitors’ hands. It is a very sad state of affairs.However, Regan tried to remain positive about the direction of the club after it managed to escape Championship relegation in 2006. “This club has taken some knocks in recent weeks, but it’s been around for 143 years, and I’m sure it’ll be here for many more. It’s at times like this that we need to be united, and I hope members and staff will now get behind the players, in particular the younger lads who will certainly get their chances next season.”McGrath, 31, made his Yorkshire debut in 1995 and has scored 9816 runs in first-class cricket. He played four Tests for England in 2003 alongside 14 one-day internationals.
A Scott Styris hundred and a last-gasp half-century from Brendon McCullum surged New Zealand to a world-record chase of 332 for 8 as they avoided a cleansweep of Chappell-Hadlee Series losses. McCullum’s mind-blowing 50 from 25 deliveries saved a near-helpless situation of 74 required from seven overs with two wickets remaining, and they ended up securing the victory with an incredible six balls to spare.Australia went into the match with an experimental bowling line-up, which contained only 34 appearances for the five front-liners, and they were handed a book full of dreadful lessons, particularly in bowling at the death thanks to McCullum and Daniel Vettori. McCullum continually found himself with room and belted four sixes and three fours while Vettori scampered 23 from 12 deliveries to earn a wild victory as captain.Vettori won the toss and chose to bowl on the basis that his side was better at chasing a total than setting one. The logic had almost worked at Wellington on Wednesday when they lost by two runs, and today they refused to give up, not only winning by two wickets but knocking off Australia’s previous mark of 330 for 7 against South Africa in 2001-02. “It’s been a privilege to be part of this amazing game and hopefully it will set us up for the season,” Vettori said.A chase requiring more than a run a ball needed one of the top order to play a significant role and Styris delivered with an innings combining a calm outlook and explosive shot-making. His 101 meant New Zealand always had an eye on the target, but after Lou Vincent continued his fire-breathing from the second match he received little help until Jacob Oram connected with a flurry of big swings as light rain arrived with ten overs remaining.When Oram and Styris, the Man of the Match, fell in the same over from Stuart Clark, who collected career-best figures of 4 for 55, the Australians were confident of a whitewash, but the match swung again with the arrival of McCullum. The target was not so much chipped away as chopped at and Mick Lewis, the hero from Wellington, was unable to repeat his nerveless display and his final over went for 20 runs. McCullum and Vettori both sent him for sixes in what should have been the penultimate over to grab New Zealand’s 27th win in the 100 matches between the countries.The home side suffered an early problem when they lost the Supersub Stephen Fleming for 0 and the dismissals of Vincent and Nathan Astle, who both went in Clark’s first spell, were also costly. However, Hamish Marshall and Styris, who thumped 12 fours and two sixes, gave the innings a much-needed boost with an energetic partnership and the high tempo remained as Styris brought up his third one-day century from 94 balls.While McCullum’s flourishes at the finish will remain the defining moments of the match, Michael Hussey showed similar batting greed with a jaw-dropping display at the end of the first innings. Australia had dropped to 259 for 7 with the loss of Michael Clarke and Cameron White to Chris Martin, but Hussey usually either found the boundary or cleared it in the final ten overs, which earned 125 runs. It did not matter where the New Zealanders bowled as Hussey, who hit seven fours and five sixes, raced from 32 to 88 in 18 deliveries.Maintaining his fabulous record of being dismissed only four times, Hussey ensured his average, which started the day at 129.00, actually increased to 151. He lifted Chris Cairns for two sixes in a row to bring up his half-century and probably needed only one more over to reach a century with an exhibition of power hitting that would have made McCullum or Andrew Symonds proud.A stand of 82 between Hussey and Clarke, who posted his second consecutive fifty, set up the total after Ricky Ponting dragged Australia from the early trouble of 7 for 2 with a 67-ball 75. The first of many stunning turnarounds was led by Ponting and Brad Hodge (59 from 83), and the change was best seen through Ponting, who played, missed and struggled over 5 runs in 24 balls before switching clothes to reach his fifty off 48 deliveries.Vettori was again the best bowler with 2 for 37 off ten, his wickets of Ponting and Symonds coming in the 21st over, and he made free-flowing scoring difficult. However, while Styris was again frugal Vettori was let down by his closing bowlers and the allrounders Cairns (0 for 61 from six overs) and Jacob Oram (0 for 69 off eight). Their generosity did not matter in the end and actually helped make sure of a satisfying world record.
AustraliaAdam Gilchrist lbw Mills 0 (0 for 1) Simon Katich c Styris b Martin 2 (7 for 2) Ricky Ponting lbw Vettori 75 (122 for 3) Andrew Symonds c Mills b Vettori 1 (124 for 4) Brad Hodge c Mills b Styris 59 (177 for 5) Michael Clarke c Mills b Martin 71 (259 for 6) Cameron White c Vettori b Martin (259 for 7) New ZealandStephen Fleming c Gilchrist b Bracken 0 (12 for 1) Nathan Astle c White b Clark 14 (50 for 2) Lou Vincent c Hussey b Clark 39 (61 for 3) Hamish Marshall b White 27 (149 for 4) Craig McMillan c Gilchrist b Symonds 11 (179 for 5) Chris Cairns c Gilchrist b Lewis 6 (194 for 6) Jacob Oram b Clarke 42 (257 for 7) Scott Styris c Symonds b Clark 101 (258 for 8)
Points Table January 15 Tamil Nadu 212 for 3 (Badrinath 67, Vidyut 59) beat Kerala 207 for 8 (Jagadeesh 73) by 7 wickets ScorecardTamil Nadu maintained an unbeaten record in the South zone league, notching up their fifth consecutive win with a seven-wicket defeat of Kerala. Requiring 208 for victory, TN powered to victory thanks to S Badrinath (68) and Sivaramakrishnan Vidyut (59). Tamil Nadu had already regained the Subbiah Pillai Trophy for the zonal champions after winning their first four matches.Andhra Pradesh 148 for 6 (Prasad 68) beat Hyderabad 146 (Venugopal 5-20) by 4 wickets ScorecardAndhra Pradesh rode on a superb bowling performance by Venugopal Rao to clinch a low-scoring match by four wickets. Venugopal took 5 for 20 in 8.3 overs as Hyderabad were bundled out for 146. Andhra had a few hiccups along the way, but MSK Prasad made 68 as an opener to see the team through.Karnataka 133 for 3 (Rowland 53*) beat Goa 129 by 7 wickets ScorecardKarnataka thrashed Goa by seven wickets to finish second in the league, behind Tamil Nadu. In their last match, in Margao, they bundled out Goa for just 129 and then coasted past the target with more than 13 overs to spare. Barrington Rowland rop-scored for Karnataka with an unbeaten 53.January 13
Scorecard Tamil Nadu regained the Subbiah Pillai Trophy and emerged as champions in the league phase of the South zone Ranji one-day tournament after recording their fourth successive victory. Though one round of matches still remained, Tamil Nadu had got enough points and gained an unassailable lead. Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan led the Tamil Nadu batting brigade as they piled on 342 and cruised to a 149-run win over Andhra in Margao. Vidyut clattered 123 in only 115 balls before Dinesh Karthik’s manic 80 off 43 balls rocketed the score towards 350. Andhra were never in the hunt and MSK Prasad’s 56 was only a consolation. Scorecard A blistering 160 from Robin Uthappa helped Karnataka post a mammoth total and then wrap up a comfortable 113-run win over Kerala in Margao. Uthappa hammered 18 fours and a six in his sizzling 129-ball knock and nearly carried his bat through the innings. Kerala didn’t threaten at any stage and they struggled against the medium pace of Chandrashekar Raghu and NC Aiyappa before folding for 193. ScorecardAmbati Rayudu steered Hyderabad to a comfortable 78-run victory over Goa in the league phase of the South zone Ranji one-day tournament in Panjim. Rayudu steadied the innings before stringing together useful partnerships with the lower order and take Hyderabad past the 250-mark. Mandar Phadke gave Goa a faint chance of reaching the target but all the Hyderabad bowlers chipped in and wrapped the game up with plenty to spare.January 12
Scorecard Sreedharan Sharath’s led the way with a composed 103 not out as Tamil Nadu wrapped up their third consecutive victory in the Ranji Trophy one-day tournament in Margao. Sharath was supported by Subranamium Badrinath, who chipped in with 81, as Tamil Nadu easily chased down a daunting target of 289.Earlier, Hyderabad had got to 288 thanks to a fine hundred by Abhinav Kumar and a quickfire 68 from Anirudh Singh. Scorecard An excellent allround batting effort from Karnataka helped them to an emphatic victory over Andhra in the Ranji one-day tournament in Panjim. Barrington Rowland and Sujit Somasundar cracked fifties but everyone in the top order played their part to boost the total to 287 for 7. Andhra were never in the hunt and folded for a mere 154. Scorecard Raiphi Gomez’s composed 90 not out steered Kerala to a comfortable seven-wicket win over Goa in the Ranji one-day tournament in Margao. Kerala had little trouble in chasing down a modest total of 182 and Gomez shared a crucial 122-run stand with Vasudevan Jagadeesh (44) for the second wicket. Earlier, Sree Santh and Tinu Yohanan had snared seven wickets between them as Goa were kept down to 181 in their first innings.January 10
Scorecard A fine allround batting performance gave Tamil Nadu the advantage before their bowlers applied the pressure and wrapped up a crushing 82 run victory over Karnataka at Panjim. Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan set up a solid launching pad with his steady 56 before Sreedharan Sharath and Dinesh Karthik plundered the bowling in the late assault. Karthik smacked six fours and three sixes in his blistering knock as Tamil Nadu finished on a commanding 278 for 4. Karnataka didn’t get the rapid start in the early over and were soon reduced to 44 for 3 as their top-order batsmen tried to up the tempo. The rest of the line-up didn’t keep the fight going and Karnataka folded for 196. The big win gave Tamil Nadu an additional bonus point. Scorecard An attacking unbeaten 120 by Shami Asnodkar paved the way for a Goa victory over Andhra by 14 runs at Margo. He put on 96 more runs than the next-highest scorer, and more than half the side’s runs came off his bat. His innings contained eight hits to the fence and seven over it. Goa struggled to 217 for 9, with most of the damage done by Bala Reddy, who ended with 5 for 16 in only his fourth one-dayer. Andhra then began confidently, with Fayaz Ahmed (42) and MSK Prasad putting on 60. Prasad went on to score 75, but wickets fell around him often. However, once he was dismissed (193 for 7), Andhra’s last reasonable chance of victory was lost. Shortly after, they folded up for 203, falling short by 14 runs. Scorecard A patient unbeaten 60 by Sreekumar Nair gave Kerala a five-wicket victory over Hyderabad at Goa. Chasing a low target of 167, Kerala went past in less than 40 overs in the 42-over-an-innings game. Nair’s knock steadied the innings after his team was wobbling at 65 for 3, but he found minor support from the middle order, which was enough for him to go about his work. Earlier, Ambati Rayudu had blasted 50 off 35 balls and put on 51 with Anirudh Singh, who scored a more sedate 61 not out. But runs were hard to find for the others, and only these two, of the top eight managed double-figures.January 9
Scorecard Tamil Nadu’s medium pacers ran through the Goa batting order, shooting them out for a paltry 116, and their batsmen cantered to a comprehensive eight-wicket victory in the Ranji Trophy one-day tournament in Panjim. MR Shrinivas and Rajamani Jesuraj justified their captain’s decision to field first, snaring seven wickets between, as the Goa batsmen floundered. Only Mandar Phadke managed to cross 20 and Goa were bundled out in 36.1 overs. Tamil Nadu were never in any sort of trouble and Hemant Kumar steered them home with a composed 40. Scorecard Arjun Yadav’s fighting 80 wasn’t enough as Hyderabad fell 15 runs short in their game against Karnataka in Margao. Yadav shared two big partnerships, first with Daniel Manohar (51) and then with Ambati Rayudu (60), but Karnataka kept the pressure on and choked the runs in the slog overs. Earlier, despite no standout performer, most of the Karnataka batsmen chipped in to help post a competetive total. Scorecard Vasudhevan Jagadeesh piloted the Kerala batting and helped them register a 21-run victory over Andhra in Margao. Kerala were inserted after losing the toss and Jagadeesh (104) played the lone hand while partners fell around him. He cracked eight fours in his 148-ball innings and was the last to fall as Kerala finished on 212. Tinu Yohannan and Prasanth chandran, their opening bowlers, then went about denting the Andhra batting line-up and the rest sustained the pressure right till the end. Gnaneswara Rao (58) and Hemanl Watekar (40) gave Andhra a whiff of a chance but they couldn’t keep it going till the end.
Michael Vaughan “Throughout my short career to date this is my best Test victory. [South Africa] were 362 for 4 after the first day on a good batting pitch, and to show the character we did and come back was a fantastic team effort. Steve Harmison was fantastic and Martin Bicknell on his home ground was exceptional.”Marcus Trescothick “It’s just been a great gig and a great game of cricket for all of us. I’ve worked hard throughout the whole series. There have been some tough wickets and things had not gone my way but I worked hard for this and will enjoy the moment. I still had to fight hard, I did not play all that well for the first hour. I needed a bit of luck but that’s the way it goes.”Graeme Smith “I’d like to have had 700 in the first innings. The run-outs didn’t help, and one or two little things go against you, but that’s Test cricket. I don’t think we’re chokers. England played good cricket in this match. But at Headingley [where South Africa won the fourth Test by 191 runs after being 21 for 4 and 142 for 7] we fought back well. England are allowed to play good cricket but it’s obviously disappointing not pushing on from 2-1. Test cricket is about pressure and we didn’t cope with it in this match."England batted superbly on what was a good Test wicket – one big partnership up front really set the tone of the innings and then Freddie [Flintoff] came in and took the game away from us."It’s been a hard-fought series, neither side has wanted to give an inch and hasn’t given an inch. You’ve had to fight for everything you’ve gained. I thought my boys had a fantastic series. Three months away from home, they really fought hard for the whole series and put up a fantastic performance."We have to learn to be a bit more ruthless. But apart from this match, when we’ve got into trouble, someone’s got us out of it and that’s given me a lot of satisfaction.”The retiring Alec Stewart “I said before the Test it was not all about Alec Stewart. It was the perfect sendoff and I wish the team all the best for the future. There was some good batting, some good bowling and it was an excellent wicket here.”Obviously that debut [a win over West Indies in 1989-90] is still clear in my mind. To start and end with a win is perfect. I won’t forget Barbados, the Headingley win to beat South Africa last time they were here, and the series wins in Sri Lanka and Pakistan.”I’m going to enjoy the next few weeks and finish the season with Surrey. Then I’ll put the cricket kit away and get out the golf clubs and the Chelsea shirt. I’ve had some good offers, a good one from here at The Oval. I’ve got some things in the pipeline."
The West Indies cricket team will tour Pakistan in February, ending any need for using a neutral venue, said General Tauqir Zia, chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board.The PCB in October shortlisted four sites to host the tour, following the September 11th attacks and subsequent military strikes on neighbouring Afghanistan.Dhaka in Bangladesh, Sharjah and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, and Rabatin Morocco were the venues under consideration.New Zealand cancelled its Pakistan tour in September and Sri Lanka refused a three-match one-day series later that month. The International Cricket Council ruled that alternative venues would be permitted in cases where it was unsafe to play. Zia maintained his country is ready to host a cricket tour.”There is no problem and I’m going to insist to the ICC that Pakistan is all right and that people should come and play here,” Zia said. “As far as I’m concerned the West Indies tour is already on, they haven’t said no, they said ‘we are coming.'”New Zealand would have been able to fulfil its tour commitments, Zia said, adding that the “Under-19 babies of Sri Lanka” finished their tour of Pakistan last week without incident.The West Indians last toured Pakistan in 1997 and lost all three Tests. The last international cricket event in Pakistan was an Asian Test Championship match against Bangladesh in Multan in August. Pakistan won by an innings and 264 runs.
Elton Chigumbura (capt), Sikandar Raza, Brian Chari, Chamu Chibhabha, Craig Ervine, Luke Jongwe, Neville Madziva, Wellington Masakadza, Tinotenda Mutombodzi, Richmond Mutumbami (wk), Taurai Muzarabani, John Nyumbu, Tinashe Panyangara, Malcolm Waller, Sean Williams In: Craig Ervine, Wellington Masakadza Out: Graeme Cremer, Hamilton Masakadza
Hamilton Masakadza has been dropped from Zimbabwe’s ODI squad for the home series against Ireland due to his patchy form. However, there will still be family representation in the XV, with his younger left-arm spinning brother, Wellington Masakadza, having been included. If Wellington does get a game, he will be the third of the Masakadza siblings to play for Zimbabwe, with fast bowler Shingi also have made the national team.Middle-order batsman Craig Ervine, who missed the home ODIs against Pakistan due to a hamstring niggle, returns to the squad. Graeme Cremer, who had sprained his ankle during that Pakistan series, misses out, having not yet fully recovered. A Zimbabwe Cricket statement said his ankle might require another two weeks to heal, and he will undergo an MRI scan to confirm the extent of the damage to it.Following unconvincing scores of 15 and 7 against Pakistan, Hamilton Masakadza was left out for the final ODI of that series, and it was expected that he might miss out here.Zimbabwe host Ireland for three ODIs, starting on October 9.
After securing a 2-1 win against Leicester City at the weekend, Wolves were on the wrong end of the same scoreline in their midweek Premier League clash against Arsenal.
Having taken the lead in the early stages of the first half through winger Hwang Hee-chan thanks to a misplaced pass from Gunners defender Gabriel, Bruno Lage’s side ultimately walked away with nothing after two goals from the home side through Nicolas Pepe and Alexandre Lacazette right at the death secured the comeback and all three points in a heartbreaking defeat.
Despite the gutting result, one player in a Wolves shirt, aside from Hwang, stood out with a rather positive performance against Mikel Arteta’s side was full-back Rayan Ait-Nouri.
Having played through the entire match, the Frenchman managed to have 62 touches of the ball and complete 27 accurate passes with one key pass in a shining display in north London.
The 20-year-old, who has been praised in the past for his “phenomenal” performances in an Old Gold shirt by Tim Spiers, also managed to successfully complete all three dribbles he attempted, showing how exciting he is when advancing forward.
In addition to this, the youngster also managed to show how impressive he can be from a defensive point of view by making four clearances, three tackles and one interception, as well as winning 77% of the duels he was involved in while not getting dribbled past once.
This display ultimately earned the wing-back an overall match rating of 7.1/10, making him one of Wolves’ highest-rated players on the day according to SofaScore.
Birmingham Live also picked up on his efforts on this occasion by saying in their report on the game that he “did make an impact going forward.”
With 15 league appearances to his name this term, WhoScored currently have the Frenchman listed as the highest-rated player in Lage’s squad with an overall performance rating of 7.12/10, showing how impressive he has been throughout the campaign.
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Moving forward, the best thing the Midlands club can do now would be to put this defeat behind them and hope that they can move forward positively as a team if they want to have any chance of securing European football for next season.
In other news: Wolves can unearth the next Moutinho in 19 y/o who plays “like he’s in the playground” – opinion
It’s one thing to watch your team play badly, but having to watch them in what can only be described as a major fashion faux pas is just unforgiveable. From clashing colours, to odd pictures and animal-esque designs (yes I’m being deadly serious), football isn’t quite the beautiful game when it comes to designing kits. It appears from my ‘research’ that the 1990’s and Mexico’s keeper Jorge Campos are the main culprits for offending our eyes week in week out, without even so much as an apology. Put some of these on a canvas and we would be comparing them to Picasso’s masterpieces, but on a football pitch on a Saturday afternoon at 3pm, and the game is lost before a ball is even kicked.
To sum up the horrors I have seen, even David Beckham would struggle for sex appeal in these…oh who are we kidding? The guy would easily pull off Tiger stripes.
Click on Stade de Francais to see the worst 20 kits of our time
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I’d like to apologise to Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew. When Newcastle owner Mike Ashley sacked Chris Hughton at the back end of last year, the only reason I could think he’d made that decision was to bring in an exciting new manager at the helm. That was not how I would describe Pardew, and fears of relegation returned. News that Pardew and Ashley were big mates and went to casinos together further disappointed me. He was of course given a five and a half year contract and I was thinking ‘here we go again’.
I was clearly not alone. In a poll of 40,000 Newcastle supporters only 5% were said to be pleased by the appointment of Alan Pardew. Like the rest of the Toon Army, despite my dismay at the appointment of Pardew, I got behind the manager and the team and things couldn’t have started much better – a 3-1 home win against Liverpool, but that was essentially a match played with Hughton’s team. A home defeat to Manchester City and a disappointing performance at Tottenham followed, before back-to-back wins against Wigan and West Ham, meant that Pardew won 3 of his first 5 matches in charge of Newcastle – not at all bad.
Then came Pardew’s darkest day as Newcastle manager so far – a 3-1 defeat to Stevenage in the FA Cup. Newcastle fans love a cup run as much as anyone, and to go out in the third round was a bitter blow, but the way Pardew and his team have recovered has been admirable. Two draws against Sunderland and Tottenham followed, with the Magpies denied three points in both games by late equalisers, then there was the Fulham match – the less said about that the better. That was quickly forgotten as the magnificent comeback against Arsenal at St James’ Park took centre stage. Whatever Pardew said at half-time clearly worked, and he showed on that day that he could get the team to play for him.
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An away draw against Blackburn in a match Newcastle dominated, was followed by a comfortable win at Birmingham and a home draw against Bolton on Saturday – a match Newcastle could have won if Ryan Taylor hadn’t of been sent off and it had been eleven v eleven for ninety minutes. So in Pardew’s 13 games so far, he’s won 4 (could have easily been 6), drawn 5 and lost 4 – not particularly impressive. But since that loss against Stevenage and aside from the Fulham game, I have been pleasantly surprised by the way Newcastle have played and in particular the way they’ve kept the ball – some credit must go to Pardew’s coaching.
Of course, like every Newcastle manager over recent years, things haven’t been made easy for Pardew. The loss of Andy Carroll and being unable to bring in a replacement has left him with an uphill task, but he seems to have his head screwed on and he strikes me as an extremely sensible bloke. John Carver spoke to 5 Live on Friday and explained that Pardew said that as neither knew how each other worked and whether they would gel together or not, that they would work together on a four month basis to start of with when he arrived on Tyneside, a sort of trial if you like. This has obviously worked out well and now Carver is on a five and a half year contract at Newcastle and Pardew has an assistant manager who knows the club inside out.
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As far as signings are concerned, he gets a big tick for securing the permanent deal of Hatem Ben Arfa and tying Cheik Tiote down to a long term contract. The loan of Stephen Ireland seems to be a strange one, but you never know it could work out, and bringing in Shefki Kuqi was clearly a case of desperate times calling for desperate measures. The big test for Pardew in terms of acquisitions will come in the summer when he gets to spend some of the Carroll money; whether he has the reputation to bring in exciting players we’ll just have to wait and see but hopefully he’ll be able to encourage some to sign on the dotted line.
So, as we come to the end of Alan Pardew’s first three months on Tyneside and with Premier League status seemingly secure for next season, it’s time to look ahead to Newcastle’s future under him and I have to say that I’m pretty optimistic. When Pardew joined I thought we were doomed to relegation; now I think he can do a decent job at St James’ Park, bring a bit of stability and challenge in the top half of the table. So Alan Pardew; I’d like to apologise for thinking the worst when you were appointed Newcastle manager, and may you continue to exceed expectations long into the future!