merlin

We WERE an embarrassment when we went down, but you have to give credit for the work and achievement which has wiped out that stain, so the answer is neither ; relief is a better description of what we should be feeling plus a sense of trepidation as to what will be done to ensure there is no flop next season. Hard work lies ahead.

Many congratulations to all at the club - esp to Hughton and the players who have given everything to bring the club back to the Prem in a much shorter time than most of us expected. Nobody could have wished for more than this achievement and all connected with the club should enjoy these happy times which go a long way towards wiping out the memories of last season(and the ones preceding it). I hope they go on to win the title and put the icing on the cake - then the owner, board and manager must sit down immediately and set up a list of sensible targets aimed at keeping the club where it should always be, which is the FIRST target....a proper policy of steady rebuilding will eventually pay dividends, so all must ensure that the bad old days of panic expensive buys unsuited to the club, never return. Very well done lads.

Macca The situation is not totally different ; Dinnis was Gordon Lee's coach and Lee was poached by Everton in January 1977, just as NUFC were in the running for a UEFA place after reaching Wembley under Lee the previous season. Whatever Lee's faults he had succeeded in motivating the side to exceed expectations over 2 seasons and the players were in favour of keeping Dinnis as his replacement. It wasn't only local lads who wanted Dinnis either because Geoff Nulty and Alan Gowling(as well as Tommy Craig)were vocal in his support. Lee left because he was unhappy with the support he had received from the board after selling Macdonald to Arsenal, and stated that he thought the next manager would have to be 'a pretty strange kind of guy' (which we eventually got when McGarry arrived!). However, faced with unrest the board backed down and appointed Dinnis - they also bought a player (from Hibs, Ralph Callachan)just as Wise & co did by taking over transfers before KK walked out - so they took the easy option just as Ashley did with Hughton. OK, so Hughton has succeeded in getting promoted whereas Dinnis got Newcastle relegated, but there is no certainty that Hughton will do any better in the Prem than Dinnis did in the top league simply because his players 'like' him. OK, maybe there haven't been players giving as vocal support in the Press as they did for Dinnis, but the existence of a so-called 'Committee' and the fact that Nolan was so free with his comments about the manager indicates that the players feel they can discuss such matters freely - would you get Arsenal or Man U players talking about Wenger or SAF so openly ? I doubt it.... What I(and any reasonable person on here)am saying is that we just DON'T KNOW if Hughton can do it in the Prem ; he is not proven there just as Dinnis wasn't, but hopefully, he WILL be given a decent transfer fund to back his attempts to keep the club up....if he does get the money and we stay up, all well & good - if we struggle badly, then he will be judged as any other manager would be.

This is probably the most balanced comment on this subject - unless Ashley has a secret deal made with Mourinho(highly unlikely), there is little point in getting rid of Hughton right now because it would destroy what little credibility the club has managed to build back up over this season. Ashley DOES have a difficult choice though because if he fails to back Hughton in the transfer market with substantial funds, people will be able to say that any bad results are the result of that and not Hughton's management ; there again, if he DOES back the manager and it all goes pear-shaped he is faced with getting in an experienced guy without a budget to offer him, and we cannot afford to be relegated again. If I was the Chairman, I would want to see the names of the players Hughton wants to bring in before June - if the players look to have potential or can fill some of the undoubted gaps in the side for the Prem, then I would back his judgment and that is all Ashley can realistically do - if he doesn't trust Hughton's judgment then he has to get rid...simple as that. The main worry I have is that Hughton may be too close to some of the players and that can't be allowed to happen - as has been said before, the Richard Dinnis appointment came as a result of player power. When the club goes to the Prem, it has to be understood that everyone starts from square one, including those on the so-called 'committee'.

He'll be Mourinho's first signing at City this summer. The cost will be irrelevant. What about the current encumbent bro? There IS talk of Benitez leaving Liverpool soon and MON is one of the names mentioned as his replacement...Mourinho has also been linked with City, so that wouldn't be a surprise if he tried for Torres.

Adding to that, how long after promotion was it that we scrapped the reserves? BOTH of these things were also BAD mistakes - you should never neglect the future of the club by scrapping or downgrading Juniors/Reserves. KK should not have been allowed to do this and frankly, I would have supported any Chairman who had put his foot down over it...even if KK had walked. For all the complaints about Dalglish, one of the first things he did was to re-start these things.

That Nolan felt the need to say this tells its own story. The question of Hughton’s authority only needs to be clarified because of the big deal Nolan is making about the role of the players committee. I can’t imagine Rio Ferdinand coming out and clarifying that when SFA wants something from the players he gets it, or to look at it another way, any player coming out and saying when the manager asks for something the players ignore him. The best quotes from Nolan were the stuff about him not wanting to be remembered as a legend and saying the club made big mistakes after our last promotion. It must have been ten years after our last promotion before the club made any big mistakes, unless you count regularly finishing in a European place and coming within a whisker of winning the PL. And before anybody wrongly accuses me of being somebody I’m not, it was Nolan who had to drag up the last regime and it’s not my fault he was talking rubbish. Like I said earlier, a sense of delusions of grandeur underpins the sound bites. And this is definitely it for me until next season. NE5 indeed! Some are obsessed with NE5, or should that be infatuated and secretly desire to wrap their lips around his throbbing shaft while he talks dirty about Freddy Shepherd? Andy Cole sale? The sale of Sir Les? Gullitt? Cole went because KK knew he could get Sir Les and also that Shearer was interested(I know that for a fact because he had made it clear to people he knew by the summer of 95). The sale of Sir Les WAS a mistake, but only because Shearer got injured at Everton - Shearer and Tomasson had formed a good partnership in the pre-season matches. It was sheer bad luck - all the fans would have been laughing at Spurs paying 6m for Sir Les if Shearer had not been injured because Ferdinand was heading for 31. Gullit was the biggest mistake of the 3, but the worst thing to happen in the period being talked about was the stepping down of SJH as Chairman for health reasons.

Despite the fact that a point is good enough, there will still be vast amounts of nerves in the stands(and on the pitch)until Newcastle score...even worse if Sheff go in front. Hopefully, Newcastle will score first and go on to a decent win which clinches promotion in style - a large score would make it very difficult for WBA to catch us for the title, but I'm going for 2-0.

This - wait and see what the signings are like before speculating.

Wouldn't even bother to speculate about it until I see what is spent(and on whom)in the close season.

...and that HAS to be down to the manager and coaches ; I reckon Robertson takes a lot of credit for Milner's progress, but NUFC have to accept responsibilty for either not playing him in the right position, or not developing his ability into the sort of player he now is. Maybe KK would have moved him inside - he certainly didn't want to sell him.

Zero chance of this happening for so many reasons. ...And the reasons are ..? None, apart from Scholes not wanting to move here, seem insurmountable to me...

Apart from the obvious requirements, I would have a cheeky try for Paul Scholes - IF Man U would release him on either a Free or a small fee. This guy is very fit for a 35 yr old, has masses of experience, and would be great for bringing into the side during games when we needed a late boost ; Scholes has a great scoring record from midfield and is a model pro. He would be invaluable as an example to young players - Clough and Taylor brought in Dave Mackay to give some stability and guidance to their Derby side and it worked a treat...Scholes may do a similar job at NUFC and hasn't had the number of injuries Mackay suffered before he left Spurs. All decent sides have a good blend of youth and experience and you don't get better than Scholes in the experience department.

cloughie loved us, always had good banter with our fans. used to wave to the gallowgate everytime we played them. He was close to managing us but whoever was chairman in the mid to late 70's fu**d it up. Ws it McKeag? It was Lord Westwood - he said that 'the day Brian Clough walks into this club is the day I walk out'... A pity he didn't walk out sooner - we would have been European Cup winners a few times....

I share your view ; Coloccini's biggest failing last season was getting caught out by the pace and movement of Prem strikers - he was either on the wrong side of them, or they left him for dead if they beat the offside. Look how Torres took the defence apart at SJP ; I know he's top quality, but that is what our CDs will be faced with next season. There IS an argument for saying that Colo was not happy alongside Taylor and I also have reservations about him...a good CD pairing need to complement each other and Taylor has not made any of the players he has partnered look decent. There is much thinking for Hughton and Calderwood to do when deciding transfer targets and trying to stay within their budget....

I'd rather buy a new RB to start every game rather than a sub centre back and play Taylor there. Same as a winger would rather buy a stronger player in another position than another sub. Agree - would go for Perch if he can be bought...also, have reservations about Williamson and Coloccini for pace in CD. Defence is crucial to us, we have to stop conceding in the Prem, esp away from home, if we are to get enough points to stay up.

I hope Caulkin is right because it is years since we had a TEAM in the fullest sense of the word...even in KK's first spell as manager, you got the sense that he wasn't bothered about certain aspects of the club, such as Juniors, his relations with the Board etc. SAF is at OT every day early - he checks every aspect of the club's activities and takes a great interest in the Youth and Reserves ; you have to do this if you want to create a CLUB in the fullest sense. Clough even fired some Tea ladies because he heard them laughing about a Derby defeat in his early days there...maybe a bit extreme, but he was making a point that EVERYBODY at the club had to pull together - failure to do so means no success. As for Hughton, he has done a great job(with Calderwood)this season and no-one can take that away from him, but the next season will be much harder because he will have to make tough decisions about which players to keep/play etc., and some of the squad are going to get their noses put out of joint. He will need financial support from Ashley and, if he gets that, he should be capable of keeping the side up...and that is a MUST DO...provided the side is in a reasonably safe position at Christmas, he will be half way to achieving his first target and will be safe. If we are bottom of the league and he HAS received financial support, he will be in danger as would any manager.

Rubbish about Clough 'hating; us too - Peter Taylor went on record to say that he would love to see what sort of crowds they would attract of they were able to manage Newcastle ....he said this because the Forest crowds were so poor...!!!

This - on the nail...

Agree - Perch is a fine prospect.

This match told us a great deal about the management team as much as the players - clearly, Hughton and Calderwood had prepared the side well, both mentally and physically,for a potentially tricky game, fraught with pressures - this bodes well for their future as a pairing to take the side into the Prem. The side hardly looked like losing this match, although I disagree about some of the comments on here about Forest ; they are a young side with some talented players and had they possessed a decent striker could well have caused us trouble before we scored - if Davies can keep his team together and add a few players, they will certainly be in the running for promotion next season, even if they were to miss it this time. We simply had too much experience for them and in Enrique we have what one of the commentators called 'the best player in the Championship'. I was delighted for the lad because his goal was a fitting reward for his application and professionalism over the whole season ; he is without doubt one of the best foreign players ever to wear the B&W shirt, and probably the best foreign defender...our only problem with this boy will be keeping him... Apart from Simpson, who underlined once again that we need a RB for the Prem,the rest of the players did all that could be asked of them - even Nolan pulled his finger out to contribute to a great team performance. Coloccini and Williamson were strong at the back, although the latter clearly lacks pace which will be exposed in the top flight. I am not a great fan of Shola, but he took his goal brilliantly - it flattened Forest completely and may just be the most important and valuable goal he has scored for the club. I have witnessed 3 promotions during my time following the club(this is the 4th), and although I will be far away when the side finally makes it, I hope you lads on here enjoy the moment just as I did in the past - we do not always agree on everything but I know all on here are fervent NUFC fans and deserve better than the club has provided over the past 6 years. The last 2 promotions were capped by 2 great home performances, a 5-1 win v Carlisle over Easter 1984, and that unforgettable 7-1 hammering of Leicester in May 1993 - lets hope Sheff U cop a similar one next Monday, but the main thing is to finish the job, After that, there is still much hard work to be done for next season.

Agree with all, but your last 2 sentences sum up everything perfectly..! Here we are, warmly patting ourselves on the back and being patronising about O'Neill and we are in the CCC... he has won more Domestic silverware than NUFC has in 55 years, but I suppose his knockers will claim he did it with 'unattractive football'...DOH..!! What he has achieved with Milner alone makes us look mugs and anyone who wouldn't swap places with Villa now needs their head examining.

got to be honest mate, i was about 18 at the time and non too supportive of the miners, mainly due to scargill stance on not having a ballot and his staunch refusal that even pits losing cash should be shut. however the way some turned against their own disgusted me and the police actions were insidious. in my wilder moments i'll still claim scargill was a thatcher stooge. he done everything she wanted. In fairness to the Notts miners, it's really too simplistic to say they opposed the strike. A lot of them did support the action and for that reason possibly showed more courage than strikers in other areas. There were pockets of pro and anti strikers in all regions. A vile time in the recent history of the UK when for a while we were a like a police state. ...'for a WHILE'... Have you counted the number of CCTV cameras on UK streets lately? 20% of the WORLD'S CCTV cameras for 2% of the World's population ! And what about that woman who was arrested by no less than TWELVE riot police for reading out the names of the soldiers who had been killed in Iraq a few years ago, while standing beside the Whitehall Cenotaph...or the 83 yr old ejected from the Nulab conf a couple of years ago for heckling Straw...or the microchips in some people's wheelie bins! George Orwell was just a few years' too early...!

...in a nutshell.

This is not always a good thing - remember the Play off game against the Mackems in 1990...? Also, the FA Cup game with Wimbledon after all the hype about Vinny Jones and Gazza - the crowd were well wound up and hostile, but it was Newcastle that buckled under the home crowd pressure and the Dons turned us over 1-3, with that horrible item Wise getting one of their goals... We had the best support at the 74 Cup Final against Liverpool, yet the players froze on the day... That is why I made the point earlier that we will see just how good the management are because they will need to get the team into just the right frame of mind for this game - we will also see what sort of character these players are made of......