ChrisMcQuillan

Harper - 7 - Dependable, another great save.

Kadar - 7 - Bit shaky at RB, much better at LB.

Coloccini - 7 Solid, dependable.

Williamson - 8 - Colossus in the air.  Great debut.  Didn't put a foot wrong.

Enrique - 6 - Didn't really get time to shine.

Guthrie - 7 - Strong performance.  Tidy, and industrious.

Nolan - 4 - Non existant.

Smith - 6.5 - Good.  Got a bit of a physical beating from their lot.

Gutierrez - 6 - Soldiered on despite clearly not being 100%.  Did okay.

Lovenkrands - 6.5 - Some neat and tidy runs.  Unlucky not to get a goal.

Carroll - 6 - At times showed why he is a talent with nice turns and strength.  Seems to lack vision and sense.

Pancrate - 7 - I was impressed, gotta say.  I groaned when he came on, but he played an incredibly sensible game and used his pace and strength to good effect defensively.  Gotta say, Hughton made the right call here with what he had on the bench.

Routledge - 7.5 - I was again impressed.  Quick, spritely, but he also seems to have the vision and sense Carroll lacks.  He spots runs the others don't even look for.

Ranger - 7 - A very well taken goal, and the usual above-average hold-up play we've come to expect.

Hughton - 7.5 - Depleted squad, good selection.  We really need a stronger CM though in order to stop teams overrunning us.  However, steps in the right direction with the new CB and RW.

Anyone else Notice that Geremi is now gone from the squads at the back of the programme.?

Were there pictures on the official site of Harewood and Khiz posing in training tops whilst holding a home shirt at the training ground when they signed on loan? If not then it points to a permanent deal imo.

Pretty sure there was for Harewood at least.

Seems like there was a fight at Ballymena of some sort.

Ballymena is the Helmand Province of N. Ireland.

Surely we can't throw two new signings in with one days training, especially Williamson. 

Routledge I could just about understand.

Look, Healy wants to be snapped up.  Let's take him.  Quality finisher when he's playing often.

We could really do with a good right winger, but Hughton won't do that cause of Pancrate.  We need a good CM but he won't displace Butt/Smith/Nolan.

So bring Healy in, bring in a decent defender (get a Chelsea, Man United, Arsenal prospect or something) and pray Taylor's injury's not too bad.

CHRIS Hughton has doubts over several first-team stars going into the game against Neil Warnock's South Londoners.

 

Danny Simpson (ankle) is definitely missing, as is Ryan Taylor who is suspended following his red card during the 4-2 FA Cup defeat at West Brom on Saturday.

 

Futher news is awaited on Steven Taylor (knee) and Nicky Butt (calf) after the pair sat out of the game at The Hawthorns.

So they're not even ruling him out yet for the official site.  Maybe will only be a few weeks.  Please let it only be that.

I don't think we can afford to lose the Jonas/Enrique left side if we have any chance of out-scoring them.

So Tavernier gets my vote.

 

Does no one give a s*** about the ACN?

 

Na.

Will never understand that. It's the third best int'l tournament. CIV 1-0 and just had a legitimate penalty claim turned away.

 

In what ways? The Euro Championships, World Cup and Copa America are all of a better standard imo and more exciting. The standard of football in the ACN is poor and so is the officiating. Also being every 2 years dilutes the appeal imo.

Better officiating than the Championship, though.

If Taylor is out, and we don't bring in a replacement, we'll be scrapping in the Play-Offs for promotion, simple as.

I'd stick Butt there personally, as much as I despise him.

You could cripple their left winger, stick him on a mobility scooter, and he'd still outpace Butt on the flank.

Jeez.  I'd say Tavernier, tbh.

Best play someone who at least has some kind of experience... I think.

Served Nobby at work today! Thought I was gonna have a stroke.

 

If you'd asked nicely he might have let you.

;D

Was the ref really as bad as people are making out?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/league_cup/8205360.stm

Easier to ref when you're sat in the stands like

For what reason?

Because you're further away?  Because there's less pressure on you?  If these officials are gonna bow into all the pressure of the crowd and the players then they're not good enough.

Krul wonder save apparently.

Hopefully has similar effect as the leyton orient thrashing

This.

Is this based on today by any chance?

Not particularly.  I know the ref was supposed to be awful today, but I haven't seen the highlights so I can't judge.

However, watching games on the tele from PL and Championship, and also from what I'm seeing at SJP just suggests a nonsense quality of ref.

I watched Jonas get rugby tackled to the ground right in front of me at St James and the ref gave nothing.

If we're gonna lose, let's get trounced.  8-1 or something.

Might wake the board up that we need some new fucking players, and a new manager at that.

It seems to be falling drastically, across the board.

The other week at SJP I brought along a friend of mine, a uni student who's a qualified ref and has refereeed Man United reserve matches for one thing.

He got every call right, even though they looked wrong to me.  He saw everything the actual referee couldn't.

So the question is, how are these incompetent morons getting to ref these matches?  They're ruining the game for everyone.  Decisions lately have been utterly woeful, and not just for us.  The Bellamy penalty the other night is a prime example.

It's a fucking disgrace, like.

Ryan Taylor sent off. Goes from bad to worse.

WTf did he do?

another penalty turned down!

Olsson would have to destroy Ameobi with an anti-tank missile before we'd be awarded a penalty these days.

Carroll only ever seems to attempt headers. Has he scored 90% of his career goals with his head? He rarely shoots with his feet.

 

I guess we'll be needing Harewood back. Carroll and Ranger don't seem to be goal getters.

 

Hasn't our bad run coincided with Harewood leaving?

He got goals, scrappy ones quite often.  We need that.  We need to try and get him back here tbh.

Ameobi on for Pancrate.

Oh, we're saved.

What is up with Butt, then? Not even on't bench?

 

Radio Newcastle still think he's playing, I reckon it must be a late injury for him to be not even on the bench.

 

Late tackle from Smith more than likely.