Derby Day Demolition

Newcastle United came out on top of the Tyne-Tees derby thanks to goals from Marlon Harewood and Shola Ameobi.

The Toon opened up a 10 point gap at the top of the table with the victory over their North East rivals Middlesbrough.

The game wasn't the most exciting, but the Geordies did play some good stuff, the partnership of Jonas Gutierrez and Jose Enrique down the left was quite impressive as they tore open the Boro defence at will.

On paper the Teesiders have a few quality players with the likes of Leroy Lita, Dave Kitson and Gary O'Neill who have all played their trade in the top tier at some point.

However none were able to impose themselves on the game and caused little trouble for a solid United defence, who kept their 14th clean sheet of the season.

Harewood bundled the ball in to the net, as Boro keeper Brad Jones made a mess of collecting the ball from a Newcastle free kick.

Middlesbrough should have equalised when Isaiah Osbourne's shot was blocked on the line by Steven Taylor's arm. The ref failed to spot it and the Geordie defender got away with it.

United's second was a simple header by Ameobi, though the cross for the goal was a sublime one by Danny Guthrie.

Top of the table and bragging rights, what more could you want for Christmas.

Chants of the Day

Here are some of the best chants I heard at the match between Newcastle United and Middlesbrough at the sportsdirect@St James' Park

Newcastle Fans:
"feed the boro, let them know its Christmas time"
(along to band aid tune)

"your going down on your sister"

"duh duh duh duh, F**k the boro"

"paedo,paedo,paedo"

"dirty smoggies, dirty smoggies, dirty smoggies"

"what's it like to taste fresh air"


Middlesbrough Fans:
"there is only one Mike Ashley, one Mike Ashley"

"come on you reds"

and that was about it from them.

Middlesbrough Preview

Time for the Tyne-Tees derby, where the victor will claim bragging rights, just in time for Christmas.

Newcastle are sitting happy at the top and look on course to go straight back up at the first attempt, whilst Middlesbrough are struggling to cope since being relegated from the Premier League.

I'm attending tomorrow's game at St. James' Park as a neutral, I'm hoping for a good game of football which I witnessed when I attended this same fixture last year.

Although the rivalry is not the biggest in the North East, it still counts and the fans will turn out in force to prove that.

Boro lie 14th in the table, but don't let that fool you, they perform well away from home and tend to score quite a few goals on their travels.

Also they now have Gordon Strachan in charge and perhaps he hasn't changed the teams fortunes much since he arrived, but don't forget he has plenty of experience in one of the biggest derbies in the world, the Old Firm.

Geordie striker Andy Carroll is suspended for the game after picking up five yellow cards this season.

Danny Guthrie is scheduled to return and the Toon should be at near enough full strength, Joey Barton apart. Plus left back Jose Enrique will hope to keep up his good form as he picks up his November player of the month award before kick off.

The Teesiders have a few injury worries before the big match, Adam Johnson, Jeremie Aliadiere, Didier Digard, Seb Hines and Chris Riggott are all out. And with defender Sean St Ledger ending his loan spell and returning to Preston, Strachan will have to reshape his team.

One interesting point for the Smoggies is that striker Dave Kitson has never featured in a derby game and with the form he is in, the big ginger fellow is one to watch.

Santa wrecks Christmas for Black Cats

It wasn't jolly old saint Nick who ruined our festive cheer, no that fell to Manchester City striker Roque Santa Cruz.

The Paraguayan netted two on the day, one of which proved to be the winner as City ran out 4-3 winners.

To be honest I was as surprised as you that we were able to score three goals away from home, but it wasn't enough.

The Sky Blue's opened up a two goal lead inside the first 12 minutes, with Santa Cruz tapping in, then Carlos Tevez converting from the spot.

The penalty was very harsh, referee Andre Marriner deciding Nyron Nosworthy took Craig Bellamy's legs away in the box, when he made minimum contact and was closer to the ball than the little Welshman.

Based upon recent form, many would have expected Sunderland to roll over and admit defeat there and then, however they fought back to draw the game level.

John Mensah nodded in from a corner to start the fightback and then young midfielder Jordan Henderson rifled in a shot that struck keeper Shay Given and knocked him over as it was so ferocious.

Ex-Toon striker Bellamy restored City's advantage with a fine finish. He gave Nosworthy a torrid afternoon and was a constant threat with his pace and movement. His goal went along with his man of the match award.

Again the majority would of doubted the Black Cat's chances of getting anything from the match and again they proved them wrong. Substitute Kenwyne Jones headed in a delightful cross from Henderson. If the young lad from the North East continues his impressive performances he has a big future ahead of him.

For all their hard work in coming from behind twice, the Mackems were undone by Santa Cruz and there was no coming back this time, especially as Michael Turner was sent off for elbowing City and England midfielder Gareth Barry.

The collision was not deliberate or malicious, yet the ref wanted to keep up his trend of sending off Sunderland players as he did with Jones against West Ham.

Still unable to pick up three points, though the performance was much improved and if this can carry on, we should soon be back to winning ways.

Man City Preview

Back on the road and tomorrow Sunderland will be travelling to mega-rich Manchester City.

Finances apart, these two clubs are both in similar stages at the moment. They both have potentially great managers at the helm, both on a poor run of form, both have a squad of talented professionals. Plus they each have a fantastic fan base and are both looking to reach that 'next level'.

The real difference is the level they are trying to progress to. Sunderland hope to improve upon their league position and establish themselves as a top half Premier League force. Whereas Man City are looking to move on and have ambitions of crashing the 'top four'.

With the players each club acquired over the summer, they have every chance of doing this.

The Black Cats bought sensibly and brought in the likes of Darren Bent, Lorik Cana, Lee Cattermole and Michael Turner, all of which have played in the Premier League or to that standard.

Money bags City really splashed the cash and raided the top clubs for some of their star players such as Carlos Tevez, Gareth Barry, Kolo Toure and Emmanuel Adebayor.

The mackems have really struggled away from home this season and so far have only picked up four points. Their Sky Blue opponents have picked up the reputation of draw specialists this season and I have a feeling it may continue tomorrow.

Sunderland are missing captain Lorik Cana who was sent off against Aston Villa through the week, so Lee Cattermole may be forced to start after returning early from injury. Defender Michael Turner is a doubt meaning the opportunity is their for either Phil Bardsley or John Mensah to stake a first team claim.

Man City must do without Nigel de Jong, Wayne Bridge and Joleon Lescott but could welcome back Craig Bellamy.

World Cup Bid

It was announced this week that both the Sunderland and the Newcastle/Gateshead bids to be a host city for the 2018/2022 World Cup were successful.

If England's campaign to stage one of the future World Cups is accepted then we could see some of the World's greatest talent brace the North East and play in either St. James' Park or the Stadium of Light.

This is fantastic news and I sincerely hope it goes ahead, our region is so passionate about sport and football in particular, so what better way to celebrate it than stage World Cup games.

A Draw is not a Bad Result

The winning run had to come to an end at some point and fortunately it came in the form of a draw away from home.

A point at Oakwell is not a bad result with all things considered as they have really turned the corner under the stewardship of Mark Robins.

The real disappointment about the outcome was that twice United took the lead and failed to hold as Barnsley finally equalised in the 87th minute.

Manager Chris Hughton made several changes to his side, admitting that he needed to keep his squad fresh for the Christmas run in.

His selection was proved decisive as Kevin Nolan returned from suspension to give the Magpies the lead with a delicate finish past keeper Luke Steele.

The Tykes drew level early in the second half through Emil Hallfredsson before on loan striker Marlon Harewood restored the Toon's lead.

However it wasn't enough as the robust Barnsley fought back and grabbed a share of the spoils when Bobby Hassell headed home from a corner.

A small slip in Newcastle's surge to the top but still a point gained and what a point it could prove to be come the end of the season.