Newcastle United F.C.

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For the Australian club, see Newcastle United Jets.
Newcastle United
Image:Newcastle United logo.svg
Full name Newcastle United Football Club
Nickname(s)The Magpies, The Toon,
Geordies
Founded 1892
Ground St James' Park
Newcastle upon Tyne
England
(Capacity 52,387[1])
Chairman Chris Mort[2]
(for Mike Ashley)
Manager Image:Flag of England.svg Sam Allardyce
League Premier League
2006–07 Premier League, 13th
Image:Kit left arm whiteshoulders.png Image:Kit body whitestripes.png Image:Kit right arm whiteshoulders.png
Image:Kit shorts.png
Image:Kit socks.png
 
Home colours
Image:Kit left arm blackshoulders.png Image:Kit body adidas snake black.png Image:Kit right arm blackshoulders.png
Image:Kit shorts.png
Image:Kit socks.png
 
Away colours
Image:Soccerball current event.svg Current season

Newcastle United Football Club (also known as The Magpies or The Toon) is an English professional football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, who currently play in the Premier League. The club was founded in 1892 after the merger of two local clubs, Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End. Since their founding year, the club have played at their home ground of St James' Park.

They are historically the eighth most successful club in the history of English football,[3] having won the First Division Championship four times and the FA Cup six times, though their league success was achieved before the Second World War. On the European stage the most notable honour the club has won is the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, won in 1969.

They have a long-standing and fierce rivalry with local rivals Sunderland. The Tyne-Wear derby between Newcastle United and Sunderland has been played since 1898. The club's traditional kit colours are black and white striped shirts, with black shorts and socks. Supporters of Newcastle United refer to themselves as the Toon Army.

Contents

[edit] History

For more details on this topic, see History of Newcastle United F.C..

In November 1881, the Stanley Cricket Club of south Byker decided to form an association football club, to play during the winter after the cricket season had ended. Just under a year later, in October 1882, they changed their name to Newcastle East End FC to avoid confusion with the cricket club in the town of Stanley, County Durham. Meanwhile, across the city, another cricket club began to take an interest in football and in August 1882, they formed Newcastle West End FC. West End played their early football on their cricket pitch, but later moved to St James' Park. East End turned professional in 1889. West End, however, did not fare so well; in Spring 1892 they approached East End with a view to a takeover, the directors having decided that the club could no longer continue due to financial problems.[4] Ultimately, it was agreed that West End's players and most of its backroom staff would join East End. East End also took over the lease on St. James' Park, which effectively merged the two rival clubs together. By December 1892, they decided to give the club a new name and a new image. At a public meeting, several new names, including Newcastle Mongs[citation needed] and Newcastle City,[5] were suggested, before all agreed on Newcastle United.

Image:Woolwich Arsenal v. Newcastle United, April 1906.jpg
Newcastle competing against Woolwich Arsenal in 1906.

Newcastle United went on to lift the League Championship on three occasions during the 1900s; 1905, 1907 and 1909.[citation needed] The club's success continued in cup competitions, as they reached five FA Cup Finals in seven years, appearing in the final of 1905, 1906, 1908, 1910 and 1911. However they went on to win just one of them, the 1910 Final against Barnsley, in a replay at Goodison Park. However, there was still one particular low point during this period, as the team suffered a 9–1 defeat by fierce rivals Sunderland in the 1908–09 season. Sunderland still count the result as their record highest win.[citation needed]

After World War I, they won the League a fourth time during 1927.[citation needed] The team returned to the FA Cup final in 1924, in only their second ever final at Wembley Stadium. They were successful in defeating Aston Villa and therefore winning the club's second FA Cup trophy in its history. Notable players during this period include the likes of Hughie Gallacher, Neil Harris, Stan Seymour and Frank Hudspeth.

During the 1950s, United lifted the FA Cup trophy on three occasions within a five year period. In 1951 they defeated Blackpool 2–0, a year later Arsenal were beaten 1–0 and in 1955 United defeated Manchester City 3–1. The Magpies had gained a high profile, and so had their players; 'Wor Jackie' Milburn and Bobby 'Dazzler' Mitchell in particular.[citation needed]

An old war horse returned to revitalise the Magpies in the shape of Joe Harvey, who had skippered the club to much of their post-war success. He teamed up with Stan Seymour to rebuild Newcastle United and they returned to the elite as Second Division Champions in 1965. Newcastle then became very much an unpredictable and inconsistent side, always capable of defeating the best, but never quite realising their potential.

Joe Harvey's side qualified for Europe for the first time in 1968 and surprised many the following year by lifting the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, (which was the forerunner of the UEFA Cup), beating Sporting Lisbon, Feyenoord, Real Zaragoza and Rangers along the way, before triumphing over two legs against Hungary's Újpest FC in the final. United possessed a reliable team and Newcastle's tradition of fielding a popular goalscorer at number 9 continued, as Welshman Wyn Davies was prominent.

In the years that followed European success, manager Harvey brought in a string of talented entertainers who thrilled the Gallowgate crowd. Players such as Jimmy Smith, Tony Green, Terry Hibbitt and in particular centre-forward Malcolm Macdonald all became favourites amongst supporters. Nicknamed 'Supermac', Malcolm Macdonald was one of United's most popular figures and is still held in high regard by supporters to this day. He had an impressive goalscoring tally, which led United's attack to Wembley twice, in 1974 and 1976, against Liverpool in the FA Cup and Manchester City in the League Cup. But on each occasion the Magpies failed to bring the trophy back to Tyneside. A small consolation was back to back triumphs in the Texaco Cup in 1974 and 1975.

By the start of the 1980s, United had declined dramatically and were languishing in the Second Division. Gordon Lee had replaced Harvey as boss, yet he in turn soon gave way to Richard Dinnis and then Bill McGarry. But it was Arthur Cox who steered United back again to the First Division with ex-England skipper Kevin Keegan the focus of the side, having joined the club in 1982. With managers such as Jack Charlton, Willie McFaul and Jim Smith, Newcastle remained in the top-flight until the team was relegated once more in 1989.

Later, Kevin Keegan returned to Tyneside to replace Osvaldo Ardiles as manager on a short term contract in 1992, taking what he claimed to be the only job that could tempt him back into football. United were struggling at the wrong end of Division Two; Sir John Hall had all but taken control of the club and he needed a minor miracle to stop the Magpies from tumbling into the Third Division for the first time in their history. Survival was confirmed by winning both of their final two league games, at home to Portsmouth and away to Leicester City, the latter to a last minute own goal, although as it transpired, Newcastle would have survived even if they had lost at Leicester .

The 1992–93 season saw a dramatic turn around in the club's fortunes. They won their first eleven league games before a 1–0 home defeat against Grimsby Town ended the run, two games short of the English league record of 13 consecutive wins. Playing an exciting brand of attacking football Newcastle became Division One champions with a 2–0 away win, coincidentally at Grimsby, and gained promotion to the Premier League.

Under Keegan, Newcastle continued to succeed, impressing with their attacking flair and a third place finish during the 1993–94 season, this was their first season back in the top flight. The attacking philosophy of Keegan led to Newcastle becoming labelled by Sky television as "The Entertainers". The following season Newcastle sold top scorer Andy Cole to Manchester United and finished 6th that season.

With the transfer money in 1995–96, Newcastle rebuilt with the signing of David Ginola and Les Ferdinand amongst others. The club came very close to winning the Premier League that season, and were at one time 12 points ahead of nearest rivals Manchester United, but eventually lost out. One match in particular from that season stood out, the 4–3 defeat to Liverpool, which has since been described as the greatest ever Premiership match.[6] On 30 July 1996, the disappointment of missing out on the title was lessened to an extent, as the club signed Alan Shearer for a then world record fee of £15 million. The 1996–97 season saw Newcastle once again finish in second.

Image:ShearerStJames.png
St James' Park in 2006, in honour of all-time leading goalscorer Alan Shearer.

After short and unsuccessful spells as manager from Kenny Dalglish and Ruud Gullit, former England manager Sir Bobby Robson was appointed as manager. His first home game in charge was particularly impressive; it was an 8–0 victory over Sheffield Wednesday, which remains the club's record home win.[7] Good performances such as these helped the club ensure survival in the Premiership in Robson's first season. A title challenge emerged during the 2001–02 season, and Newcastle achieved qualification for the Champions League after finishing in 4th place. However, Robson was sacked in 2004 after failing to qualify for the Champions League. Robson is still held in high regard by Newcastle supporters.[8]

Graeme Souness was his replacement, but he proved to be an unpopular and unsuccessful choice being sacked on 2 February 2006, despite signing Michael Owen for a record £17 million. Glenn Roeder replaced Souness; the game after his time as manager Alan Shearer overtook Jackie Milburn as the club's highest ever goal-scorer. Shearer retired at the end of the 2005–06 season, with a total of 206 goals for the club.

[edit] Stadium

Main article: St James' Park
Image:SJP0124.JPG
St. James' Park in 2007

Newcastle's home stadium is St James' Park, which has been their home since the merger of East End and West End in 1891, though football was first played there in 1880. At the turn of the 20th century the ground could hold 30,000, but this was soon expanded to 60,000.[9] However, the ground was altered little in the next 70 years, and by the 1980s was looking dated.

The Bradford fire in 1985 prompted renovation, but progress was slow due to financial difficulties. The takeover of the club by Sir John Hall in 1992 resolved these difficulties, and the stadium was redeveloped to comply with the Taylor Report. In the mid-1990s, the club wished to build a new ground in the nearby Leazes Park, however these plans were quashed. In response to this, the club expanded St. James' Park further. Following the completion of the construction in 2000, St James' Park became the club ground with the second highest capacity in England with 52,387 seats,[1] behind Manchester United's Old Trafford. It later became the third highest capacity after the completion of Arsenal's Emirates Stadium.

Two stands, the Sir John Hall stand and the Milburn stand, have two tiers and are of cantilever construction, whereas the East Stand and the Gallowgate End are roughly half as high, and each have a single tier. This can make the stadium look quite lopsided. The Gallowgate End is traditionally home to Newcastle's most vociferous supporters, as it was once the stand with no roof covering. In recent years, a fan based group named Toon Ultras has began to assemble in Level 7 of the Sir John Hall Stand to attempt to "Bring Back The Noise" which supporters feel was lost when the club expanded the stadium and split fans to cater for executive boxes.

It was announced on 2 April 2007 that the club intend to submit plans for a new £300 million development that would increase the stadium's capacity to at least 60,000.[10]

[edit] Supporters

Image:Newcastle United v Zulte Waragem, 2007 (2).JPG
Supporters at St. James' Park, 2007

Newcastle have a large fanbase and the third highest average attendance in England.[11] Newcastle's supporters are considered to be a passionate set of fans[12] and were found to be the most dedicated in the country in a 2007 survey.[13] They are often referred to as the "Toon Army" or the "Geordies". The name Toon originates from the geordie pronunciation of town.[14] It is not known for sure where exactly the term Geordie comes from. However it has also been claimed that in 1745, George II recruited many troops from around the Newcastle area. They were known as "George's men", which became "Geordies men" in the local dialect, hence Geordies.[15] However it seems to originate from the North East coal mining industry with miners being called Geordies(As referenced in Camden Hotten, John (1869). The Slang Dictionary, Or Vulgar Words, Street Phrases And Fast Expressions of High and Low Society. John Camden Hotten, 142. ““Geordie, general term in Northumberland and Durham for a pitman, or coal-miner. Origin not known; the term has been in use more than a century."”  [16]. Which compliments: the fact that North Eastern miners used Geordie lamps, which were miner's lamps developed by George Stephenson in 1815; that George was the most popular eldest boys name in the North East of England[17].

The club is based in the centre of Newcastle upon Tyne and is the only major club in the city. In recent times, where other clubs have attracted fanbases from all around the world, Newcastle's fanbase is still mostly within Britain, with a percentage from other parts of the world, particularly Scandinavia,[18] North America[19] and Australia.[20]

Like all major English football clubs, Newcastle has a number of domestic supporters' clubs. The club's supporters publish fanzines such as True Faith and The Mag. In addition to the usual English football chants, Newcastle's supporters sing the traditional Tyneside song "Blaydon Races".[21] Mark Knopfler's guitar classic "Going Home" from the soundtrack to Local Hero is also used before kick-off at Newcastle's home matches. However this has not been the case so far for the 07/08 season, which has caused upset amongst Newcastle fans who feel Local Hero is a cornerstone of their history.[22]

Former Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair is known to be a keen supporter of Newcastle.

Newcastle's longest-running and deepest rivalry is with their nearest major neighbour, Sunderland, colloquially known as "The Mackems", a term used by Newcastle and Sunderland residents alike. Matches between the two are referred to as the Tyne-Wear derby. Newcastle also have a smaller rivalry with Middlesbrough, with whom they contest the Tyne-Tees derby. It is believed that Middlesbrough's supporters consider the rivalry to be more intense than Newcastle supporters.[23]

[edit] Statistics and records

For more details on this topic, see Newcastle United F.C. records.

Jimmy Lawrence holds the record for the most Newcastle appearances, having played 496 first-team matches between 1904 and 1921 as a goalkeeper.[24] Former captain and left back Frank Hudspeth comes second, having appeared 472 times and scoring on 37 occasions.

Alan Shearer is the club's top goalscorer with 206 goals in all competitions between 1996 and 2006[25] having surpassed Jackie Milburn's tally of 200 in February 2006. Milburn had held the record since 1957, his striking partner Len White is the third highest scorer at Newcastle with 153 goals. Albert Stubbins could be Newcastle's all time leading goal scorer but his goals are not counted as the majority were scored during World War II.[26]

Newcastle's record home attendance is 68,386, against Chelsea on 3 September, 1930.[27] The capacity of St James' Park is currently 52,387,[1] so it is unlikely that these records will be broken in the foreseeable future. The highest attendance in the Premier League is 52,327, in a match against Manchester United on 28 August, 2005.[27]

[edit] Players

[edit] Current squad

As of 4 January 2008.[28][29]
No. Position Player
1 Image:Flag of Ireland.svg GK Shay Given
2 Image:Flag of Ireland.svg DF Stephen Carr
3 Image:Flag of Spain.svg DF José Enrique
4 Image:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg DF David Rozehnal
5 Image:Flag of Turkey.svg MF Emre
6 Image:Flag of Brazil.svg DF Caçapa
7 Image:Flag of England.svg MF Joey Barton
9 Image:Flag of Nigeria.svg FW Obafemi Martins
10 Image:Flag of England.svg FW Michael Owen
11 Image:Flag of Ireland.svg MF Damien Duff
13 Image:Flag of England.svg GK Steve Harper
14 Image:Flag of France.svg DF Charles N'Zogbia
16 Image:Flag of England.svg MF James Milner
No. Position Player
17 Image:Flag of England.svg MF Alan Smith (captain)
20 Image:Flag of Cameroon.svg MF Geremi
21 Image:Flag of Senegal.svg DF Habib Beye
22 Image:Flag of England.svg MF Nicky Butt
23 Image:Flag of England.svg FW Shola Ameobi
25 Image:Flag of Senegal.svg DF Abdoulaye Faye
26 Image:Flag of England.svg DF Peter Ramage
27 Image:Flag of England.svg DF Steven Taylor
30 Image:Flag of Canada.svg DF David Edgar
34 Image:Flag of England.svg GK Fraser Forster
36 Image:Flag of Australia.svg FW Mark Viduka
37 Image:Flag of Australia.svg MF James Troisi
39 Image:Flag of England.svg FW Andy Carroll

[edit] Out on loan

No. Position Player
40 Image:Flag of the Netherlands.svg GK Tim Krul (Falkirk - to May 2008)

[edit] Current Staff

Position Name
Manager Sam Allardyce
First Team Coaches Nigel Pearson
Steve Round
Terry McDermott
Reserve Team Manager Adam Sadler
Goalkeeping Coach Paul Barron
Fitness Coaches Adrian Lamb
Craig Russell
Youth Academy Manager Joe Joyce
Youth Academy Coaches Kenny Wharton
Steve Tweddle
Physiotherapists Derek Wright
Kev Bell

[edit] Reserves

[edit] Notable players

For more details on this topic, see List of Newcastle United F.C. players.

[edit] Managers

As of December 29, 2007. Only competitive matches are counted.

Name Nat From To Record
PWDLWin %
Andy Cunningham Image:Flag of Scotland.svg January 1 1930 May 31 1935 2511054510141.83
Tom Mather Image:Flag of England.svg June 1 1935 September 1 1939 17978326943.57
Stan Seymour Image:Flag of England.svg September 1 1939 June 1 1958 3381307413438.46
George Martin Image:Flag of England.svg May 1 1947 December 1 1950 15576403949.03
Doug Livingstone Image:Flag of Scotland.svg December 1 1954 January 1 1956 9943203643.43
Charlie Mitten Image:Flag of England.svg June 1 1958 October 1 1961 14553286436.55
Norman Smith Image:Flag of England.svg October 1 1961 June 1 1962 351281534.28
Joe Harvey Image:Flag of England.svg June 1 1962 June 1 1975 5912245221537.90
Gordon Lee Image:Flag of England.svg June 12 1975 January 30 1977 7428202637.83
Richard Dinnis Image:Flag of England.svg February 2 1977 November 9 1977 4012101830.00
Bill McGarry Image:Flag of England.svg November 18 1977 August 31 1980 11837334831.35
Arthur Cox Image:Flag of England.svg September 1 1980 May 24 1984 16976425144.97
Jack Charlton Image:Flag of England.svg August 14 1984 August 10 1985 4815151831.25
Willie McFaul Image:Ulster banner.svg September 10 1985 October 10 1988 14047395433.57
Colin Suggett[30] Image:Flag of England.svg November 2 1988 December 4 1988 50230
Jim Smith Image:Flag of England.svg December 14 1988 March 26 1991 12144383936.36
Osvaldo Ardiles Image:Flag of Argentina.svg March 26 1991 February 5 1992 4710181921.27
Kevin Keegan Image:Flag of England.svg February 5 1992 January 8 1997 251138526254.98
Terry McDermott[30] Image:Flag of England.svg January 8 1997 January 14 1997 10100
Kenny Dalglish Image:Flag of Scotland.svg January 14 1997 August 27 1998 7830262238.46
Ruud Gullit Image:Flag of the Netherlands.svg August 28 1998 August 28 1999 5218142034.61
Steve Clarke[30] Image:Flag of Scotland.svg August 28 1999 September 2 1999 10010
Sir Bobby Robson Image:Flag of England.svg 2 September 1999 30 August 2004 255119647246.66
John Carver[30] Image:Flag of England.svg 11 September 2004 13 September 2004 1100100
Graeme Souness Image:Flag of Scotland.svg 13 September 2004 2 February 2006 8739192944.82
Glenn Roeder Image:Flag of England.svg 2 February 2006 6 May 2007 7333162445.20
Nigel Pearson[30] Image:Flag of England.svg 6 May 2007 15 May 2007 10100
Sam Allardyce Image:Flag of England.svg 15 May 2007 Present 2276931.81

[edit] Honours

  • FA Cups: 6
    • 1910, 1924, 1932, 1951, 1952, 1955


  • Milk Cup: 2
    • 1985 (Premier), 1989 (Premier)

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Modern St James' Park in detail. nufc.co.uk. Retrieved on 2007-02-11.
  2. ^ New Chairman Announced. Newcastle United FC. Retrieved on 2007-07-24.
  3. ^ Newcastle United Football News. Premiership Latest. Retrieved on 2007-07-19.
  4. ^ Joannou, P. "A brief history of Toon - Part 1: 1881-1939", P. Joannou. Retrieved on 2007-07-08. 
  5. ^ Twydell, Dave. Denied F.C.. Yore Publications, page 116. ISBN 1-874427-98-4. 
  6. ^ Liverpool v Newcastle 1996:Best Premiership match ever?. Square Football. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
  7. ^ Sir Bobby : Ten Facts. BBC Tyne. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
  8. ^ PREMIERSHIP: Sir Bobby Robson, Newcastle United, 1999-2004. squarefootball.net. Retrieved on 2007-05-27.
  9. ^ The St James' Park Story: Part 1. Newcastle United official website. Retrieved on 2006-03-09.
  10. ^ "Newcastle announce ground plans", BBC News, bbc.co.uk, 2007-04-02. Retrieved on 2007-04-02. 
  11. ^ Top 30 English Football Clubs by League Attendances. footballeconomy.com. Retrieved on August 21, 2006.
  12. ^ Winter, Henry. Shepherd the bad guy in Geordie soap opera. The Telegraph. Retrieved on June 9, 2007.
  13. ^ Szczepanik, Nick. Newcastle top of the league when it comes to dedication of fans. The Times. Retrieved on September 28, 2007.
  14. ^ Geordie Slang Dictionary. Geordies.co.uk. Retrieved on March 28, 2007.
  15. ^ North East dialect origins and the meaning of 'Geordie'. North East England History. Retrieved on March 28, 2007.
  16. ^ Camden Hotten, John (1869). The Slang Dictionary, Or Vulgar Words, Street Phrases And Fast Expressions of High and Low Society. John Camden Hotten, 142. ““Geordie, general term in Northumberland and Durham for a pitman, or coal-miner. Origin not known; the term has been in use more than a century."” )
  17. ^ Brockett, John Trotter (1829). A Glossary Of North Country Words In Use With Their Etymology And AffinityTo Other Languages And Occasional Notices Of local Customs And Popular Superstitions. E. Charnley, page 131. “GEORDIE, George-a very common name among the pitmen. “How ! Geordie man ! how is’t”” 
  18. ^ Scandinavian Magpies Online. Scandinavian Newcastle United Supporters' Club Website. Retrieved on 2007-03-28.
  19. ^ Toon Army USA. North American Newcastle United Supporters' Club Website. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
  20. ^ Aussie Mags. Australian Newcastle United Supporters' Club Website. Retrieved on 2007-03-28.
  21. ^ Toon Ultras. Toon Ultras - Bringing Back the Noise. Retrieved on 2007-03-28.
  22. ^ Whetstone, D. (2006) City welcomes local hero. Available from: guyfletcher.co.uk - projects - news
  23. ^ Football Rivalries: The Complete Results. thefootballnetwork. Retrieved on June 30, 2007.
  24. ^ Newcastle United Club Records. nufc.com. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
  25. ^ Player profiles: Alan Shearer. Racing Post. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
  26. ^ Obituary: Albert Stubbins. The Guardian. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
  27. ^ a b Ground news. nufc.com. Retrieved on 2007-07-08.
  28. ^ NUFC 2007-08: Squad Numbers Complete. Retrieved on 2007-09-06.
  29. ^ Geremi named captain`. Retrieved on 2007-08-13.
  30. ^ a b c d e Served as caretaker manager.
  31. ^ Up until 1992, the top division of English football was the Football League First Division; since then, it has been the Premier League.
  32. ^ The trophy was known as the Charity Shield until 2002, and as the Community Shield since then.

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