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As I am a Newcastle United fan you could be forgiven for thinking that this is going to turn into a rant and a one man tirade about the club's relegation. With good reason I’ve every right to go hammer and tongs at every bad decision that has cost my club so dear this year, but you know what? I won’t and it isn’t. I consigned myself to relegation so long ago that after watching that last nail in the coffin, rather than mope, I dusted myself off and headed on down to a music festival on the banks of the Tyne in the bank holiday sun. Much better.
I made my peace with what seemed the inevitable much longer ago than the final dismal showing against the Villa. In fact it wasn’t even 2009 when a dominant Liverpool side thrashed us 5-1 at home that, to me anyway, it appeared we were heading somewhat south. A game broadcast around the world that ended in humiliation and the final straw that broke the outgoing Shay Given’s back. Without the world class Given that day, it could have easily been double figures as the Toon Army sat horrified, while the fans of every other club produced wry smiles at the outcome. For me, Given leaving signalled the beginning of the end. He knew it and we knew it, this season wasn’t going to have a happy ending.
There have been many mistakes at the club (if that isn’t the understatement of the century, heaven help us) in recent seasons but this could be a new dawn, a fresh start and a clean slate. The quicker the insidious Mike Ashley departs the better and the rebuilding of this once proud club can begin. It’s been a rather rapid descent, not one the fans have deserved but one that the owners and under-performing players have well merited, regardless of how fair it is on the supporters.
Granted it is a little hard to swallow, we’ll be hitting the likes of Blackpool, Peterborough and Swansea next year. It becomes even harder when you look back six years and we took 12,000 fans to a Champions League tie with Inter in the San Siro and were consistently making the latter stages of the UEFA Cup. All distant memories now. With the advances made by Aston Villa and Everton in recent seasons, it’s hard to believe that besides the big four, Newcastle have had more top five Premiership finishes than any other team. Can you really see a proper club like Everton being Coca Cola Championship fodder in 5 years. No? Me neither.
So anyway, what now? Hopefully we can get a buyer in quickly and shift all the dead wood. This is the best chance we will ever have to clean out the garbage and build a squad, not a team of individuals. Let’s give youth a chance, the excellent Nile Ranger has been very impressive in the reserves and on his outings for England U-19s and could break through next year. Or if there’s money to spend, perhaps signings such as Fabien Delph or Jonjo Shelvey would do the job - hungry young players, mixed with players like Guthrie, Taylor and hopefully Bassong, not the mercenaries at the club now. By doing so, this will enable the club to move forward to bigger long term goals rather than merely planning season on season and hoping for the best.
Whatever happens, the fans need to get behind the club now more than ever, and while the gates will undoubtedly drop, the players need the fan's support. Only with backing from the terraces will this great club rise once more and hopefully avoid the pitfalls that awaited Leeds United in previous seasons. It’s hard to argue though that with all the mistakes made by past regimes, that this is not a just reward for failing spectacularly and repeatedly.
I’d like to think of this as a chance for redemption, a chance to start again plus a chance to visit new grounds and meet new fans. I’ll be behind the team regardless but it goes without saying that the fans will be hoping they get the script right before unleashing an embarrassing show once more.
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1. Dave, Lincoln
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I'm sure you're already aware but there's an article on WSC regarding the financial plight of Newcastle that makes for very interesting reading.
WSC Article Link
There have been rumours doing the rounds for some time that Ashley is willing to put the club into administration in order to cut his losses and attempt to restructure the way that the club is ran.
Much talk of that in Newcastle or is it all just media talk? |
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