Amid board room turmoil at St James's Park the Tigers offered a tremendous display of controlled football to quell and then dominate a feeble Newcastle side and claim our first ever Premier League away win.

Report by Mike Scott.

Today Hull City’s Premier League odyssey truly began. The opening three games were all a bit surreal and saw us play sides that either had a history down the leagues alongside City, or soon will have if they keep their numpty manager in post. The two week break has allowed City fans to focus on the task ahead and realise the enormity of what was achieved at Wembley in May. Newcastle … Everton … Arsenal … Tottenham … in this next burst of games before the Autumn internationals we will mix with exalted company indeed. And we got started on this delicious foursome with a deserved victory at St James’s Park, a fortress for the Tigers in the League since our last point-earning defeat in 1990 – a winning stretching back a mighty two games.

The business of the last two weeks at Newcastle clearly made this a massive occasion for the home side if not a massive game, but these Keeganish shenanigans also enhanced the fixture’s stature for the away team. And I tired very quickly today with talk of Newcastle being a club in turmoil, rudderless with a witless chairman, a gutless ex-manager and a lifeless squad there for the taking. Well yes that is all obviously true – but Newcastle still took to the field with a starting eleven that cost £40 million to assemble, six times the cost of City’s XI. Yet City served notice to the vanity ridden Kevin Keegan that a team’s success cannot simply be measured by the price of its players, as the Tigers cruised largely unopposed to a two goal lead, and even when the home side pegged a goal back with 8 to go the game was still comfortably in City’s control.

With the whiff of fan rebellion in the air – and let me say right now that the vocal minority of Newcastle United supporters are surely unsurpassed on this planet as the most self-regarding, pompous, ideas-above-their-station buffoons going – the Tigers took to the field with five changes from the Wigan thumping as Brown, Ricketts, Geovanni, Folan and Garcia made way for Gardner, Halmosi, Mendy, King and new signing McShane. And let me tell you that all five improved City’s form and shape as they lined up in regulation 4-4-2 style:

Myhill
McShane Gardner Turner Dawson
Mendy Ashbee Marney Halmosi
King Fagan

With the ascent of the north face of the Sir John Hall Stand completed, the ice picks packed neatly away and the Kendal Mint Cake consumed, the City fans looked down upon the pitch and watching City commence proceedings playing towards the far goal, which at times appeared to be at least two counties away. Despite this slightly removed view point, it was clear that the opening minutes would best be described as “cagey” as the Newcastle side – evidently fired up by their caretaker coach to give a performance in honour of the messiah, even if they couldn’t muster one in honour of their vast contracts – played the ball around nicely yet undangerously as City, as will be common for a few more away matches at this level just yet, took a while to acclimatise themselves to their surroundings. For St James’s Park is a truly massive ground and a remarkable structure, and is populated by a fervent home support that can generate a fearsome noise when it wants to. I repeat – when it wants to. It didn’t want to very often today, apart from when three rotund hoons wandered around just after half time with a witless anti-Ashley banner, an act which quite conceivably contributed to the distraction of the Newcastle players and led to City’s second goal. Waft a banner around? Yes. Do it during the match? Surely not.

I digress. On 6 a ball across the goal from the right found Halmosi at the far post and for a split second a shooting chance opened up, but his reactions were a tad too slow and the danger was removed. When Newcastle had the ball they passed and moved with diligence and accuracy but little threat. Only Owen, who was afforded too much space early on by awestruck Ashbee and Marney, looked a genuine attacking threat. Whereas City had rather less of the ball but threatened far more when they did have it, raiding pleasingly down both flanks as Halmosi and Fagan both looked to justify their massive - for a side like Hull City – transfer fees. After 13 City’s response to a Newcastle corner was poorly marshalled and largely anonymous new signing Xisco headed wide. But seconds later Fagan created a chance for King after he harried Coloccini into ceding possession and King shot weakly at Given from a narrow angle. Newcastle attempted to isolate Dawson and Geremi, fancying that the ex-Chelsea man had Daws’s beating. But after one dangerous run and cross that Xisco dithered over when a shot would have been nice, Geremi’s attacking play mirrored closely his set piece play – absolutely fucking awful with one exception. That exception came on 30 when he lifted a 40 yard free-kick onto the bonce of Michael Owen near the penalty spot and Myhill contrived a marvellous low sprawling save down to his right.

After 33 minutes the away side got a reward for their endeavour as Halmosi was fed the ball deep in Newcastle’s penalty box by a sumptuous King reverse pass and as the hirsute Hungarian cut inside only to have his legs whipped away from him by Butt. A clear penalty, duly awarded by whistler Andre Marriner. After a long pause Marlon King stepped up and rapped the penalty to Given’s right with sufficient power to evade the keeper’s partial touch and ricochet into the net via the post. Absolutely remarkable, it was one nil to the Tigers. And it was largely deserved.

Home side rattled. Pre-match suggestions that a City goal would see Newcastle slide out of contention rapidly proved correct. Nicky Butt – who appeared off the pace throughout the game and settled for the easiest possible pass every time – coughed up possession easily to Marney and the cockney diamond fed King whose shot was struck hard but high. Another half chance fell to Mendy but his shot was blocked, then Geremi scuffed wide after clever approach play by Owen. On 44 Given launched a long clearance to Ameobi and the ineffectual lump managed his one moment of usefulness of the afternoon as he nodded to ball on to Xisco, whose shot was cleared. When this clearance was returned to the City box Ameobi reverted to type and plopped a lame back post header well wide of Myhill’s far post.

Half time back slapping and “I can’t believe this!”s in the away seats gave way to fan protests in the home end with the emergence of the aforementioned banner. And while Newcastle may well have been in receipt of a half time tongue lashing from mild mannered janitor Chris Hughton (I can actually picture him with a mop) their fervour was instantly burst as within 10 seconds Mendy pinched the ball off Geremi and hared down the right, only to see a penalty box flick that would have set up a shooting chance intercepted by the languid but obviously-better-than-most-of-his-team-mates Coloccini. City had a corner on the left that was twice cleared to 30 yards out, from where Ashbee eventually headed the ball cleverly to his right where the unmarked Turner lurked. But the centre back applied the trademark defender’s finish to a decent shooting chance and the ball sailed wide. The Tigers now had the lion’s share of possession and were controlling the game, only a sliced Butt shot (ooerr!) after more good approach play from Owen causing any threat. And on 54 when Marney received the ball and looked up to pick a pass, he saw King rampaging into acres of space down the inside right as a result of left back N’Zogbia having inexplicably drifted in-field. Marlon received the ball, controlled it sweetly and advanced with pace on the Newcastle goal. N'Zogbia, now alert to the danger but a fair distance from the ball, caught up with the striker 20 yards from goal, just in time to see a neat King flick divert the ball from right foot to left and away from any possibility of a challenge. With the direct run and shot option now removed, Marlon instead swung a beautifully arced left foot at the ball and elicited a similarly beautifully arced shot that sailed gracefully past Given’s despairing dive and nestled into the corner of the Newcastle net. 2-0, a tremendous goal from what looks to be a top drawer signing, total tiger mayhem.

It was perhaps still a tad early for the home fans to start storming towards the exits in a hissy fit, but their moment of melodrama soon came as the home side appeared to be left bereft of attacking ideas, playing with defensive muscle memory rather than attacking forethought, and the City fans treated them to a simply deliciously amusing rendition of “are you Grimsby in disguise?” Marney hit a weak shot at Given after a skilful 1-2 with Halmosi, Fagan headed a Dawson cross wide and Turner crashed a deep corner into the net, only for the third goal to be chalked off for a foul on Given. As City rued their luck after the disallowed goal Newcastle transferred the ball swiftly down the left and a low left wing cross just evaded an Owen lunge, who was now playing as conventional striker after Ameobi was replaced by – well, anybody would have done, a ball boy, a programme seller, an old boy in the disabled section, all would have performed better than young Shola. But Hughton plumped for new signing Gonzalez, who proceeded to put in a thirty minute shift of spectacular anonymity.

Folan and Hughes came on for Mendy and Marney – Fagan going to right midfield - as Phil Brown attempted to inject fresh legs into City’s attacks, but on 81 Newcastle finally showed a brief spark of talent as neat passing led to N'Zogbia thumping a shot onto Myhill’s left hand post and Xisco swept in to convert a simple open goal tap in from six yards. City fans are not by nature an overly optimistic bunch – is it any surprise given our history?, of course not – and a few exasperated “uh oh, here we go”s were uttered as the City lead was reduced to one score, but in truth the home side didn’t threaten to equalise as City drew the life out of the game’s remaining regulation time and five minutes additional with some effective time wasting and much holding of the ball down by the corner flag. Zayette debuted, coming on for King, and played his part in these closing moments but only a feeble Xisco header could be mustered by Newcastle as the game drew to a close. Indeed the player apathy finally turned to frustration as deep into injury time Guthrie saw a straight red for a vicious touchline lunge at the chippy Fagan.

What a truly marvellous result. A hardy City supporter of many decades elected the game instantly to his “Top Ten City Away Games” hall of fame as we left the ground with a spring in our step. And as we made our respective ways back to car, train and pub we mused on the excellent contribution of King and Fagan, the way in which Ashbee and Marney came to dominate the centre of the park after a shaky start, the trickery and speed of Mendy and Halmosi out wide and the diligent concentration of Gardner and Turner at the back, especially when Owen advanced from his “between the lines” danger area. This really is going to be a season to savour for the rest of our lives, if current form is anything to go by.

HULL CITY (4-4-2): Myhill; McShane, Turner, Gardner, Dawson; Mendy, Ashbee, Marney, Halmosi; Fagan, King.  Subs: Folan (for Mendy, 73), Hughes (for Marney, 78), Zayette (for King, 83), Windass, Geovanni, Ricketts, Duke.

Goals: King 34 (pen), 55

Booked: Halmosi

Sent Off: None

NEWCASTLE UNITED: Given, Edgar, Taylor, Coloccini, N'Zogbia, Geremi, Butt, Guthrie, Xisco, Owen, Ameobi.  Subs: Gonzalez (for Ameobi, 61), Bassong (for Edgar, 68), Cacapa, Danquah, Doninger, Donaldson, Harper.

Goals: Xisco 82

Booked: None

Sent Off: Guthrie

REFEREE:   A Marriner

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