Newcastle 2-1 Bournemouth: Sensational Salomon Rondon secures back to back wins at SJP

A superb display at St James’ Park and a performance from Salomon Rondon worthy of the NUFC number 9 shirt, with the big Venezuelan absolutely outstanding as he fired us to a well deserved 2-1 win against an in-form Bournemouth side.

We showed a brilliant mix of fight, grit and determination to beat Watford last weekend, and we showed all of that and more today – with some real moments of quality making this and even more impressive and convincing win.

It was a terrific team performance, but Rondon really was the star man. Even if he hadn’t scored twice I would’ve been coming out of the ground saying just how good he was. Two goals (one bullet header!), some outstanding hold up play, brilliant in the air and never stopped running. I always said he would suit this system better than Aleksandar Mitrovic, and today’s performances proves that. It was one of the best all round performances I’ve seen in a couple of years from a NUFC striker at St James’ Park.

With Lascelles and Shelvey out, many may have feared for us when reading the team sheets, but Schar and Ki came in and did brilliantly once again – and they weren’t the only ones who were brilliant today.

Fernandez was monstrous, Dummett didn’t put a foot wrong, Kenedy was a brilliant outlet and instrumental in Rondon’s second, Ritchie’s deliveries were much improved, Yedlin was better at both ends of the pitch and Perez put in his best performance of the season after several struggling displays.

We were all quite fearful coming into a home double-header against two sides flying in Watford and Bournemouth, but we’ve beaten both, secured rare back to back wins at St James’ Park and are now up to 14th!

Today’s results elsewhere went pretty well too. Cardiff may have won late (although the subsequent defeat for Brighton means we’re just 3 points behind them now), but both Huddersfield and Southampton lost leads at home to take just a point, with Burnley only drawing too.

The dreaded international break is now upon us, but we’ll go into the Burnley game full of confidence two weeks on Monday.

Here’s our next six fixtures between now and Christmas – with us facing a trip to Turf Moor two weeks on Monday:

  • Burnley (A)
  • West Ham (H)
  • Everton (A)
  • Wolves (H)
  • Huddersfield (A)
  • Fulham (H)

One final thought – a huge hats off to ‘Wor Flags’ for this incredible display in the Gallowgate end during today’s minutes silence:

(Fancy writing for us? Send any articles/ideas over to us at [email protected] & we’ll get back to you!)

About Olly Hawkins

As a Junior Magpie since birth and season ticket holder, I eat, sleep and breathe all things NUFC! Here at the blog, I aim to bring you news, views, match reports and transfer exclusives as and when I get them.

225 thoughts on “Newcastle 2-1 Bournemouth: Sensational Salomon Rondon secures back to back wins at SJP

  1. Hello Eric… ?

    I guess not a lot t9 chat about when the dam.n international breaks are on. Does my head in. Can’t wait for real footy next weekend.

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  2. DT: you still taking pictures?

    It is so easy now with digital cameras. People always said I had an eye for it so I have got into it in an amateur way. A few to put on the wall.

    All I really want to say is that the quality of these phone cameras now is amazing. I have a Google Pixel 2 and it just blows my mind.

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  3. DT: and the phone takes better low light and indoor shots than my bridge camera from 5 years ago that has a Leica lens on it!

    I am not using them wrong 🙂 I took exactly the same photos on auto.

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  4. Hi Eric. Yes still taking photos. And yes the phone now is amazing. I can get as good shots from my iPhone X as from my Canon EOS 5d. I can also get an A2 size print from my phone with decent quality. If your interested, you can go to my photography page on FB (Roy Frankland Photography) to see what I do, or follow me on Instagram (Dragonroy)

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  5. My wife has a Samsung S8 phone and the quality she can get from that is just astounding. No real need to carry big cameras around these days. When I went to Rome in May I ended up leaving my Canon in the hotel as it was so heavy to carry round and I used my phone. ?… also, I’m getting too old now to carry heavy cameras around. Gone are the days when I’d carry 2 35mm camera bodies with bnw and colour film and a Bronica medium format system around with tripods etc.

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  6. DT: only saw a few shots on FB.

    All interesting and when I have more time today I will search more. I have lost my facebook sign in 🙂

    In the meantime, have a look on google for Hedrich Blessing of a photo of the State of Illinois Building.

    Really famous. If I can find it, I will post it on here since this is now a photo blog 🙂

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  7. hi Eric, Thanks. I do take it as a compliment, thank you. ???? he is a great photographer. For me it’s really a hobby rather than work.

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  8. Talking photos now. Thanks Mike – look what you’ve reduced a football blog too! ?

    Although there’s a cracking local artist called Darren Munday based in Whitley Bay that I have seen recently.

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  9. Eric, now I know what they mean about “El Traffico”! Sat in the traffic now and have been for the past 25 mins on way back from Santa Monica. ??

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  10. DT: I had a look at some of your Instagram photos. A lot of black and white which is appropriate 🙂 Dunstanborough and Lindesfarne castles. I took the same shots when I was last back because I remembered visiting when I was a bairn.

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  11. Stuart: I have been to Vegas about 4 times and don’t really have any tips for you except don’t invite strippers to your room whilst on a stag party!

    Actually I do have a few. The Aria is good but a long way off the main drag. Give the Balaggio and Wynn a miss. Caesars is strange but sort of in a weird good way. Same with The Flamingo Hotel – it has actual flamigos in the garden and a great pool. Still has a ’50s feel like Frank and Deano might turn up any minute.

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  12. The Flamingo has a sort of first love appeal. Like you want to revisit the past, especially the garden.

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  13. Dubai Toon: I loved some of your homages to Henri Cartier-Bresson. I also like when you put the pop of red into some of your pictures. Classic style but the classics are usually the best.

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  14. Bloody H3ll. It is thanksgiving.

    Donald Trump will probably come out and say he invented it. And it was huge, beautiful and much bigger than Obama’s Thanksgiving.

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  15. Eric – since we’re on photography. Cartier Bresson once spent a fortnight on Tyneside visiting and holding classes at the Side Gallery/Amber Films. They’re the place to be if you like documentary photography. Sirkka Lissa Kontinen is my favourite. She has the most exquisite sense of timing. Her book Byker is good but her best work is in The Writing in the Sand.

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  16. With Dummett being out injured – do we go with Clark/Manquillo/Lazaar as a replacement, or would it be better to go 3 at the back and give Kenedy that winger back from reign of the left wing?.

    Personally I’d like to see the 3 at the back coz I think Lascelles, Fernandez and Schar are all in good form – but then that may have an impact on the balance of the rest of the team.

    Thoughts?

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  17. Eric Sykes:
    Bloody H3ll. It is thanksgiving.

    Donald Trump will probably come out and say he invented it. And it was huge, beautiful and much bigger than Obama’s Thanksgiving.

    Eric – did you see he finally visited the devastation left behind by the forest fires and called Paradise by the wrong name – he was calling it Pleasure!!.
    What the hell is that guy getting right for those crazy yanks to keep following him?!?!?!!!

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  18. Eric Sykes:
    Dubai Toon: I loved some of your homages to Henri Cartier-Bresson. I also like when you put the pop of red into some of your pictures. Classic style but the classics are usually the best.

    Thanks a lot Eric. Cartier Bresson and Sebastiao Salgado are my heroes and inspiration when it comes to photography. For you to mention me in the same sentence as Cartier Bresson is praise indeed. Thanks mate.

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  19. georgio:
    Eric – since we’re on photography. Cartier Bresson once spent a fortnight on Tyneside visiting and holding classes at the Side Gallery/Amber Films. They’re the place to be if you like documentary photography. Sirkka Lissa Kontinen is my favourite. She has the most exquisite sense of timing. Her book Byker is good but her best work is in The Writing in the Sand.

    Funny what the international break will do 🙂 I went on a giant rant about The Magpie Group and who knew so many are interested in photography on here.

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  20. DT: you should look at some stuff by Art Wolfe if you haven’t already. A lot of it is nature but his landscape and abstract photos are just as amazing. A lot of his pictures are of the US Pacific NW which by total coincidence I going to for Christmas.

    My plan is to take a picture of Mt Rainier. If I can see it through the mist and clouds. I have been to the Alps many times but never took any pictures. Strange.

    But now.

    I have a Paul Simon lyric in my head that makes me want to take a picture of a giant mountain –

    “For reasons I cannot explain there’s some part of me wants to see Gracelands”.

    But substitute Mt Rainier. Obviously.

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  21. Sharpy – I wouldn’t mess with the team at all. The balance was really good in the last two so I’d only bring in Clark to replace Dummett and just tell him to stay back and do nothing but defend as he’s hopeless with the ball.

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  22. Sharpy17:
    With Dummett being out injured – do we go with Clark/Manquillo/Lazaar as a replacement, or would it be better to go 3 at the back and give Kenedy that winger back from reign of the left wing?.

    Personally I’d like to see the 3 at the back coz I think Lascelles, Fernandez and Schar are all in good form – but then that may have an impact on the balance of the rest of the team.

    Thoughts?

    Sharpy not Clark I hope. Seen him play there before and I was not impressed. Too slow.

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  23. kimtoon:
    No, not Clark.

    We’re back to football now 🙂

    By the time we play Burnley we will know where everything else is.

    I predict 2-1 to NUFC.

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  24. I think not Clark too. Likelihood is he’d be up against Lennon, who despite his years is still a pacy winger who will run at him.

    But if not Clark, then who? Definitely not Manquillo!!.

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  25. Sharpy17:
    I think not Clark too.Likelihood is he’d be up against Lennon, who despite his years is still a pacy winger who will run at him.

    But if not Clark, then who?Definitely not Manquillo!!.

    Problem is we have failed to get quality cover for both fullback positions. Doesn’t answer your question I know. How bad is Lazar?

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  26. Sharpy17:
    I think not Clark too.Likelihood is he’d be up against Lennon, who despite his years is still a pacy winger who will run at him.

    But if not Clark, then who?Definitely not Manquillo!!.

    I guess some won’t agree, but I’d like to Lazaar given a chance. He’s done well recently in the under 23s and surely Rafa saw something in him when we bought him… I still feel this is one of Rafa’s strangest buys.

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  27. Rafa has said Murphy is “training well”. That’s his code for he will play him. I expect he will be on the bench on Monday, perhaps at the expense of Atsu.

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  28. DT: I am doing an experiment in my head. After reading a few photography books and looking at your pictures I bet I can predict your favourite movie directors. This is not a joke. I have found myself watching a lot of movies recently as much for the art direction as the plot.

    Here goes:

    David Lean

    Francois Truffaut

    Stanley Kubrick

    Alfred Hitchcock

    Francisco Fellini

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  29. The swear police blocked the last 4 letters of Hitchc0ck’s name 🙂 That is sort of ridiculous 🙂

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  30. Just as I thought – Dummett’s injury is a hamstring. They’ll ruin the kid’s career. I guess we won’t see him before January. Rafa will probably play Manquillo although I can’t understand why. There must be another left back at the club somewhere.

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  31. Rafas press conference ‘January is always a hard window coz the top players are playing champions league football’ ?
    Fortunately Rafa we stopped signing those kind of players a long time ago ?

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  32. If Rafa sticks with 4 at the back then I think (reluctantly) I’d prefer Clark in there. Manquillo is ***** and Burnley away probably isn’t the game to give Lazaar his first run out. They are a physical side Burnley with big players for set pieces – so I think Clark may be best suited to that battle.

    I also wouldn’t risk Lascelles and Shelvey if they are not fully fit. The lads have done just fine without them. So stick with a winning team I say.

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  33. I think Burnley are in trouble if we can get a result. A relegation six-pointer.

    Sorry to be talking relegation. But the other fixtures stack up well.

    Fulham will probably beat Southampton which I am OK with as I think Saints have a worse squad and are unlikely to spend.

    Then, can anybody see any of these teams getting points AWAY?

    Palace at Man U
    Cardiff at Everton
    Huddersfield at Wolves

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  34. Burnley , beaten by Fulham pre Ranier 4.2 and Watford 3.1
    Drew v Saints and just beat Cardiff 2.1
    Well beaten by B/mouth 4.0
    Lost to Wolves and Manure and Spanked 4.0 by Chelsea and 5.0 by Man city
    Drew with Hudders and Leicester then lost 4.2 to the Hammers in that order.

    Well based on those results you would like to think we could at least get a draw but they are very physical so………….

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  35. It’s very strange goings on at Burnley this season. On the surface it would be easy to suggest that their drop in form is coz of the Europa League – but I think it’s more than that.
    Last year their success was built on a really strong defence. But this year they are conceding goals for fun. The big change is Joe Hart in goal – and I can’t say I understand that move at all. In fairness, Hart hasn’t been playing badly – he’s made some good saves. But Heaton and Pope would likely have made the same saves. Whether Harts presence has caused unrest to the defensive unit, but they certainly don’t look what they did last season.
    I’d love to know what Heaton and Pope made of Harts arrival like – 2 England internationals being replaced by a keeper dropped by England ?.

    Anyway, I hope that’s still the case on Monday night and Rondon can boss their CBs again.

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  36. Sharpy: the Heaton situation is really strange. I read Leeds want to sign him. Hart has made the most saves of any PL keeper and they have still let in a ton of goals. Burnley also have quite a few injuries as well so that evens it out with ours. Dummett will be the biggest miss because the subs for Shelvey and Lascelles have done well.

    I like both but they have both been off form a bit. I think Shelvey was carrying a knock and Lascelles misses Lejuene as they worked well in tandem.

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  37. Eric Sykes:
    DT: I am doing an experiment in my head. After reading a few photography books and looking at your pictures I bet I can predict your favourite movie directors. This is not a joke. I have found myself watching a lot of movies recently as much for the art direction as the plot.

    Here goes:

    David Lean

    Francois Truffaut

    Stanley Kubrick

    Alfred Hitch****

    Francisco Fellini

    Lol, ok Eric… I like Hitchco.ck and Kubrick I have to say, but to be honest I really don’t pay too much attention to directors of movies. I do like Guy Ritchie and Tarantino, Clint Eastwood also as a director but I really just go film by film. Good try though mate.

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  38. Dubai Toon: Lol, ok Eric… I like Hitchco.ck and Kubrick I have to say, but to be honest I really don’t pay too much attention to directors of movies. I do like Guy Ritchie and Tarantino, Clint Eastwood also as a director but I really just go film by film. Good try though mate.

    I thought you would like Lawrence of Arabia given your name.

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  39. And Truffaut wrote like the definitive book on Hitchc)ck and was massively influenced by him. They made a documentary and I think it is on Netflix. A lot of it was about his camera shots and set ups so you might want to seek it out.

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  40. Coming back to Hart. I think he is the Achilles heel of Burnley. He makes some great reflex saves but also has a mistake in him. Was the same at West Ham and even Torino sent him packing.

    I have a theory that he wasn’t that good to start with. He was probably top 10 in the PL but some made him out to be Gigi Buffon. People desperately wanted a good English keeper and when he was Number 1 there was hardly any competition. Ben Foster, Scott Carson, even Fraser Forster was named in a few squads.

    I think now that he is low on confidence as well that he is causing problems for the Burnley back four. Its a bit like Timmy-the-Hoof at NUFC. Great shot stopper but gave absolutely no confidence to the back four and his main distribution tactic was to get the ball as far away as possible as soon as possible. It didn’t help that he had Williamson to pass to who was allergic to receiving the ball.

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  41. Re, the Burnley keeper situation, Pope is long term injured I believe.
    They have also had 3 defenders out injured.

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  42. And Hart had some great players in front of him at Man City. Not as good as now but there was Silva and Aguero. Pep had him out the door in 5 minutes and everybody wondered why. We are seeing why.

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  43. Sorry to labour the Hart point but I forgot we have our very own version on the bench – Darlow. A good keeper but you feel there is a mistake there and most importantly he sometimes sh!ts himself when the ball comes through to him or on a backpass.

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  44. Same thing was going on with Lloris where people were claiming he was world class. One of the commentators over here said the other day that he was directly responsible for 6 of Spurs goals allowed in the last 2 years.

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  45. This site is a nightmare, takes an age to load and is very jumpy. I have given it a rest as every time I have it up it stops my other opened links working properly. Thought I would give it another go after I did a clean up of pc but it’s no better. 👿

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  46. Is anybody worried about how far Rondon has had to travel with Venezuela?

    Played in Japan on the 16th and Doha on the 20th.

    Those long haul fights to totally different time zones are a nightmare. I went to Thailand and the second flight from the middle East was 14 bl00dy hours and its 12 hours ahead. It took me a couple of days to recover and I was just sitting on a beach!

    And he came back injured last time after a trip to Panama. I am just so sick of these international friendlies.

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  47. Did anyone see the footage of the Boca Juniors training session?
    Over 50,000 fans turned up and the atmosphere was like an actual game – 50k at a training session ?

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  48. Mitro not only gets a brace but might have put the final nail in Mark Hughes’s coffin. Could it be Big Fat Sam?

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  49. Well, all those matches today and we are still in 14th. Canny set of results for us today…
    Have to say I’m a bit miffed… waited through 2 weeks of non football and then we have to wait again until Monday night, and on top of that it a midnight kick off for me.. ☹️☹️

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  50. I wouldn’t underestimate West Ham for next weekend. They played OK against City and had enough chances to make it 3-4. The pundits will say it was cruise control for City but it wasn’t. They probably created 5 good chances and scored 4 whereas West Ham created about the same number.

    Better watch for Arnautovic. He is a really dirty player and leaves his foot in all of the time. Went off injured so hopefully we won’t see him.

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  51. We have no choice but is everybody comfortable with Ki and Diame as the midfield? They are pretty much journeymen PL players and I wouldn’t be writing Shelvey off after they play a game a and a half. Shelvey with runners is a totally different proposition and half the teams play a high press so he needs that outlet.

    This is where we are lightest and should look to get someone in in January.

    It is strange the way football fans react. He has a poor run of form and they forget last season. You have calls for him to be in the England squad and now some people are glad he is out so Ki and Diame can play together.

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  52. I don’t know what has happened to Sissoko either. Probably coaching. He actually looks like a 30 million pound player now. And not just this game, all season because we get quite a lot of Spurs games in the US.

    Poch gives him a free role but with more defensive responsibility. He is no longer stuck on the right wing. I think it also helps that he has good players to lay it off to. He even almost had an assist that Saint Harry of Kane blazed over the bar from 6 yards.

    I think his new role is epitomized by him being the last defender at corners.

    The Spurs fans must be wondering what is going on as they absolutely hated him last year.

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  53. West Spam don’t have a great record at SJP. But still they’ll be a challenge.

    I see the press and Rafa have started talking about January. Rafa already saying it will be difficult. That basically means it will be like all the rest. Can’t wait!

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  54. Stuart79:
    West Spam don’t have a great record at SJP. But still they’ll be a challenge.

    I see the press and Rafa have started talking about January. Rafa already saying it will be difficult. That basically means it will be like all the rest. Can’t wait!

    Did you expect anything else mate ? Windows are for other teams , not us.

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