The away side dominated the first period and should have been more than two goals ahead at half-time but a consolation goal from Peter Odemwingie ensured a nervy finish for the Magpies.
Anything less than three points though would have been harsh on Alan Pardew’s side though and they fully deserved their win. It was one of the best performances I’ve seen from a United side for some time, especially in that first-half, and Cardiff just didn’t have an answer for us as we blew them away with attacking intent.
However it was the home side who produced the first chance as Fraizer Campbell got to a long ball before goalkeeper Tim Krul and rounded the keeper only to lose his footing just as he was about to shoot.
From then on though it was all United and David Marshall in the Cardiff goal had to be in hand to deny Loic Remy an opener before defender Andrew Taylor managed to get himself in front of Papiss Cisse’s effort on the rebound. Moments later it was Moussa Sissoko who stung the palms of Marshall with a fierce drive from the edge of the area.
The away side were looking dangerous and once again should have taken the lead after Mathieu Debuchy set up Remy 26 minutes only for the former QPR man to shoot tamely into the arms of Marshall, but just four minutes later Remy wasn’t to be denied as he ran the ball from inside the Newcastle half, cut in onto his right foot and fired low past Marshall into the bottom left corner of the net.
Just eight minutes later and it was 2-0. Yohan Cabaye fed Papiss Cisse who saw his attempt at goal blocked by Marshall only for the rebound to fall to Remy who calmly rolled the ball home from outside the box.
It could have been three moment later as Yohan Cabaye lined up a free kick which looked as though would end up as a cross only to fool everyone and thump an effort off the post which would have left Marshall with no chance had it been a few centimetres to the left. A good half but United had to settle for two at the interval.
Half-time: Cardiff 0-2 Newcastle
Cardiff came back into the game in the second half however and soon reduced the deficit when substitute Jordan Mutch fed Odemwingie inside the box with a clever pass and the striker took the ball round Krul before firing into the net. A couple of minutes later and the home side could have been level as Frazier Campbell shot across the face of goal with Aron Gunnarsson unable to get on the end of it.
But United were still dangerous and could have added a third on the break as Loic Remy played the ball through for Moussa Sissoko who shot straight at David Marshall.
Loic Remy was replaced by Jonas Gutierrez much to the dismay of the away fans but with treatment given to the Frenchman it was soon apparent that the change was forced more than anything. However the Argentine should have added another goal soon after his introduction but his free header went over the crossbar.
Papiss Cisse was denied by Marshall late on and United had strong claims for a penalty waved away after the ball struck Andrew Taylor’s hand but in the end the damage was done in the first half and it’s three points on the board for United who now move into the top ten.
Howay the lads!
Cardiff: David Marshall; Andrew Taylor, Steven Caulker, Ben Turner, Kevin Theophile-Catherine; Gary Medel, Peter Whittingham, Kim Bo-Kyung, Aron Gunnarsson, Peter Odemwingie; Fraizer Campbell
Subs: Joe Lewis; Mark Hudson, Craig Noone, Jordon Mutch, Don Cowie, Nicky Maynard, Craig Bellamy
Newcastle: Tim Krul; Mathieu Debuchy, Mike Williamson, Fabricio Coloccini, Davide Santon; Yohan Cabaye, Cheik Tiote, Moussa Sissoko; Yoan Gouffran, Papiss Cissé, Loic Remy
Subs: Rob Elliot, Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa, Paul Dummett, Vurnon Anita, Jonas Gutierrez, Hatem Ben Arfa, Sammy Ameobi
Attendance: 27,538
Many Eurosnobs point to the standard of football being low. They point to somebody like Emile Heskey, who plays for Newcastle Jets and is their marquee signing. They say, if Heskey is a marquee player then the standard can’t be much chop.
However, they mistake marquee signing for ‘best player’. This is not the case – it’s all about marketing. Heskey was a very average player last season. He probably wouldn’t get a start in the Brisbane team. He had some decent games and scored a few decent goals, but was pretty well marked out of every game I saw.
Del Piero, however, oozes class, even at 37 or whatever he is. He was the best player in a very ordinary Sydney team, but even he was anonymous much of the time – but give him a glimpse of something and you’ll pay for it.
The A-league history is littered with marquee signings that struggle to make an impact. So much so that for a few seasons nobody signed a big name.
brisvegas(Quote)
Hey! quiet you at the back. I’m educating the poms here.
brisvegas(Quote)
Sorry Vegas 😯 😥
Agree about the snob thing to a certain extent.. however a lot of it with the man u and Liverpool thing is plastic football fans.. they no fuk all about any other team other than their team. I’ve met plenty of folk that support both those teams but don’t what any football at all. But when those teams came to Oz they went out, bought a new top and posed like a life long fan.. sad….
The Glory will fire this season mate….mark my words…
Aussie Magpie Fan(Quote)
Well, I usually struggle to sleep at this time of day, but you are doing a fine job of sending me off Bris 🙂
Newkie(Quote)
Where was I?
Ah yes, standard of football … It’s hard to say what the standard is equivalent to, but I’ve seen some PL games games that don’t hold a candle to some A-L games. However, I think the Oz teams would struggle in the PL, maybe they’d find a level in the upper to middle Championship.
A few players from last year’s A-L are now playing in the top leagues of Belgium and Switzerland, and for Celtic in Scotland, so I guess that could be an indication of a comparative standard. The Crystal Palace captain is an Aussie who played in the A-L a few seasons back. Other ex-Aleaguers are playing for Dortmund and Leverkusen, and some are in Holland.
Why on earth they don’t make it into the Socceroos team is beyond just about everybody but the national team manager, especially when the Socceroos are awful at the moment. But that’s for another post.
Of course, football is all about passion, and the more you identify with a team the more you’ll enjoy a game. So, if you watch a match with criticism in mind then you’ll find much to criticise. If you choose a side, the excitement levels rise exponentially.
I’m sure Scunthorpe fans don’t think Scunthorpe are the best footballing side in the world, but I’ll bet they get passionate about their team no matter who or where they are playing.
So standard of football can largely be considered irrelevant if you follow a team with passion.
brisvegas(Quote)
Newkie, I couldn’t possibly keep your active philospher brain interested in the mundane world of Aussie football.
brisvegas(Quote)
Quite true, you **** colonial philistine.
Newkie(Quote)
Vegas, I didn’t know that you were from Palestine 😯
Aussie Magpie Fan(Quote)
Adelaide have, this season, brought in a new coach … from Spain. ex-Barcelona. He has vowed to make Adelaide play in a Barcelona style.
The Brisbane Roar coach has spoken about playing like Bayern. In pre-season games I’ve noticed a huge change in Brisbane’s style of play. A few weeks ago they played the champions of the state league and beat them 11-0. That shows the gulf in class between the two comps, but Brisbane were sensational at times, better than when they went on their 35 game unbeaten run a few seasons back.
Western Sydney played the whole of last season without a regular centre forward – and won the league. They rarely have the better of possession in a game and counter attack with speed. Their coach used to coach Crystal Palace.
Melbourne Victory have ex-Brisbane championship winner Ange Postecoglou as their coach. He is credited with revolutionising tactics in the Oz game. He is very creative and is gathering a good squad of players together. I expect Victory to be the team to beat.
Sydney have Del Piero, who is always good value. And their coach is an ex-Socceroo manager. Sydney always max out their salary cap and fill marquee spots. They are the ManU of Oz as far as finances are concerned. But because they pay their ‘stars’ top dollar it means thay have to fill up 7-8 of their squad places with some lesser lights. So when they get injuries, like NUFC, they struggle. They already have a few injuries going into their first game tonight.
Perth have a new young coach who is blooding young players (hopefully this’ll mean they’ll stop being cloggers), but they also have some experience. They played some good football towards the end of last season, when their new coach came in.
Central Coast have an ex-Socceroo manager as their manager, and he always seems to get the best out of a small squad – this club are the paupers of the league yet have the best record overall since the AL started. They are always difficult to score against but attack in numbers. However, their goalkeeper has moved to Belgium, and he has kept them in many games over the last 3 years. And they’ve lost their Dutch rock in central defence. There could be changes in style afoot here.
Melbourne Heart have not really done anything in the past, but they have a philosophy of ‘keep ball’, though they don’t do it too well. They’ve made a couple of interesting signings. Unfortunately their marquee signing broke his leg agains Brisbane a few weeks back in a friendly (won easily by Brisbane, 3-0 I think). I’m not expecting much from them.
Newcastle Jets are bit like Perth – young, but they’ve got a year a two’s more experience in their youth set-up. Watching out for Josh Brilliante from their squad. Dislike their smarmy coach with a passion.
Wellington are from NZ. Don’t fancy them. However, their new coach has won an A-L title. Probably the only long ball specialists in the league.
So there you go. My summary. As I’ve said before, the league is almost impossible to pick and if my PL tipping is anything to go by then I’ll have it completely wrong. Still, lots of contrast in the clubs. It is widely tipped to be the closest, most competitive season ever. Tune in. Choose your side. Help promote the A-league worldwide. Lovely to talk at you all. 😆
Off to do some work now – first stitch of paid work I’ve had for going on 9 months.
brisvegas(Quote)
Oh dear, that’s a bit long. My agent will be very upset with that 😳
Actually I’m from North Africa about half a million years ago. Family moved up through the middle east on its way to Russia, via Iran. About 10,000 years ago they moved to Europe and started painting caves in France. Moved to the UK when the ice sheets left.
Walked all the way.
brisvegas(Quote)
“The Brisbane Roar coach has spoken about playing like Bayern.”
Does this mean he is also a Eurosnob? I mean surely every coach right now wants to emulate Bayern as they are the best out there…just like everyone wanted to be Barca up til recently?
I haven’t really watched much of the A-League, the only non euro footie I get is when I start betting on completely random football, usually the Chilean league. I mean who would bet against a team called O’Higgins F.C? Luck of the irish and all that. I wonder if Dave knows them…
Newkie(Quote)
Point taken, Newkie. It’s all meant in a generalist sense, though, as an indication of the direction the style of play is headed.
You need to go back and read about Eurosnob again.
And if you haven’t seen much A-league, now’s your opportunity to do so.
Aha! so you’re the type of guy who bets on random games. We’ve just had an inquiry into teams in the Victorian first division throwing games due to a betting ring. It made me wonder what sort of idio … err … I mean fine upstanding young gentleman would bet on such games
brisvegas(Quote)
Newkie, Roar fans are very snobby.. they like to think they are a little better than everyone else.. it must be the humidity in Qld, it does funny things to their brains.. 😆 😆
Aussie Magpie Fan(Quote)
Think? Think? It’s a commonly known fact, mate.
brisvegas(Quote)
Well, I used to just watch random games and then bet on the play after half time or something and usually at this time of the night it would be the south americans kicking off. Although I’m pleased Victoria is doing well in my absence, how are Franga doing in their division? Surely they have a team Probably be playing there now if I were still there 😀
Aussie-it’s telling mate, I’d ask how you put up with them but I guess Australia’s size is useful in some respects, like avoiding them tropical fairies 😆
Newkie(Quote)
😆 we shall see mate… we shall see how your pseudo bayern super team goes this season 😛
have you done an a league fantasy team yet mate?
Aussie Magpie Fan(Quote)
tropical fairies 😆 they wear bright orange those tropical fairies 😆 😆
Aussie Magpie Fan(Quote)
Fantasy team in. Pity all the Brisbane players were priced too high, but I managed to get 3 of them – which meant padding things out with dross from lesser entities like Perth.
brisvegas(Quote)
Bris…Believe it or not I found that quite interesting 😯 😉 I’ve read before about the “Eurosnobbery” in Oz and find it puzzling, I just love watching football at any level. I used to watch the local village team play most weeks home and away when I was in UK and could enjoy it as much as watching a Premier league game, often more than. When I lived in Alicante I watched Hercules Alicante play and enjoyed that. You get great games, goals, saves at any level and despite being a Newcastle fan born and bred it hasn’t put me off football, I love it just love it!
richietoon(Quote)
🙄 Football aside, you’re a snob when it comes to everything else 😆
Aussie Magpie Fan(Quote)
Richie I too found it interesting but saying that I wouldnt want to read anymore 😆
Big Dave(Quote)
Ooooh, has one rattled the peasants cage? 😆
richietoon(Quote)
Dave…Aye some articles are shorter, I thought to myself halfway through Bris obviously isn’t working on a book at the moment 😆
richietoon(Quote)
😆 jokes aside, I’m the same as you cuda, when it comes to football, i don’t mind what league/level it is, just love the game..
Aussie Magpie Fan(Quote)
Aye Aussie, all the more enjoyable when 2 lads getting paid **** all will go in full pelt for a 50/50 without even thinking as opposed to 50K a week Premier league player who won’t even go in half hearted for a 60/40 in his favour.
richietoon(Quote)
Ahhh, the sound of a booming 50/50 tackle on a quiet ground 😆 used to love that stuff when i was playing, loved the contest.. sadly it is all behind me now. 😕 it is a lot less taxing on the body when you watch a game from the couch or sideline tho
Aussie Magpie Fan(Quote)
Actually, Richie, just started one. But I’m editing this one, not writing it.
I could go on and tell you about the atrocious treatment football has had from the media. I could tell you about active fandom, especially the Melbourne Victory and Western Sydney fans – I love the West Syd fans (Who do we sing for? We sing for Wanderers). I could go on about the rebranding of football and the code wars going on about who owns the name football.
But I won’t. I wouldn’t want to bore anybody … more than they already are. 😉
brisvegas(Quote)
Aussie aye,the auld knees put an end when my cousin smashed his leg I was the other end of the pitch and heard the fecker go 😯 …another good thing is you can give the ref dogs of abuse and he can actually hear you
richietoon(Quote)
Ha ha true, I got a “few” cards for questioning a “few” refs calls.. 😆
I remember a game, we were playing in a velodrome type stadium, not many crew watching and our striker went into a 50/50 with the keeper and i can still hear the sound to this day. He had a compound fracture and no ****, the contact between the two echoed through out the ground.. let me say, it was deathly quiet after that while awaited for an ambulance..worst one I’ve seen….
Aussie Magpie Fan(Quote)
Richie I went to watch the sons game last week and really enjoyed it, then we went to our estates team that are playing in a league like 1st division and it was fuking excellent .so looking forward till tomorrows games
Big Dave(Quote)
Aussie… My cousin’s was the worst for me but probably purely just because it was my cuz. double fracture one a clean break and his leg was at a reet funny angle, the best thing was he straightened the fecker himself while waiting for the ambulance 😯
Dave…Then a Toon match comes along then ruins the feel good factor 😉 😆
richietoon(Quote)
Richie well I was lucky lastweek that the Toon kept my feel good factor going 😀
Big Dave(Quote)
Dave…and long may it continue 😀
richietoon(Quote)
Wahey 😛
Uzzy Ozzy has been ignoring me. 😀
FTSOTB 😀
I just thought you were ignoring Big Dave cos he proved you wrong. 😀
Dave, please give Aussie another pasting fella, he’s coming out his hissy fit. 😀
Troy Stavers(Quote)
The greatest hissy fit is now taking place by Aussie. 😆
He’s seeeeeeeeeeething 😀
I’ve just zoomed in on google earth live and he’s bashing his ute again with a eucalyptus branch! 😀
Comedy moments. 😀
He’s never ganna live this one doon. The best bit is, he’s allowing me to body slam him without challenge. 😀
Woo hoo hoo hoo 😀
Troy Stavers(Quote)
Great to see some football in prime time instead of this 2am lark. Not the best of games, but they are two pretty ordinary teams. Sydney 2-0 Newcastle. Del Piero the big difference.
Roll on the big Melbourne derby tomorrow. Love it. Just love it. Wait until the PL starts up again and I’ll have wall-to-wall football every Saturday until May. This is what heaven should be like.
Howay the lads. Caarn the Roar.
brisvegas(Quote)
Troy i told you at 430 that i was deliberately not replying to wind you up.. catch on fella, it has only taken a day 😛 plus you really haven’t asked a question of me, have you.. to be fair, there only has just been lots of uzzying, woo hooing, fizzing and seething… 😆 😆
Aussie Magpie Fan(Quote)
Watched the game too Vegas.. like you said, a steady opening game.. loving the mid arvo footy as well…
Aussie Magpie Fan(Quote)
Well Aussie are you feeling better now or are you still pissed of with me for embarrassing you on the blog, I do feel bad but you did push me into it
Big Dave(Quote)
Bris- interesting stuff on Aussie footy. We have similar issues here in the states with travel and the prevelance of other more popular domestic sports. I never thought th US could long sustain a decent domestic league but here we are 20 years later with MLS attendences averaging over 20K (40K in Seattle) and a big TV deal. I saw one study ranked it the 7th best league in the world ahead of Eredivise and Ligue 1 (not sure I buy that personally but whatever) so there’s hope mate.
MDS(Quote)
MDS what are the average crowds like in Basketball, Football (american) and Baseball? Are they much bigger than in the MLS?
Santii(Quote)
Santii- Basketball and Ice Hockey are around 17-18K (of course they are played in indoor arenas), Baseball probably around 25K (though 35-40K+ for the big popular clubs), and NFL 70K+
MDS(Quote)
How many years has it taken our Aussie and American friends to wake up to the greatest sport in the world 😉 good job we got plenty of ex pats there to educate them.
KIMTOON(Quote)
MDS ,that’s pretty good attendances all things considered.
KIMTOON(Quote)
Aye Kim and its still a relatively new league as well i think a few more years and it will surpass Baseball for attendance (Baseball has to be the most boring sport out of all the one MDS mentioned)
I think the US national team will play a massive part in getting fans interested in the sport. American are a very patriotic bunch so if their national team do well the numbers will swell.
Santii(Quote)
Santi ,I agree mate . Got to say baseball strips look cool though 😉
KIMTOON(Quote)
Santii, the problem is that you have loads of footy fans over here that follow the EPL, Serie A or Liga MX but won’t give MLS the time of day. That’s starting to change now a bit though as the quality of play and the tv coverage have improved.
Very doubtful it will ever catch up with baseball though. Although the attendence average are somewhat close in number baseball has a 162 gmae season so in terms of total fans it really isn’t close. Teams like the Yankees and L.A. Dodgers are worth more than Aresnal or Liverpool for example.
MDS(Quote)
I’m just amazed that that the USA could turn a game of rounders into a national sport.
sidekick(Quote)
Right ,c’mon England lets have something to look forward to in the summer 😉
KIMTOON(Quote)
500 😯 come on Aussie ask the Lass to knock an article out, as she always does a good job
Big Dave(Quote)
What does england need yet to qualify
MDS(Quote)
MDS ,need to win tonight and Tuesday mate .
KIMTOON(Quote)
Dave , he’ll be asleep in his eucalyptus tree now mate cuddled up to his pet koala 😉
KIMTOON(Quote)
England are pish 🙁 Rooney doing nowt at all. 👿
Munich Mag(Quote)
That’s just what we need, Rooney dropping back so he can line up alongside Gerrard and Lampard playing square passes across the back.
What formation are England playing ffs ?
Munich Mag(Quote)
England have 2 gears, slow and slower absolutely dreadful stuff.
Munich Mag(Quote)
Making hard work of this England ,if they are this slow in England in the heat of Rio they will be standing still 🙄 😳
KIMTOON(Quote)
Rooney hits the post 🙄 oh dear gonna be one of them games again 🙁
KIMTOON(Quote)
Kimtoon, that wa a sitter from Rooney. He had the pouting Sturridge waiting in the middle too 🙁
Munich Mag(Quote)
Half time ffft
KIMTOON(Quote)
MM ,aye not good is it mate. We might be on top but it means ****** all if we don’t convert to a win . 😳
KIMTOON(Quote)
England kick off 15 minutes later than Ukraine, and know exactly what they need to do…but can’t do it. Surely we can make our class difference tell in the second half ?
Munich Mag(Quote)
This article is a ****** to refresh 🙁
KIMTOON(Quote)
MM ,Always have to make heavy weather of it ,never do it the easy way do we, quite simply we ain’t that good.
KIMTOON(Quote)
Ireland giving Germany a really good game. Couldn’t we sign a couple of those Irish players ? We used to have Scots and Irish in the toon team, now it’s all things european :-(…. we don’t even have many Englishmen in the team nowadays 🙁
Munich Mag(Quote)
Rooney goalllll at last
KIMTOON(Quote)
England really do think they are better than they really are.
I hope Montenegro beat them. I would love a world cup without having to hear about how this golden generation of failures could do it this year or then i wouldn’t have to watch their ***** football.
I bet not one of those players cares more about their country than their club.
England need a complete overhaul. Get the youngsters in now and get rid of the old guard who have never and will never win anything with England.
Santii(Quote)
England have too many average players in the side. There again, I suppose they are the best we have to offer 🙁
Munich Mag(Quote)
Cabaye and Debuchy have both scored for France tonight 6-0 and counting lol
Santii(Quote)
ffs what a soft goal
KIMTOON(Quote)
Santii@519, they’re only playing against the Skippy’s though 🙂
There again, 2 and a half toon players in the French first 11 🙂
Munich Mag(Quote)
What a goal from Townsend superb
KIMTOON(Quote)
What a goal he has been England’s best player by far tonight.
Santii(Quote)
lol MM wonder if Aussie and Bris cheered them goals 😛
Santii(Quote)
Get in Townsend. A breath of fresh air in a stuttering England midfield. 3-1 England.
Munich Mag(Quote)