On the most haunted night of the year, it was one-time Stoke
target Demba Ba who returned to put the chills up their manager
Tony Pulis with a terrific treble.
Ba was set to sign for the Potters in January only to fail a
medical after a £6million fee was agreed with German side
Hoffenheim.
Newcastle boss Alan Pardew took a risk though in the summer by
bagging him on a free — and the Senegal star has responded
sensationally with eight goals in his last four Prem games.
This well-deserved win, with Argy duo Fabricio Coloccini and
Jonas Gutierrez outstanding, not only keeps Newcastle's unbeaten
run going it has also lifted them into third place. Okay, they may
not be there in May — but try telling the Toon army to look down
instead of up.
The horror show many Geordies felt would unravel this term has
turned into an all-too-rare Tyneside tale of happiness and
light.
It could have gone all ghoulish for Newcastle when Jon Walters
smacked home a penalty on 75 minutes but this is a Toon side with
resolve and spirit.
And on 81 minutes, a stupid push by Robert Huth on Leon Best
gave Ba the chance to score his second hat-trick of the season.
Pardew's last visit to the Britannia in March produced a
comprehensive 4-0 thumping but yesterday the tables were turned.
Lots of aimless passing, lots of huffing and even more puffing
marked the opening exchanges.
Then, all of a sudden, Newcastle were ahead. A long clearance
from Tim Krul was nodded on by Best into the path of winger Gabriel
Obertan.
His first-time cross was a peach and it found Ba beautifully in
the box to nod past Asmir Begovic from four yards.
The goal galvanized Toon and on 24 minutes, they almost made it
two. A fantastic through ball from Yohan Cabaye set Ba through but
this time Begovic raced out to clear the danger.
Stoke were trying to bombard the box but nothing was coming off
even though the normally-unflappable Krul had a nightmarish moment
when he fluffed a Jermaine Pennant cross and almost sent the ball
goalwards.
Matt Etherington forced the Dutchman into a decent stop soon
afterwards yet, on the whole, Pardew's men were well organised and
ruthlessly efficient. And as half-time approached the Toon army
were jumping as Ba made it two.
Coloccini's long ball was pumped into the box and Matt Upson's
header flew straight to Best.
The Irishman's control was top notch before his slightly-scuffed
cross shot fell to Ba who made no mistake from four yards.
Pardew did a little jig in the technical area. He couldn't
believe it and nor, probably, could the Geordie nation. This isn't
how Newcastle normally do things.
The home side were wretched in the opening 45 and had to improve
after the break. And so they did for a spell. Huth headed just over
as the Potters tried to build some pressure. But Toon, marshalled
superbly once again by Coloccini and the maskwearing Steven Taylor,
repelled just about everything.
There seemed no way through until 75 minutes when Ba was at the
centre of the action again.
As the ball flew around in the box, the former West Ham man went
to challenge Peter Crouch in the box and, although the lanky
striker went down easily, ref Mike Dean did not hesitate to point
to the spot.
Walters smacked in the penalty and all of a sudden, the
Britannia erupted.
But the stadium was silenced six minutes later when Ba slotted
in from the spot to seal the deal and send Stoke crashing to their
first home reverse of the season.
So another three points gives Newcastle their best start in 15
years and they sit ahead of Chelsea this morning, one point behind
Manchester United.
Newcastle in the Champions League spots? Scary stuff indeed.
DREAM TEAM
STAR MAN - DEMBA BA (Newcastle)
STOKE: Begovic 6, Wilkinson 6, Shawcross 4
(Upson 5), Woodgate 5, Wilson 5 (Huth 6), Pennant 6, Delap 5,
Whelan 6, Etherington 6 (Jones 5), Walters 6, Crouch 5. Subs not
used: Sorensen, Whitehead, Jerome, Palacios.
NEWCASTLE: Krul 6, Simpson 8, Steven Taylor 8,
Coloccini 8, Ryan Taylor 8, Obertan 8, Guthrie 8 (Gosling 5),
Cabaye 8 (Perch 6), Gutierrez 8, Best 8 (Sammy Ameobi 5), Ba 9.
Subs not used: Elliot, Santon, Ben Arfa, Marveaux. Booked:
Perch.
