Stoke City 4 Newcastle United 0

Mar 20 2011 by Mark Douglas, Sunday Sun

MAKE no mistake, plummeting Newcastle United are now scrapping for their lives in the closest relegation fight of the Premier League era.

Eleventh in a tightly-packed top flight they may be, but no seasoned black- and-white observer will be falling for that mirage.

Not after a second-half surrender devoid of spirit and as insipid as anything served up during this schizophrenic campaign.

Yes, Newcastle United were that bad in the second 45.

Unlucky to be behind at the interval, they imploded alarmingly after the break to leave Mike Ashley’s January transfer gamble looking well and truly exposed.

Never the biggest or most loaded squad in the top flight, what has set United apart from their mid-table rivals are their determination and drive.

Here, in a game pin-pointed as vital for Toon to turn the corner, unspectacular Stoke prevailed because they simply desired it more.

It is that more than the shrinking gap between United and rock-bottom Wigan which will be setting the alarm bells clanging on Tyneside this morning.

Where to start unpicking this one? With the tactical gambles which once again backfired on Alan Pardew?

Or with a flaccid forward line that is struggling to plug the giant gaps left by the sale of Andy Carroll?

The Toon boss won credit for his brave calls earlier in the campaign.

Never afraid to roll the dice, turning the tide against rampant Arsenal with a series of inspired substitutions was a particular highlight of his embryonic reign.

However, deep in the thick of a brutal Britannia battle, his decision to revert to a 3-5-2 system, to call Sol Campbell back after a three-month absence and to take a risk on a half-fit Jose Enrique all looked flawed.

Campbell was called in from the cold to provide the bulk to brush off Rory Delap’s giant throws, and for half an hour he managed to keep hulking former Black Cat Kenwyne Jones relatively quiet.

However, for the game’s turning point just before the half-hour, he was caught chasing static shadows when John Walters stole in to head Stoke ahead.

In short, he looked like a player who has made just four starts all season.

Watching on from the bench, Steven Taylor must have wondered what might have been.

Ripped apart at right-back against Everton last time out, what he would have given for a crack at redemption in his favoured centre-back slot here. Until then it had been nip and tuck, United quick out of the traps and looking ominous thanks to former Stoke loanee Shola Ameobi.

The masked hit man was showing nice touches and was presented with a decent half chance on five minutes after smart work by Danny Simpson – again handed a more advanced role as a roaming wing-back.

An even better black and white opportunity was scrambled away on 27 minutes when Joey Barton’s floating cross was nodded back by Campbell – only for Kevin Nolan to see Danny Higginbotham hack it away on the line.