Drop on the Tyne

Alan Shearer's search for a remedy to the poison chalice that is the Managerial hot seat at Newcastle United, comes to a fruitless end, and with it the Magpies 16 year love affair with the Premier League.

Since their Promotion from the then Division 1, in 1993 Newcastle United have served up some priceless moments, such as Kevin Keegan's "I'd love it if we beat them rant" rant, Faustino Asprilla's rubber legs and his hattrick in the Champions League -yes Champions League! Its these kinds of moments over the years that have made Newcastle, many supporters, including myself, their second team. Being a Liverpool supporter, I will certainly miss the clashes with Newcastle, that so often produced a goal feast.

Despite all the sentimental values and moments of nostalgia from the past, at Villa Park today, and like so often over the course of the season, Newcastle fell woefully short of the standard needed to ply your trade in the Premier League, and what could be deemed an insult, even the Championship.

Watching the game, it was no surprise that Newcastle would end up being condemned to relegation, via a hugely unfortunate deflection that saw Damien Duff gifted with the misfortune of an own goal. When your battling away in the drop zone, bad luck has a tendency to follow you like a bad smell, literally rubbing your nose in it.

Quite how a club as large as Newcastle, that possess many experienced Premier League players even managed to get themselves embezzled in a relegation battle is astounding, and can only be attributed to the managerial merry go round that has seen no less than four managers at the helm of St James'. Of course, many questions will be posed to the commitment and desire of certain players at the club, but as we have seen in the past time and time again, managerial uncertainty so often fuels the descent, from previous lofty heights. I'm sure many Geordie's would disagree, but would Newcastle be in this predicament had they not fired Sam Allardyce? Allardyce may have been responsible for Newcastle's dismal start, but I think had he been given more time, he would have dug Newcastle out of trouble, albeit in the most ugly of agricultural fashions.

Prior to the anticipated mass exodus of players from St Jame's, as Newcastle begin to prepare for life in England's second tier, a decision will have to be made on the immediate and long term future of interim manager, Alan Shearer. His managerial career may have started with the unsightly stain of relegation being marked on his CV, but this could be a blessing in disguise for at least Shearer, if not Newcastle as a whole. Nobody wants to be relegated, but this will force Newcastle, if not only for financial reason, to restructure and rid some of the dead wood that has rotted in its old age.

Over the last year, more than fog has descended over Newcastle, and at times I would have rather have watched Gazza's one hit singing wonder, Fog on the Tyne, than some of the football Newcastle have offered. I hope for Newcastle sake, home town legend Alan Shearer is given a permanent contact at St James, where he can offer them some stability, before any temptations of a music career are explored.