Pod On The Tyne: an independent NUFC podcast

Defeat at Crystal Palace, particularly the nature of it and especially the closing half hour, have left us in no doubt that significant changes are needed and it seems they are on the way. But, what will those changes look like? We consider the options.
The Bournemouth game now carries weight; not only as one Howe's team must win to regain any momentum in their pursuit of European football. There is added spice with news that opposition manager Andoni Iraola, an appealing prospect to many fans, has decided to leave the Cherries this summer.
Les Ferdinand will be forever remembered as the free-scoring spearhead of Kevin Keegan's doomed title bid in 1995/96. Remarkably, he is also one of the first eleven black players to represent the club. Those players will be celebrated by Wor Flags as part of a Show Racism the Red Card event at the Bournemouth game this Saturday. His feelings on the display are, understandably, conflicted.

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Newcastle had three weeks off; loads of the internationals had a rest, one or two good players returned from injury, and the squad had plenty of time on the training pitch...
...and then the same thing happened. Time to worry.

Three weeks without a Premier League fixture may have been a little excessive but we're fully refreshed, hydrated, and ready to resume hostilities at *check notes* Selhurst Park *groan*.
Kieran Trippier is now in the closing stages of his time as a Newcastle player having announced his departure at the end of his current deal, this summer. What an impact he has had in his time with us!
Unfortunately, The Lasses(TM) are facing up to another season in WSL2 after a draw at home to Nottingham Forest left their promotion hopes hanging by a thread.

Newcastle’s financial results were published on Monday with a press briefing held at St James’s Park held by CEO David Hopkinson and CFO Simon Capper. The headline story was the transfer of the leasehold of the ground; have NUFC joined the creative accounting collective?
Whenever senior club officials speak to the press footballing matters dominate the questioning and, after a terrible week on the pitch, this time was no different. We consider some of David Hopkinson’s answers, not least his response on Eddie Howe.
Newcastle’s Under 15s won a Premier League tournament over the weekend; the Academy’s Head of Football Development, Mark Atkinson, tells us about what that means, and we check in on a frustrating day for TheLasses™.

That wasn't the week that was in the script. Two huge games, two miserable collapses, several thousand angry geordies.
Will Eddie Howe carry the can for those performances? For the first time in his Newcastle career, there are real concerns about whether he can take the team forward with a squad that lacks the drive, nous, and unity that have been hallmarks of his tenure.
Or, will he finally be given the significant overhaul of playing staff that feels long overdue. European qualification would be a positive step forward, but it feels a distant hope.
Elsewhere, TheLasses(TM) came away with a point in a drab contest with promotion rivals Crystal Palace. Peter Ramage tells us how much he's been enjoying his time working with the team.