For only the second time in the history of Newcastle United and after a sizzling winter of eight straight wins, a domestic treble will be alive leaving January.
Even then, on the previous occasion in 1976, they were bouncing around the bottom half of the old First Division and duly ended the season empty-handed.
Today, Eddie Howe’s side are fifth in the Premier League and hold a two-goal lead over Arsenal ahead of a Carabao Cup semi-final second leg. They are also into the fourth round of the FA Cup for only the second time in five years – not that this passage was as smooth as the scoreline may suggest.
Howe was not happy with some of what he saw during a first half in which League Two Bromley took the lead and could have had a second before Lewis Miley smashed a super equaliser from 25 yards. But there was nothing super about a performance that lacked energy and quality.
There was mitigation. Nine changes brought in several from the cold. But come half-time, Howe might well have felt like making another nine. Instead, he made two – who cost a combined £85million – and within four minutes, one of them, Anthony Gordon, had scored the penalty that gave the hosts a lead they would not relinquish. The England winger had shown more urgency in those four minutes than many mustered in the previous 45.
Captain Bruno Guimaraes was the other half-time arrival and, when William Osula made it 3-1 just after the hour, there was an argument to take the Brazilian and Gordon back off again. They had shown how to control and influence a game in just quarter of an hour on the pitch.
Lewis Miley provided the crucial equaliser for Newcastle after the hosts fell behind early on
Anthony Gordon put Newcastle ahead from the spot just four minutes after the restart
William Osula gave Newcastle breathing space as his goal made it 3-1 at St James’ Park
Miley was the one starter who emerged with real credit, making his first start since February. The midfielder, 18, has grown physically during his period out with injury and, on the evidence of him not shying away despite his team’s early struggle, there has been a mental maturity, too.
‘Lewis’ strike was an incredible long-range hit, it’s not really something you see regularly with him,’ said Howe. ‘But he played very well today. The onus was on him as the six to start a lot of our attacks, and I thought he kept his composure, as he always does. He picked a lot of nice passes. There’ll be an element of frustration in him because he’ll want to play more. But he won’t do himself any harm by how he performed today.’
Osula’s goal still shaded Miley’s as the pick of the lot, cutting infield from the right and lashing into the top corner with his left for his first in black and white. The Norway Under-21 forward is a project player for Howe and his staff and, during 69 minutes of some good and some bad, there is clearly work to be done. It is, though, worth preserving.
‘It was a big moment for Will,’ said Howe. ‘Any striker wants to score when they go to a new club – they want to score early just to settle them down. He’s been waiting and waiting and needing that goal, really. It was a spectacular one when it came – what a strike from him. We have seen that regularly in training, he’s a good finisher.’
But a word for Bromley’s opener, too. It arrived on eight minutes when Swansea loanee Cameron Congreve collected the ball 25 yards out and bent around the dive of Martin Dubravka, the goalkeeper who now looks set to stay at the club amid an offer from Saudi Arabia.
Danny Imray ran through on goal soon after and shaved the post, and a 2-0 lead would not have been undeserved for a side some 75 places below Newcastle in the football pyramid.
Eddie Howe’s side march on after they dismantled the League Two minnows on Sunday
Miley then hammered the equaliser on 16 minutes before the second-half changes duly changed the course of the tie. It is credit to Andy Woodman’s Bromley that Howe felt the need to finish the game with five of his recent regulars on the pitch.
Woodman, the former Newcastle goalkeeping coach, said: ‘I really hope Newcastle can win some silverware. It has been a monkey on the club’s back for so long. Nothing would give me greater pleasure.’
It may seem unremarkable that the Magpies are still in both cup competitions entering February. But when the last and only time they achieved that was nearly 50 years ago, it demonstrates how barren a period they have suffered.
No-one is suffering on Tyneside right now and the bandwagon rolls on, even if they did have to endure a bumpy first half here.
