Brighton fans comment on Newcastle United, Rafa Benitez, NUFC supporters and our City after 1-0 win
There weren’t many Brighton fans who had made the journey.
However, those that did make the trip to St James Park saw a rare event, their first Premier League away victory in 11 months.
After 12 defeats and 5 draws, they at last got three points – they’d only picked up four points on their travels since drawing at St James Park in December.
For Newcastle fans, Rafa Benitez and the players, it was another tough day to experience.
Not deserving to lose and indeed probably deserving to win – but when you lack quality going forward, these things can happen no matter how much possession you do have.
An interesting collection of views below from Brighton fans.
Read what they made of the game, Newcastle supporters, Rafa Benitez, and even our fair City.
Brighton fans comment via their main North Stand Chat message board:
‘Rafa says we were time wasting from the first minute ..bless him.’
‘That’s fair enough. He’s been wasting his time for the last two and half years.’
‘I actually feel slightly sorry for Rafa. He’s on a hiding to nothing there. The Toon fans are all turning on Ashley, not Benitez.’
‘I’m not buying that.
Ashley has backed Rafa.
He knew he could hide behind Ashley’s general shi..houseary.
He’s acutely aware of the club and how it’s run, and he’s still there picking up his large pay cheque.
If the Toon Army weren’t so myopic they might realise Rafa isn’t the manager they think he is.’
‘First league win away in 18 and first clean sheet on the road in seven. Took the lead for the first time in more than 14 hours of football away from Falmer.
Stats were a bit down all over the team, and you can’t blame Rafa for being a bit grumpy when Toon had 27 shots, but we usually get a bit of luck up there (four clean sheets out of five at SJP). Colonel Cautious’s first win as a manager there in five. So that was nice.’
‘Newcassel will be wondering what the f…. happened out there , we offered virtually NOTHING going forward and gave the ball away like we didn’t want it…’
‘Losing to little ole Brighton could be the demise of the MASSIVE TOON ARMY.
We win and all the talk on Sky is about Newcastle and not our great away performance. So, see ya Sky and the Spanish waiter **** these so called massive clubs they are wan.ers!’
‘Second half we didnt get forward anywhere near enough to take the pressure of the defence and I admit we were maybe a bit lucky Newcastle could not hit a barn door 99/100 times.’
‘Of all the clubs in the PL, NUFC is surely the one that least deserves it (singing ‘Your support is f…ing sh..’).
In the dog eat dog world at the bottom half of the league, I was of course delighted that we beat them. However, to me they are one of the most likeable clubs in the league, with one of the most genuine, least up their own arses fan bases.
(It’s so easy to be magnanimous when you’ve just won!)’
‘Alan Shearer, Jimmy Nail, Cheryl Cole, Ant and Dec, Gazza and Brown Ale – your boys took one HELL of a beating!’
‘Terrible performance. Newcastle were awful and we were just as bad apart from a lucky goal.
Hughton sets us up SO defensively with March playing as an extra full-back.’
‘We were awesome!!!!
Get in there!
Have it Benitez – Fat Spanish Waiter.’
‘Turns out we can play like that for 90 minutes and get a win. And a clean sheet.
Newcastle are in serious trouble.
The table is looking pretty good tonight.’
‘The timing was embarrassing though, as the chant came shortly after the whole stadium had applauded Murray off the pitch on a stretcher!!!’
‘The people & hospitality are always spot on when I visit. Lovely city too with great culture and nightlife (like Brighton).
If you were to calculate success vs attendance, no team in the country would come close to Newcastle in terms of loyalty and commitment to their club.
They never win anything (unless handed a Championship title on a plate) yet continuously pull in 50k gates. That’s a fact – but they were still silent yesterday.’
‘The atmosphere at SJP is insanely overrated. It’s poor. Amex is far better.’
‘I agree. Ive been there 4 times now, twice following the Albion, and been very disappointed every time. Esp. considering there’s 50k of them. Amex is better by far for atmosphere
And I don’t really get why they’re not doing anything if they really hate Ashley as they supposedly do. Turning up, tutting and moaning for 80 minutes before deciding ‘fook this I’m going home’ is not going to drive him out of the club. All seems a bit lame to me considering how passionate we always hear they are in the media?
… But yes, great city etc.’
‘I thought it was more a reference to the complete lack of anything resembling an atmosphere from their fans for most of the game.
I agree regarding your general view of Toon fans though.’
‘Great bunch, had some good chats up there, genuinely concerned about Murray, no aggro seen etc etc but the atmosphere in the ground was really flat and disappointing – they made almost no noise at all. Loudest noise was when they booed the subbing of Mutu.’
‘They were probably fed up. But looking around at a nearly full 50000 capacity stadium, i was a little embarrassed by the chant. And not a peep of unpleasantness around town afterwards, just lots of resigned shrugs and congrats to our boys.’
‘Love the city and Geordies generally but the club is a mass of contradictions, summed up by that ground, which is a ridiculously unbalanced monument to a sustained absence of vision or forward planning over many, many years.
I’d like to see them deliver some sort of success to the fans – a League Cup or something – but of course if it comes to them or us surviving in the PL, then no contest.’
‘On the box, it seemed like the director was intent on showing miserable middle aged, or over, male Newcastle fans all game. It gave the impression the game was being played at an old people’s home.’
‘That’s modern football for you have a look around the Amex next game.’
‘I went to SJP during our promotion season and the atmosphere was dire even though they won. Complete myth that their support is anywhere near noisy. They were one of my three pre season picks for relegation and I truly hope my prediction comes true.’
‘To be fair to their supporters (in general), the cockney wan.er has been owner for many years now.
Correct me if I am wrong but I think they have a very well paid manager who has ben sufficiently persuaded that he can spend moderate amounts (at least on a par with Uddersfild and, ahem, Brighton). Said manager has binned off the likes of Gayle and Mitrovic (players who I have always regarded with a certain amount of envy, especially when Murray was clearly ‘past it’ at Bournemouth).
Said manager is still there though, presumably with an idea there is a tunnel with a light at the end. Said manager now seems to have lost his ability to attract good young talent though.
All that said, if I were a Newcastle fan, I would probably slump along, grouch a bit, and slope off at 88 minutes (well, being me it would be 75 minutes, but I do have a ‘long drive’). Booing Rafa’s team, waving a ‘cockney wan.er out’ banner, or boycotting games and marching to FW’s house with a poet holding a megaphone would probably not be on my ‘to do’ list.’
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