Newcastle's slip leaves United on the brink

A POINT at Middlesbrough on Sunday and Manchester United will be Premiership champions. Newcastle United's failure to win an eminently winnable match at the City Ground last night has seen to that.

A 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest leaves Newcastle within striking distance of Alex Ferguson's team. They are now only two points behind. Crucially, however, they are still six adrift on goal difference, which means that unless Tottenham are beaten by an improbable margin at St James' Park, Manchester United will merely need to avoid defeat at the Riverside Stadium to win the title.

Paradoxically, this was Newcastle's most convincing performance since doubts had set in about their ability to sustain the challenge which had seen them establish a 12 point lead at the top in late January. After Peter Beardsley, again at his most commanding, had scored a stunning goal to give his team a half time lead, victory seemed assured.

Yet, just as Newcastle were threatening to enter the final weekend shoulder to shoulder with Manchester United, Ian Woan equalised with a shot that struck at the core of St James' Park's hopes. To add to Newcastle's frustrations, Mark Crossley, beaten five times at Old Trafford on Sunday, achieved an astonishing double save in stoppage time to deny them victory.

Maybe the psychologists were right about Kevin Keegan's Monday night tirade against Ferguson relieving the pressure on his team. Certainly Newcastle were more relaxed last night than they had been at Elland Road.

Keegan swallowed a bit of pride by dropping Faustino Asprilla, his £7 million Colombian, who had looked jaded at Leeds and only came off the bench for the last three minutes still looking jaded. This meant that with David Ginola back from suspension and Keith Gillespie keeping his place, Newcastle had at last regained the balance so crucial to their initial championship challenge.

Yet the wingers both substituted late in the game, were less of an influence in a performance which owed more to the reestablishment of Beardsley's close links with Les Ferdinand.

Ferdinand, however, was guilty of missing crucial chances for the second time in four days.

For a time Forest's patient passing dominated the game. Then Beardsley changed all that.

In the 31st minute Beardsley, collecting a pass from David Batty 20 yards inside the Forest, half ran diagonally at the defence, shook his hips, dropped a shoulder, kept them guessing and then beat Haaland on the outside before scoring with a firm left footed shot a goal as superb as it appeared crucial for Newcastle's hopes.

Then came the missed chances, Ferdinand hitting high over the bar before half time and, in the 67th minute, making good contact with a header and achieved considerable power, only to see the ball rebound from the bar.

The possible cost of such misses and near misses soon became apparent, and in dramatic fashion. In the 74th minute Woan, exploiting a rare error by Batty, who allowed the ball to slip under his foot, struck a resounding equaliser from 25 yards.

Swarming attacks by Newcastle followed and in the 89th minute an aberrant ball from Steve Stone left Philippe Albert in possession and facing Crossley. A goal seemed certain, momentarily the championship was wide open, but the Forest goalkeeper first blocked the Belgian's shot, then pushed the ball clear before he could score from the rebound.

To the last it seems Manchester United are being well served by good goal keeping.