Newcastle United 6; Everton 2:There have been times this season when Newcastle United have not received the credit their unexpected rise in the Premiership has deserved. But there will be those who rush to praise them too extravagantly for this superficially impressive result.
Six goals and three more points to consolidate Newcastle's fourth-place position represent a good afternoon's work, but only the most skeletal of arguments could be constructed to encourage Bobby Robson's belief that his side could yet come third.
Had Newcastle not been playing a side with a defence every bit as dodgy as their own this would have been a much less comfortable occasion. Apparently unflustered at the interval, Everton fell apart.
True, Newcastle improved after half-time, Kieron Dyer getting his fast act together to combine with Jermaine Jenas and Nolberto Solano to give Alan Shearer some support, yet there was an ease about the way Everton were beaten that was almost inexplicable.
Having been tight and organised for much of the first half - barring the 13th-minute aberration that allowed Shearer an acre to equalise Duncan Ferguson's bizarre opener against his former club - Everton showed David Moyes just what former manager Walter Smith had to put up with.
"For 60 minutes I actually thought we did really well," said Moyes, and you could see his logic. Carl Cort had scored his first goal of the season to give Newcastle a 2-1 lead only for some defending that Shearer called "crazy" to allow Niclas Alexandersson make it 2-2. That remained the score until just before the hour.
Nikos Dabizas had been the home defence's principal villain, though Sylvain Distin was not far behind in terms of incompetence. The game was poor, there was no atmosphere in the stadium and Newcastle's midfield were struggling to get going.
Despite a blast from Robson in the dressing-room - "We're a strong family and we talked strongly at half-time" - the second half began in a similarly sluggish state. Then the Everton defence started to resemble Newcastle's.
The lethargic Laurent Robert summoned the energy to deliver a corner. Dabizas jumped for a header, the ball fell loose and Andy O'Brien scooped it past Steve Simonsen from three yards. Robson called it a "four-letter goal".
Everton conceded three in the last 33 minutes at Derby last Saturday and they were now on their way to leaking four in 29 minutes. Their deterioration coincided with Dyer's upsurge. With 20 minutes to go he exchanged a swift one-two with Shearer and hurtled past Pistone. Reaching the Everton area, he found Solano lurking in the middle. A calm side-foot and it was 4-2. A fine goal.
A minute later Jenas teed up Solano in comparable style, this time Everton being sliced through the middle.
Newcastle returned to the wings to clip Everton one last time. Lomano Lua-Lua is everybody's idea of a frustrating talent, but once he had skipped past Steve Watson he raced 50 yards and squared for his fellow substitute Olivier Bernard to make it six.
Then, finally, some realism from Robson. "Losing 3-0 to Arsenal and Liverpool doesn't say we're close to them."
Nor does beating Everton 6-2.
NEWCASTLE: Given, Hughes, O'Brien, Dabizas, Distin, Solano, Jenas, Dyer (Acuna 78), Robert (Bernard 74), Shearer, Cort (Lua-Lua 74). Subs Not Used: Elliott, Harper. Goals: Shearer 13, Cort 15, O'Brien 59, Solano 71, 73, Bernard 88.
EVERTON: Simonsen, Pistone (Blomqvist 74), Stubbs, Weir, Unsworth, Alexandersson, Gemmill, Gravesen, Hibbert (Watson 30), Radzinski (Chadwick 74), Ferguson. Subs Not Used: Gerrard, Moore. Booked: Watson, Pistone, Unsworth. Goals: Ferguson 6, Alexandersson 34.
Referee: G Poll (Tring).
