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Newcastle United’s Jekyll and Hyde performance against Chelsea in the Premier League typified their season, with a ferocious start succumbing to Blue pressure after the break.

A draw was the end result after Eddie Howe’s side blew their two-goal advantage. However, decisions not to award the St. James’ park side a penalty after Wesley Fofana handled in the box and Trevoh Chalobah’s shove on Anthony Gordon were inexplicable, and it cost Newcastle a precious win.

It also might have cost Nick Woltemade an emphatic hat-trick, with the German striker having fired a brace past Robert Sanchez inside 20 minutes. What a signing he has been for the Magpies.

Nick Woltemade's performance vs Chelsea

The 23-year-old Woltemade has enjoyed a fast start to life in Newcastle, scoring nine times across 23 appearances in all competitions. He was left nursing a bruise after his headed clearance careened into United’s net to seal victory for Sunderland last week, but he redeemed himself with a reminder of his talent against Chelsea.

With a long, loping frame and a natural instinct for scoring goals, Woltemade is proving himself to be a winner of a signing for Newcastle, replacing Alexander Isak for half the price and currently outshining the Liverpool man.

Combining with Gordon for the second, Howe will be delighted to see the technically shar pfrontman deepening his connection with his fellow forwards.

Could Woltemade trump Isak and become the Toon’s finest centre-forward since the days of Alan Shearer? Perhaps he could, but it was actually one of the 23-year-old’s teammates who proved he is Newcastle’s new version of the club legend against Chelsea.

Newcastle's new version of Alan Shearer

Newcastle are a deeply emotional club, and the club-city connection with Shearer was one that remains as strong as ever, with the Premier League’s record goalscorer having posted 206 goals and 58 assists across 405 appearances for his boyhood club.

Woltemade may be a striker with the skills to become an elite player, but it is Lewis Miley who proved against Chelsea that he could be the new homegrown icon.

Miley, 19, has already made 66 senior appearances for Newcastle after being reared in the club’s academy. In this he differs from Shearer, who wended his way down south to Southampton in the formative years of his career.

Praised for his incredible effort in an unnatural full-back role, reporter Andy Sixsmith said he “looked like he’s played there all his career”, stepping up amid injury issues to Kieran Trippier and Tino Livramento.

He completed his one attempted dribble and won his one tackle, but the stats don’t paint the full picture here, with Alejandro Garnacho silenced by the younger man.

Lewis Miley vs Chelsea

Stats (* per game)

#

Minutes played

90′

Touches

61

Shots (on target)

1 (0)

Accurate passes

30/38 (79%)

Possession lost

10x

Chances created

0

Dribbles

1/1

Ball recoveries

9

Tackles won

1/1

Interceptions

3

Clearances

3

Duels won

4/7

Data via Sofascore

Here’s the thing: Miley has proven himself capable of standing out in a Newcastle team awash with elite quality. He could develop into the city’s greatest native since Shearer plied his craft at number nine in black and white.

Subscribe for deeper Newcastle analysis and profiles Explore fuller analysis by subscribing to the newsletter: follow Newcastle’s rising stars, tactical shifts, and player profiles like Woltemade and Miley, with clear breakdowns that deepen your Premier League understanding. Subscribe Subscribe for deeper Newcastle analysis and profiles Explore fuller analysis by subscribing to the newsletter: follow Newcastle’s rising stars, tactical shifts, and player profiles like Woltemade and Miley, with clear breakdowns that deepen your Premier League understanding.

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Chronicle Live even handed the Geordie a 9/10 match rating for his effort against the Londoners, thriving in his moonlit right-back berth.

Miley oozes confidence and maturity. He is shaping into a special player, a homegrown talent who can allay the frustrations around selling Elliot Anderson to Nottingham Forest last year.

Could he become the new Shearer? Certainly, the teenager has endeared himself to the Toon supporters, and he’s only going to get better over the years.

Related Newcastle's £100k-p/w flop looks like another Michael Owen-style disaster

This Newcastle ace has struggled for his best for this season

Posts ByJoe Nuttall

Sleepless nights are an integral part of a Ranji Trophy final, and Railways must have had one after their dismal batting performance on the first day at the Karnail Singh Stadium in Delhi. But if a lack of shut-eye truly does inspire Murali Kartik to the heights he achieved on Thursday, Railways skipper Abhay Sharma might consider forcibly keeping his star spinner awake for the remainder of the match.Resuming on 17 for no loss, Baroda had their task laid out before them like an immaculately maintained Japanese garden. All that their batsmen had to do was to notch up a big first-innings score and take the all-important lead. What transpired thereafter was bound to favour Baroda more than Railways.When Connor Williams and Satyajit Parab proceeded to add 63 more runs for the first wicket, therefore, everything seemed to be going according to plan. But Parab, soon after getting to his fifty, was caught by Shreyas Khanolkar, giving Kartik his first scalp. Parab departed for 53 (78b, 8×4) with the score on 80.Seven runs later, Williams, who had agonised 95 balls for 24 runs, was bowled by Kartik. The loss of the openers brought skipper Jacob Martin and Nayan Mongia to the crease, but Martin was just in transit. After making 12 off 36 balls, he fell to Harvinder Singh, leaving his side in choppy waters at 112/3.Mongia then stood mute spectator at the other end as Tushar Arothe and Atul Bedade came and left with startling immediacy. Arothe took 25 balls to score two runs, but Bedade was much swifter, using only five balls to make the same score. Both fell to Kartik, a left-arm spinner on a magnificent roll.Kartik ultimately consumed Mongia as well, having him caught by Khanolkar for 32 off 91 balls. At that juncture, the score was 138/6 off 58.3 overs. Within the next 15.3 overs, Railways took the remaining wickets for the addition of only 31 runs. Ajit Bhoite put up some spirited resistance, scoring 17 (60b, 2×4, 1×6), but the other lower-order bats succumbed tamely to Harvinder Singh or Jai P Yadav.Unexpectedly, Railways had garnered a vital 84-run first-innings lead, and the match had turned on its head. Baroda, sorely missing the services of left-arm seamer Zaheer Khan, managed to capture the wicket of Yadav before the close of play, dismissing him for four (17b) with the score on 13.But further breakthroughs were not so forthcoming. Amit Pagnis, as he had in the first innings, looked in excellent touch, striking the ball to the fence four times before the close of play, hitting up 24 off 58 balls. Tejinder Pal Singh, his companion for the second-wicket stand, was content to let Pagnis hit the runs, making three off 40 balls before stumps.Railways, at the end of the day, led by 121 runs, nine wickets remaining in their second innings. If one batsman from the home side is able to play a responsible, even sedate, knock on the third day, Baroda will have their backs to the wall, visions of retaining the Ranji Trophy fading fast before their eyes.

Shane Warne wants to keep on side with officialdom after Cricket Australia gave him a fantastic send-off, according to his manager © Getty Images

Shane Warne will not play in the Indian Cricket League (ICL) but has not ruled out taking part in a proposed Twenty20 tournament sanctioned by the game’s governing bodies. Warne sent a letter to the ICL on Wednesday declining its offer – reported to be worth A$900,000 a season – after he decided joining the group could be detrimental to Australian cricket.”Shane had a tremendous send-off last year, Cricket Australia were unbelievable and he feels he has another 30 years with the game and he wants to keep on side with officialdom,” Warne’s manager James Erskine told the . “He wants and needs to protect his standing in the game and the respect for his achievements.”The paper said the Indian board had asked Warne to play in an official Twenty20 league that would have ICC approval, however Erskine did not confirm if Warne intended to take part. Details are being hastily arranged by national boards but the broad idea is for the top Twenty20 sides in domestic competitions to compete in a Champions League-style format. It is likely that teams would be able to recruit international stars to boost their squads.The reported that the top sides would eventually represent regions, such as Australasia, and two New Zealand teams would join Australia’s domestic Twenty20 competition. However, a Cricket Australia spokesman told the paper it was too early to be discussing such details.Victoria are so far undefeated in Australia’s Twenty20 tournament and their coach, Greg Shipperd, said the Champions League concept was an excellent idea. “We’ve been promised that this was going to happen for a couple of years, and we’ve been itching to have a go and get involved from a team perspective,” he said in the . “We would love to be playing at an international level, albeit not for your country.”

It’s hard to know where Tatenda’s Taibu’s future lies at the moment.In the year since he walked away from Zimbabwe cricket he has had spells in Bangladesh and England. A month ago he stated that he would not return to Zimbabwe to play and hinted that his future lay in South Africa. But after being rebuffed there, he returned home, suggested that he had been misquoted and stated he might again be around to play for Zimbabwe. Barely had the ink dried on those reports than he popped up in Namibia at the weekend keeping for them.”I wanted to be away from the politics in Zimbabwean cricket, and at the same time remain active in competitive cricket, so Namibia is good for me at the moment,” Taibu told the BBC in yet another about face. “I’m going through the contract at the moment and should sign it in the next couple of days.”Taibu is only playing for Namibia in South African domestic cricket – it would take him five years to qualify for the national team.There is an strong feeling inside Zimbabwe that as his options run out, he will be back, and most believe that will be as soon as the tour of Bangladesh next month to enable him to reclaim his place ahead of the World Cup.Last week, Themba Mliswa, the man whose alleged threats sent Taibu and his family into exile, claimed the pair had made up. The only remaining obstacle seems to be the presence of Peter Chingoka at the head of the board, but given Taibu’s ever-changing moods, by next week they may well be on speaking terms as well.

The sky is the limit: Sairaj Bahutule seems to be thinking as Mumbai begin their quest for a 37th Ranji Trophy title© AFP

For all its uncertainty and drama, there are certain instances in sport where the expected almost always happens. Celtic or Rangers normally win the Scottish football title and the Chinese generally win everything in table tennis. If these teams don’t win, it is big news. Winning is a formality. In India, Mumbai usually win the Ranji Trophy.So when the 2004-05 season kicks off tomorrow, with seven Elite Group matches around the country, Mumbai start as strong favourites. History favours them overwhelmingly – 36 titles with their closest rivals winning six. More importantly, they are champions for two seasons running and hardly faced any challenge last time around. Their batsmen cruised along merrily and their bowlers chipped in at the vital moments. They wrapped up the semi-finals within three days and the final was all but over on the second. At the end of it all Chandrakant Pandit, their coach, was talking about the 15-year winning streak from 1959 to 1973.Another massive advantage that Mumbai have this season is that they play five matches at home. With the most balanced bowling line-up in the country, they usually thrive on the sporting Wankhede wicket – assuming of course that the Test match pitch was an anomaly. Three spinners of varied style and strengths – Sairaj Bahutule, Ramesh Powar and Nilesh Kulkarni – and three medium pacers who can consistently hit the right rhythm make them a formidable combination to face up to. Their batting will revolve around Wasim Jaffer, Amol Muzumdar and Vinod Kambli and they have enough allround strength to call up if needed.Their first game, though, against Railways in Delhi, will probably be one of their biggest tests. Railways entered the semi-finals last year and relied on the sum being greater than the parts. Sanjay Bangar and Harvinder Singh have international experience while Kulamani Parida, the offspinner, has been on the fringes of national selection for a while.The other big battle on the opening day will be between Tamil Nadu and Hyderabad at Chennai. Like last season, Tamil Nadu will rely on their high-voltage batting line-up to carry them through, and the first-day collapse in the final would surely rankle. Sadagoppan Ramesh, Sridharan Sriram, Sreedharan Sharath and Hemang Badani form a formidable combination and will have solid back-up in the form of Subramanium Badrinath, who topped the run-charts for them last season, and Dinesh Karthik, the wicketkeeper who slammed crucial hundreds in the semis and finals. Hyderabad don’t have too many stars in their team but they will ride on a mix of experience and youth: their captain, Venkatapathy Raju, and Ambati Rayudu, the 19-year old batsman hailed by some as the next great Indian batting star.It will be interesting to note the progress of Punjab under the guidance of Intikhab Alam, the former Pakistan captain who became the first foreign coach to be in charge of an Indian domestic team. They play their first match against Uttar Pradesh and like last season one would expect their medium pacers to come to the fore.Delhi and Karnataka were good in patches last season, with a few experienced players disappointing. Both teams begin their campaigns away from home – Karnataka against Bengal and Delhi against Gujarat.But whatever all these teams do, it will require something special to upset Mumbai’s quest for their hat-trick of titles. When Richard Cashman, the manager of the New York Yankees, was asked about the difference between his team and the rest he said, “The only difference is that the Yankees always win.” It is a similar story.

Amid much media attention and under a massive downpour Virender Sehwag got married to Aarti, the woman to whom he had dedicated his history-making 309 at Multan. The wedding took place at the residence of Arun Jaitley, the union law minister, in Delhi on Thursday.The function was conducted in a traditional manner, and a grand reception is planned for Saturday, April 24. In close attendance on the day of the wedding were family members, Jagmohan Dalmiya, president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, Ashish Nehra, and several members of the Delhi Ranji Trophy team. Also present were several leading politicians from various parties.On Ashoka Road, where the Jaitley residence is located, a big crowd of curious onlookers gathered. However, tight security at the gates meant that no-one was able to enter the premises without an invitation. A large media contingent, which included a number of television channels, was also waiting – fruitlessly as it turned out.The wedding itself was conducted in traditional fashion, with elaborate arrangements for the stage that included flowers imported from Thailand and Chennai. The Jea Band of Red Fort provided the music while dinner was an elaborate affair, with over 200 dishes reportedly served up.Incidentally several thousand weddings took place on the day in Delhi, Akshay Tritaya, as it was a particularly auspicious day.

The law is the law is the law.Canterbury Cricket have been wrestling with an issue that must raise its head at various times through every season somewhere in the world.The idea that on a rainy day, one game was allowed to carry on while all others were ordered off.The implication being that the players in the game that carried on were given an unfair advantage to collect competition points.So it was in Christchurch on December 7 last year.In a senior grade match between High School Old Boys’ (HSOB) and Marist, the umpires allowed play to continue for an hour longer than other matches. The result was that HSOB achieved an outright win.The other senior Christchurch clubs used their collective muscle to protest the action on the basis of the Canterbury Cricket Association’s Rule 24A and an amendment passed on September 25, 2002 that precluded any time being extended on the second day of a two-day game.Canterbury Cricket upheld the protest.But HSOB appealed and request a review.Canterbury Cricket’s board of directors granted the appeal and appointed an appeal panel. That panel comprised the Association’s code of conduct commissioners Lee Robinson and Keith Hales, the Association president Brian Adams.Under their decision, Law 21.8 was invoked, that being the law stating umpires having the sole responsibility for the correctness of scores and, as a result of that, Law 21.10 that once the umpires have agreed the correctness of the score with the scorers at the end of the team, the result could not be changed.The 12 points returned to HSOB carried them from second to first on the senior two-day competition table.

Derbyshire’s batsmen fought back strongly after they were left to score 347 to avoid the follow-on at Derby.Worcestershire recorded their highest-ever score in Derbyshire, 496, which left the home side facing a rearguard action with only ten men.Batsman Chris Bassano, who scored a century in each innings of his Championship debut last month, was forced to pull out of the game and return to Tasmania after his father Brian suffered a stroke.But Derbyshire, who lost their last Championship match by ten wickets, responded by advancing to 134-1 from 38 overs at the close for the loss of Luke Sutton.Worcestershire were already strongly placed on 390-5 going into the second day and the lower order all chipped in to add another 106 runs.Steve Rhodes, dropped at second slip by Dominic Cork before he had scored, made an unbeaten 37 and then took the catch which removed Sutton in the tenth over of Derbyshire’s reply.Andrew Bichel and Alamgir Sheriyar had made the ball zoom around on another steamy day but it was Kabir Ali who made the breakthrough when he got one to bounce and move away from Sutton who could not avoid getting an edge.The second stoppage for rain kept the players off the field until 5.20 and Worcestershire should have taken another wicket when Stubbings was dropped at first slip by Vikram Solanki on 38.The left-hander went on to complete a half-century from 89 balls and with Titchard also applying himself, Derbyshire showed they would make Worcestershire work hard on a pitch which has so far given no help to any of the bowlers.

Sunderland have now posted an exciting training update ahead of their game at home to Gillingham in League One on Saturday afternoon.

The Lowdown: Close to return?

Speaking ahead of the match at the weekend, Alex Neil revealed that both Alex Pritchard and Nathan Broadhead have recovered ‘quicker than anticipated’ after originally thinking that they were going to be out for the longer term.

He did not rule out the possibility of them returning against Gillingham, while Danny Batth could also make his return, having played for the U23s.

The Latest: Training photos

Taking to Twitter, the Stadium of Light faithful have now posted photos of each of the three players in training, with the caption ‘Continuing on the comeback trail!’

The fact that they are training outside and with the rest of the squad suggests that they could all now feature on Saturday.

The Verdict: Big boost

It would certainly be a big boost for the Wearside club if all three players are available against Gillingham.

Pritchard and Broadhead have ranked among their best players in the division so far this season, while Batth has also made a mark since signing from Stoke City in the January transfer window.

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The central defender is ranking highly among his new teammates in terms of average aerial duels won, tackles, interceptions, clearances and blocks per game (WhoScored), and so having him back will give Neil another handy squad option.

In other news, find out who SAFC are now battling Wigan Athletic to sign here!

Essex have continued their strong coaching association with Yorkshire by naming Anthony McGrath as assistant head coach.McGrath becomes No. 2 to a former Yorkshire team-mate, Chris Silverwood, who was promoted up to the head coach role after the departure from the post of another Yorkshireman, Paul Grayson, late last season.McGrath, who has recently been fulfilling part-time coaching duties at Yorkshire, spent his entire first-class career with his home county, making 583 appearances across all three formats during a 17-year career. He also played four Tests for England.After his retirement, he was appointed by Yorkshire as a player mentor before his coaching duties expanded with the departure of Richard Dawson, the academy head, to Gloucestershire.Silverwood said: “I’ve known Anthony for a very long time, and he is a great addition to our staff. He has excellent cricket knowledge, and during his interview it was clear he had a real passion for this job.”He is a very good coach, and will help our batsmen improve their game. He has experience of working with some of the best batsmen in the country – names such as Bairstow, Root, Ballance, Lyth – so his experience will be invaluable to our players.”We have a strong batting line up, and I am confident Anthony will complement it perfectly.”For Yorkshire, who also lost Paul Farbrace to Sri Lanka – and then England – in recent times, it is another raid on their coaching staff to which they are now accustomed.Farbrace’s influence on Yorkshire’s academy was widely praised and his relaxed style as England’s assistant coach after returning to the international circuit has received widespread plaudits. Dawson, his replacement, has also had instant success at Gloucestershire, leading them to Royal London Cup success in his first season.”We are sorry to see Anthony leave the club,” Yorkshire’s director of cricket Martyn Moxon said. “He was a major part of our success over the past couple of years as a coach.”Mags has been at Headingley for nearly 20 years as a coach and a player. He has been an outstanding servant. It is a great opportunity for him and we wish him well.”