Champions of the Championship!

It's about time for a soccer post, and what a good time it is...for Newcastle fans! Having already secured promotion back to the Premier League a couple of weeks ago, there was still the hope of maximum reward for their great run this season in the Championship - winning the title.

Done and done! Newcastle needed only a point today but got three in their 2-0 win over Plymouth Argyle (which saw Plymouth get dropped down to League One) to secure the title with two matches to go. As a member of the Toon Army, I'm totally exuberant, although I'm sure the men and women over Tyneside are celebrating just a wee bit harder - partially since, you know, they are probably ingesting alcohol...lots and lots of alcohol, but also because they've been with the team for much longer than I have.

I only became a soccer fan (and Newcastle fan) about 5 or 6 years ago, so perhaps the sting of relegation last May didn't hit me quite as hard as it did the folks who have grown up with the team. Oh, but it sucked, trust me. That Newcastle was even near the drop zone was maddening enough. But it came down to the last match and all they needed was a point out of it. They were battling with Hull City for the last safe spot and had a better goal differential - that single point would have tied them with Hull and the Tigers would have been the ones to drop with their GD of -25 compared to ours of -19. A 0-0 result with Aston Villa would have been plenty. But the game ended 1-0 Villa, and that one goal? An own goal. A motherfucking own goal by Damien Duff (aka GOD DAMN FUCKING DUFF as he became known between me and a friend).

So relegated they were, which is frustrating in another way for U.S. footie fans since even Fox Soccer Channel doesn't show any European games from outside the top leagues. I followed along by watching the Fox Soccer Report highlights, by staring at match trackers screaming "UPDATE DAMN IT" in my head, and by reading as many UK match reports as I could find and attempt to understand (break the duck? zuh?). Even without seeing the games, it's still been exciting and refreshing to see Newcastle really dominate the Championship. Sure, it's not the same level of competition as the Prem, but that's not the only reason they've done so well - they've just been playing very good football. In August, new manager Chris Hughton took a team that was something of a mess, especially after the mass exodus of talent in summer of '09, and got a revival going immediately. Over 44 matches, they've scored 87 goals and only allowed 33, just 11 of which were allowed at home where they are currently unbeaten. Today's win makes seven straight and puts them at 29-11-4 and two points shy of the triple-digit mark - should they hit that with the last two matches, they'll be only the fifth Championship side to do so.

Granted, there is the worry that they will get the crap kicked out of them next season by the big sides, but I'm expectant that with a few additions to round out the roster and with the continued strength and confidence of the squad, they'll hold their own well enough. (Don't hate - I'm not expecting them to be lifting a trophy next May...but who's to say they won't make it to Europa? And that would be fine with me!) Coming back after only a single season out, with their first major trophy since 1993 in tow, should do well to keep them fired up. I'm sure the fans will be, if their storming-the-pitch celebration is any indication (it's a video taken at the park and is totally awesome ☺):



Geordies!!!!