St. James Park – No Place I’d Rather Be

Article by Newcastle Correspondent Adam Vass

I’m going to start off my blog by sharing with you the day i fell in love with St. James Park, when we played Aston Villa in 2010. I have loved Newcastle for years, but this day was special.

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My first visit to St. James Park is one that will be engraved in my memory forever. It was the week of my 21st birthday and my girlfriend had surprised me with a trip to Newcastle so i could go on a tour around the stadium. The Tour was brilliant, our guide had served the club for many decades and still the passion was oozing out with every word that came out as he reeled off facts and stories, pointing down at the hallowed turf from the level 7 steps.

I’d been saying to my partner ever since we arrived on Tyneside that we need to go into town to watch the game in a local pub to soak up some atmosphere. The morning of the match came and over breakfast she gave me an envelope saying ‘this is your parents present for your birthday’, my face lit up ripping the envelope open to find two Gallowgate stand tickets inside, I couldn’t wait as i had been dreaming about going to a match for so many years.

The stadium stands proud in the heart of the city, as we approach i can feel the shivers running down my spine. We squeeze our way through the turnstiles and head straight for the stairs, the players i idolise warming up in front of us already focused on the game. The teams line up in formation and the ref blows his whistle with the crowd roaring into life, the first few minutes rush by from all the excitement, but then Ashley young gets tripped in the area and the ref blows for a penalty only 9 minutes in. It looked for sure that the first goal i would see at home would be the opposition. John Carew stepped up and as i begin biting my nails, i could barely look as he skies it straight over the bar and into the thousands of fans taunting his mistake, what a relief.

I can barely see what is happening down the other end when the stadium erupts and the net bulges, it was Joey Barton (my favourite player of the time) from 20 yards out, i jump up with all the other Geordies with a feeling of elation and relief. It was only 15 minutes later when Kevin Nolan tapped home the second running off to do the famous chicken celebration, then another from Andy Carroll a few minutes after and i was in heaven, three goals in the first half and Aston Villa looked in pieces.

The second half came and the crowd were unreal, Carroll notched his second and was hungry for the match ball (Remember how hard he used to work for us). I was in disbelief in the closing minutes when Nolan made it 5-0, but in the 93rd Carroll got his hat trick, unbelievable!

I didn’t want it to end and it had been one of the best days of my life. What was your favourite match day experience? Share it with us

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