26 April 2025
Newcastle 3 Ipswich Town 0
The Magpies welcomed back Eddie Howe to the dugout after his recent health issues, hoping it would see them get back to winning ways. Ipswich Town were the visitors to St James’ Park, whose destiny was all but confirmed in the top-flight. As ever, it was a packed-house as the hosts looked to get themselves back into the Champions League.
There was an early scare when a dreadful pass from Burn across his own box gifted the ball to Clarke. As Schar fronted him up, he looked to bend one into the far corner but his effort narrowly missed the far post. These are the sort of chances you have to take at this level and not scoring them is a major contributory factor to the relegation of Kieran McKenna’s side.
The hosts had the ball in the back of the net early on as a lofted ball into the box seemed to go in off Guimaraes as the keeper came to claim it. It was immediately ruled out as a foul and the replay showed this to be the correct decision. The Brazilian did not have eyes for the ball and was just looking to back into the keeper to make sure he could not collect it.
As the visitors looked to ask questions of the Newcastle defence, Johnson skipped past Burn and immediately went to ground. There was no contact from The Magpies’ man and, quite rightly, the referee booked the Ipswich player. It is refreshing to now see referees dishing out yellow cards for simulation, something that should have started happening some time ago.
Barnes was soon to lift a teasing cross into the middle but Isak headed it over the bar. It seemed to be catching as moments later Murphy whipped a cross in and the Swede had a volley in the middle of the goal but, once again, sent it into orbit. We have come to expect so much better from the Newcastle marksman this season.
Then came a big moment in this match. Isak picked the ball up out wide and knocked it around Johnson before skipping past him. The defender then wrestled him back and the referee had no option but to shown him a second yellow card and give him his marching orders. Suddenly, the Tractor Boys were down to ten men at St James’ Park.
Ipswich were hanging on by the skin of their teeth. As Isak headed a ball across goal, Guimaraes tried an elaborate overhead kick to keep it alive. His effort was heading in but Woolfenden managed to head it over his own crossbar. Moments later, Murphy laid a pass into the path of Tonali on the edge of the box and his curling effort came thundering back off the crossbar.
Deep into added time, Murphy made a run into the box but ended up in a heap on the floor as a result of Enciso’s challenge. The referee waved away protests but a VAR review sent him to the monitor to change his decision. Isak stepped up to take the spot kick and stroked it home as St James’ Park erupted as they finally had their breakthrough.
It was a strange game by The Magpies’ standards. They were struggling to create clear-cut chances. After the interval, Isak had the ball in the box but as he tried to clip one into the far corner, it took a deflection and went wide of the far post. You started to wonder how long the ten men of Ipswich could keep this scoreline to one goal.
From the resulting corner, The Magpies played it short and Trippier lifted a cross into the back post. Burn attacked it and headed home to give Eddie Howe’s side some breathing space in this game. Defeat looked a sure thing for the visitors by this stage, which would mathematically confirm their relegation to the Championship with four games to play.
Another corner for the hosts saw Trippier put in a pinpoint cross into the middle. Osula rose above everyone as he headed into the top corner to get his first goal for the club. The stadium was rocking by this stage, this was the sort of scoreline they had been expecting with one of the bottom three coming to town. It had just taken a little longer to get to this place for Newcastle.
The travelling fans, to their credit, continued to support their side to the final whistle. They even unfurled a banner saying ‘support Ipswich Town, up or down’. That is the way it should be. It was a crucial win for The Magpies as they chase a top five spot. Kieran McKenna voiced his anger about Johnson’s first yellow card but this just seemed like sour grapes as there was no contact in the challenge.
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