Newcastle United welcomed Crystal Palace to St James' Park this afternoon having failed to find the net in eight of their last 11 Premier League outings.
The Eagles are the division's lowest away scorers, and therefore it was little surprise when the two goal-shy teams entered the break on Tyneside stalemated.
Palace struck the crossbar through Yannick Bolasie in their bright start to the second period, but were soon on the back foot as the Magpies pushed for an opening goal which eventually came in added time.
After being denied three times by Julian Speroni and missing several chances, Papiss Cisse eventually came good with a 93rd-minute header as Newcastle snatched a late victory.
Below, you can read how the action unfolded on Tyneside, courtesy of SM's live text coverage.
Afternoon, all. We are live from St James' Park this afternoon, but Alan Pardew is not. The Newcastle United manager is serving the second-match of a three-game stadium ban today.
He misses the visit of one of his former clubs, Crystal Palace, to Tyneside. Magpies assistant manager John Carver will be the man relaying Pardew's tactics and message in the dugout.
This is one of six 3.00pm Premier League games being brought to you live by SM today. Elsewhere, it is Merseyside vs. South Wales as Everton host Swansea City and Liverpool visit Cardiff City. Title favourites Manchester City welcome Fulham to Eastlands, and Norwich City and Hull City face Sunderland and West Bromwich Albion respectively, in big matches at the bottom of the table.
And, of course, today's top-flight football kicked off with a lunchtime London derby and a milestone for Arsene Wenger. The Arsenal manager is enduring a truly horrific 1000th game in charge of the Gunners, who are 5-0 and a man down to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge with only 66 minutes gone!
Right, back to the St James' Park action. Team news coming your way shortly...
NEWCASTLE: Krul; Yanga-Mbiwa, Williamson, Coloccini (c), Dummett; Sissoko, Anita, Tioté, Gouffran; de Jong, Cisse
SUBS: Elliot, S.Taylor, Haïdara, Gosling, Marveaux, Ben Arfa, Shola Ameobi
PALACE: Speroni; Mariappa, Dann, Delaney, Ward; Dikgacoi, Jedinak, Bolasie, Ledley, Puncheon; Jerome
SUBS: Hennessey, Gabbidon, O'Keefe, Guedioura, Bannan, Ince, Murray
Pardew and Carver have little choice but to name the same side that lost at Craven Cottage, with several key names including 13-goal top goalscorer Loic Remy sidelined with injury.
Hatem Ben Arfa is available again following a foot problem, but is only named on the bench with Pardew admitting this week that the Frenchman is not disciplined enough to feature regularly.
Ben Arfa did not join Newcastle for team bonding in Abu Dhabi, and Pardew told reporters: "Hatem needs a good finish to the season for a number of reasons and he's aware of that.
"If he's going to play, he has to gain the trust of not just me but of our players that he's the real deal. We've given him a fitness programme because, in the last few games he played for us, he didn't play very well by his own admission. His confidence is a little low and his fitness was a bit low for whatever reason.
"But we've got some extra work into him and he looks a little bit more confident. He's not ready to play and start this game but he will be on the bench on Saturday."
With the Frenchman only among the substitutes, Newcastle persist with two up front as Borussia Monchengladbach loanee Luuk de Jong and Papiss Cisse are paired together in attack.
They only have one Premier League goal between them this season and therefore Yoan Gouffran and Mohamed Sissoko getting forward from the flanks will be important today for the hosts.
Behind them, with Mathieu Debuchy missing consecutive matches with injury, and Davide Santon also out due to tonsillitis, Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa and Paul Dummett continue as makeshift full-backs.
Palace manager Tony Pulis makes two changes, with Glenn Murray left out today after playing three successive games on his return from a nine-month injury layoff with knee ligament damage.
Marouane Chamakh also misses out as he continues to nurse a hamstring strain and so Cameron Jerome is recalled to perform the lone striker role - his first start since February 2.
After scoring on his Eagles debut, Tom Ince's Premier League career has lost some momentum and again he is benched by Pulis today, with Jason Puncheon restored on the right wing.
Scotland international midfielder Barry Bannan passes a late fitness test to be named on the bench, but there is no place in the squad for £8m club-record signing Dwight Gayle.
RESULT: It's all over at Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea added one more to the scoresheet to demolish Arsenal by a 6-0 scoreline. Mohamed Salah scored his first Blues goal to cap things off after Oscar [2], Samuel Eto'o, Andre Schurrle and Eden Hazard had earlier found the net to humiliate Arsene Wenger in his 1000th game in charge of the club. Kieran Gibbs was sent off by referee Andre Marriner in the first half when it was in-fact Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who had handled on the goalline.
REFEREE WATCH: The man in the middle today is Lee Probert, who has produced two red cards in the 14 top-flight matches in which he has officiated this season.
With some of their rivals in action against each other this afternoon, Palace know that teams around them will be dropping points. They could move six clear or the relegation zone with a win.
Just under 10 minutes until kickoff on Tyneside...
HEAD-TO-HEAD: Palace have not beaten Newcastle since 1998, which was seven matches ago. A 3-0 win at Selhurst Park earlier in the season marked the Magpies' third straight win over the Londoners.
ONE TO WATCH: Luuk de Jong is yet to find the net in six appearances since moving to Newcastle on loan. The Holland international is determined to earn a permanent contract at St James' Park and so will need to find form soon. Maybe he will do that against Palace this afternoon.
PREDICTION: Both sides are missing some important attacking players today, so I fancy this to be low scoring. Home advantage may just see Newcastle edge this one by a 1-0 scoreline.
Newcastle get us underway, with owner Mike Ashley watching on from the directors' box...
Gouffran comes deep to switch the play to Yanga-Mbiwa, whose cross is headed away by Damien Delaney at the near post. Cheick Tiote picks up the loose ball and shoots from 25 yards. It takes a nick off Scott Dann and bounces kindly into the arms of Julian Speroni.
Tiote threatens to let fly from the edge of the box again, but Jedinak lightly pushes him over. Free kick to the Magpies, which Tiote strikes, via a deflection off a teammate, behind for a goal kick, with Speroni untroubled. The Ivory Coast midfielder must fancy a goal this afternoon!
On the left wing, Bolasie cuts back onto his right foot, as he often does, to cross into the box. Mike Williamson can only flick the ball on and, with Puncheon lurking, Krul has to punch behind at the far post.
CHANCE! A decent opportunity for Jerome as Puncheon squares up Dummett before going down the outside and delivering a cross. Jerome runs to meet it at the near post, and catches his header flush to power it some distance wide. That needed a more delicate, glancing effort.
Jerome is sent in behind Dummett, and chases it down, doing well to keep the ball in play. He picks his head up to find nobody in support of him. Eventually, Bolasie arrives near the penalty spot, but Jerome cannot find him with a square pass which is intercepted by Williamson.
This has been a reasonably lively start, but the statistics suggest this won't be a match full of goals. Newcastle have fired blanks in 8 of their last 11 matches and Palace are the Premier League's lowest away scorers, having only found the net six times on their travels all season.
SAVE! Just as I was saying that, Newcastle fashion themselves a chance through great interplay by De Jong and Cisse. The Dutchman cleverly spins away from his marker on the edge of the box while collecting an Anita pass, and rolls it into Cisse's feet. He does superbly to turn away from Scott Dann, and then fires a powerful shot straight at Speroni, who palms upwards. The ball does not quite drop for De Jong, who heads over on the backpedal under pressure from both Mariappa and Dann.
Palace threaten on the break, with Jedinak is one of four men pouring forward. He lays it on to Jerome, whose overhit pass to Puncheon slows down the attack and the visitors have to settle for a throw.
Clever one-two from Newcastle, as Gouffran dinks a Sissoko pass over the Palace defence, back to his French compatriot, who miscues his shot on the volley as the ball dribbles into Speroni's gloves.
It is interesting to see how Newcastle are lining up. They seem to be playing a 4-4-2 diamond, with Gouffran at the point. He keeps coming deep to collect the ball and is acting as the playmaker. With makeshift full-backs, though, there is no natural source of width on offer at present.
CHANCE! Jerome wins a 50-50 with Williamson, who slips over. Palace have a 3-on-2 situation as Jerome has options left and right. He has to slide in Bolasie, but, in the end, goes for the shot himself and Fabricio Coloccini spreads himself to make an important block. Poor decision making from Jerome.
Gouffran goes down with an injury. I think a Palace player just caught the back of his leg as he was running towards the halfway line after dispossessing Jerome. The Frenchman limps back on, but Carver may have a decision to make in the next few minutes. Get Pardew on the phone!
Jerome does pick out Bolasie this time, and he has three men to aim for with his cross from the right. Dikgacoi is coming in at the far post, but Yanga-Mbiwa uses his height advantage to head clear.
SAVE! Superb break from Newcastle, as Palace commit me forward and are then caught out. Sissoko charges down the right before crossing to Cisse, who had darted in front of his marker. There's a lot of pace on the ball, and the striker does brilliantly to guide the ball goalwards with his weaker left foot, but it is just a yard to Speroni's right and he gets down well to save.
CHANCES! Newcastle are moving through the gears here. Cisse nearly has another sniff at goal when De Jong's knockdown from Dummett's cross is taken off his foot by Dann. Moments later, Gouffran works a good opening for himself, only to hit a weak left-footed shot straight at Speroni.
PENALTY APPEAL! Anita's floated corner is nodded down by Williamson and hits Ledley in the midriff. Newcastle appeal for handball, but referee Probert correctly waves play on.
SHOT! Delaney pinches the ball from in front of De Jong to start a Palace counter attack, during which Puncheon fooled Williamson with a clever flick. The ball comes to Bolasie on the left edge of the box, and he cuts inside before bending a shot narrowly over the frame of the goal.
Palace are enjoying a good five minutes now, having seemingly withstood a 10-minute Newcastle barrage. Neither goalkeeper has been truly tested yet, although Cisse has had two decent efforts.
Terrific delivery by Puncheon as his corner is whipped into the six-yard box. Both Bolasie and Jedinak are in close proximity, but the ball bounces off the former before Newcastle scramble clear.
We are entering TWO minutes of first-half stoppage time...
SHOT! Newcastle have a free kick 25 yards out, and Dummett hits it well, but just over the crossbar in the centre of the goal. That proves to be the last kick of the first 45 minutes.
HALF-TIME: NEWCASTLE 0-0 PALACE
As many may have predicted based on these two side's recent scoring records, we are goalless at the break. There have been plenty of goals elsewhere in the Premier League, though.
Cardiff and Liverpool have shared four goals equally in Wales, while Norwich and Hull lead 2-0 at home against Sunderland and West Brom respectively. Swansea have pegged Everton back to take them into the break 1-1 at Goodison Park, while Man City lead Fulham 1-0 thanks to Yaya Toure.
With Sunderland and West Brom, the two sides closest to them in the table, losing at present, it would be a fantastic result for Palace if they could nick a winning goal in the second half.
It has been Newcastle that have had the best chances on goal, though, with Cisse calling Speroni into action with two decent left-footed efforts. Bolasie shot just over for Palace before the break.
STATS: Newcastle have throughly dominated possession with a massive 72%, and have registered the only shots on target, five in total. Sounds very much like one-way traffic doesn't it? And it was at times, but the Magpies did not quite have the quality to convert their play into a lead.
Palace resume the action on Tyneside, with both sides unchanged...
CHANCE! Palace create the first opening of the second period, as Puncheon rolls the ball into Jedinak's feet before showing great control to gather his clever return pass. He takes a couple more touches and the ball just gets away from him before he slices it high and wide.
Dikgacoi makes a good overlapping run to get beyond Puncheon, and there are a number of bodies at the back post to get onto his cross. It falls to Jerome, but Williamson pokes away for a corner.
After a good breakaway with Cisse and Sissoko comes to nothing, Newcastle have consecutive corners which are equally unthreatening, as Speroni comes to claim the second under no pressure.
SAVE! Excellent work from Krul after Palace open up Newcastle for the second time in as many minutes. After Bolasie had tapped into the net at the back stick, some time after Mariappa had been flagged offside, Dikgacoi makes another sprint forward and is found by Puncheon. He goes to dink over Krul, but the big Dutchman is out quickly to save and block it behind for a corner.
WOODWORK! Bolasie came close cutting inside onto his left-foot in the first half, and with a very similar effort from the opposite side, he smashes the crossbar! He is over by the left touchline before drifting towards the penalty area, wriggling free of Yanga-Mbiwa and drilling a shot past Krul but against the woodwork. Palace have started this second period really, really well.
SUBSTITUTION: John Carver calls upon Hatem Ben Arfa to try and inject some life back into a Newcastle performance which has fallen terribly flat since the break. Luuk de Jong, again pretty underwhelming, bar the odd nice touch, makes way as the Toon crowd greet the terrace favourite.
Anita pinches the ball from Jedinak, before overrunning it and being tackled by a thumping Dann challenge. The ball falls to Gouffran, whose shot is deflected over by Dikgacoi.
CHANCES! Newcastle seem to be back on track, with Sissoko bursting down the left to outpace Mariappa and cross low. It is behind Cisse, who hardly gets anything on his flick. The ball is cleared to Tiote, who knocks it past Delaney before shooting tamely at Speroni.
SAVE! Speroni keeps out Cisse for a third time, and this is easily the best save of the lot. The Newcastle striker makes a good run between the Palace centre-backs, and Sissoko picks him out with an even better ball. Speroni is so quick off his line, though, and blocks Cisse's first-time shot on the turn. The Senegalese international maybe should score, and would have if he lifted the ball over the Eagles stopper.
Ben Arfa is playing off the right wing. Anita makes a run down the outside and is released by his teammate, but his cross is poor and headed away at the near post by Joel Ward.
SUBSTITUTION: Pulis makes his first change, and it is perhaps a surprising one. Bolasie, who has been Palace's biggest attacking threat, leaves the field to be replaced by Barry Bannan.
CHANCE! Ben Arfa fools Ward with a clever turn and then crosses from the byline. Palace may have thought that the ball was rolling out of play, as they had fallen asleep. Cisse was alive though, and he makes a run across his marker, only to head over the crossbar, with the ball just behind him.
Newcastle are beginning to pin Palace back here. After a great tackle by Ward prevents Ben Arfa from crossing into a crowded box, the Magpies keep the ball for ages before Gouffran blazes over.
SUBSTITUTIONS: A change for either side sees two strikers come on. It's a straight swap for Palace, with 31-goal top scorer from last season Glenn Murray replacing the hard-working Jerome. Shola Ameobi is brought on to play alongside Cisse, with Gouffran coming off with around 15 to play.
SUBSTITUTION: Pulis turns to his bench for the final time, and it is Puncheon who is sacrificed for Adlene Guedioura. A case of holding on for the point or just some fresh legs?
Around eight minutes plus stoppage time remaining on Tyneside. Newcastle look the most likely goalscorers, but are not going to with wild efforts like that from Tiote, who finds row Z.
Great defending from Dann, who makes a superb tackle to prevent Sissoko from driving into the area after Cisse had cleverly flicked around the corner. Delaney is booked for catching the striker.
Newcastle pass patiently around the edge of the box before Ben Arfa's disguised pass finds Ameobi, who passes to Sissoko. His cross is blocked and a scrambling Speroni can't prevent a corner.
SUBSTITUTION: Final throw of the dice for Newcastle, who swap Sissoko for Sylvain Marveaux. Moments later, Ben Arfa cuts in from the right and fires a shot over the crossbar.
The Magpies threaten a counter attack as Ben Arfa slides Anita in down the right flank, but the newly-introduced Guedioura matches him stride for stride before shepherding the ball behind.
We will have THREE minutes of second-half stoppage time here...
WOODWORK! Tiote deals only in the spectacular and he nearly wins it for Newcastle in style with a 30-yard drive which hits the crossbar! The rebound falls to Yanga-Mbiwa, who cushions perfectly across goal into the path of Cisse, who can't connect with Delaney sliding in. What a chance!
GOAL! NEWCASTLE 1-0 PALACE (PAPISS CISSE)
Newcastle snatch a late winner with what could be the last touch of the game! Ben Arfa leaves Ward behind cutting in from the right and, instead of shooting, he crosses superbly for Cisse to glance a header into the net. He looks for the offside flag, but it stays down! You've done it Papiss! Carver celebrates wildly on the touchline, while Cisse is mobbed by his teammates. It's oh so harsh on Palace.
FULL TIME: NEWCASTLE 1-0 PALACE
I was preparing to tell you that this had been one of the more entertaining goalless draws you will have seen this season, but Cisse's last-gasp header means that it is a different story that I am telling.
Palace had defended brilliantly all afternoon, and threatened themselves at the other end, but Cisse, who had missed a sitter moments earlier, stole the three points for Newcastle late on.
The result leaves Palace still only three points above safety, with results elsewhere largely going their way today. Newcastle climb above Southampton into eight with the victory.
That's it from me. Thanks for joining Sports Mole this afternoon, and be sure to stay with us for live coverage of West Ham United vs. Manchester United in the 5.30pm kickoff. Until next time...
Written by
Joe Fish
Joe Fish
