NJS

I called the T-Mobile call centre a little earlier which is in Mackem land. I spoke to a woman who sounded like she was in her 50s but there was still a little voice in the back of my head saying "Start screaming 5-1 at her" - just managed to resist.

He was always on a hiding to nothing going there though. Even if his "Geordieness" is tarnished by Manchester he has always played on it ("I'm coming home" etc) and even tried the "I followed Newcastle when I was a kid" routine in the run up to the match. He must know that even putting derbies aside, his "identity" will be the first thing mentioned at any kind of slip up. The derby just magnifies it. I'm not old enough to remember Stokoe's first spell at SAFC but I assume it was never mentioned he was Newcastle through and through. It's hard to think of an equivalent possible appointment for NUFC - even Allardyce's SAFC association was never used against him.

I read it but rarely post - I find the bile (and occasional wit) amusing.

Didn't he get a lot of stick for signing a long list of shit players? It's topical to give him credit for Bale but I'd like to see the rest.

Like GW Bush? (Put the initials in as an afterthought because "like bush?" was a bit OT)

Wonderfully sick - sickest for a while.

Before Sunday, my "objection" to Nolan was that I thought (and still think to some extent) that he isn't a very good footballer - "all" he does is score goals so my view was that if you take away those goals he wasn't contributing much. I know this is an argument about players like Lineker and maybe Cole which sounds daft but is valid to some degree (moreso for midfielders). However I think on Sunday he did impress me more as a footballer which I'm happy to see. I also think the view that Tiote has made him better is spot on.

Watched the MOTD2 highlights a bit earlier. They did the classic where they showed all of their half chances to try and show "balance" which completely distorted the truth. Also glossed over how dirty the bastards were.

I'm in the "Barnes wasn't bad" camp - Rush on the other hand was absolutely shite.

Scott Sellars instead of Milner for me.

The first game (2-2) in the new ground was a great atmosphere - none since have come anywhere near imo.

There was some shit at the time of all the speculation last summer that he was front for other people's money.

Thing is Bruce didn't play 5 in midfield as part of some master tactical plan - as I understand it that's how they've played all season hence Gyan being a permanent sub. It's especially heartening the way they think that adding "quality" along with a supposed good manager would inevitibly lead to this mythical progress they all expect.

The Mackem's face after the first couple is fucking brilliant.

I haven't posted anything this week on the game as I was kidding myself that I wasn't that bothered - it took the early chance for them when I nearly shit myself to make me realise there's no delusion bigger than self-delusion. Credit due to the team and it's heart warming to see a team which probably isn't as good as ones in the past who've lost to them really seem to care. I know this will make me sound a bit soft but I actually felt sorry for Titus - I'd have been perfectly okay with a yellow. I also love the fact that despite the money spent and the supposed good squad they are still basically shit with one decent footballer to their name (Malbranque).

I ordered an HTC Desire Z (combo of touch screen + slide out keyboard) from Amazon a couple of weeks ago - they were due for release on November the 1st but I've just had an email saying it won't be delivered until about the tenth - tried a few other places and its the same everywhere. I went for a £15 30 day rolling contract with T-Mobile which includes 1GB internet.

I'd also like to state that I don't like the suggestions of messing about with UK time - I'm no patriot but I think where on the meridian as of right and we shouldn't abandon it.

Just thinking that every time keeping device I now own will adjust automatically - thank the lord for technology.

Shown as a mini-series it's actually quite good imo - the scene where James Mason asks the priest to take on the master is particularly effective. His early books were more consistent but he's still capable of a good one. The Stand is probably his best. I don't like the more fantasy based ones and the collaboration with Straub didn't work for me - despite me being a Straub fan.

I realised it would be in poor taste to counter your posts on this subject, like crushing a dying dung beetle or a retarded gerbil. Inevitably you felt the need to post more unsubstantiated and ignorant bile. I can't help wondering, if your opinion of western people and their 'bloodlust' is so low - after all, Britain did support both wars fully - why don't you go and live in a hut in Timbuktu and run about naked having given up all material possessions? Oh that's right, because despite espousing a mentality that makes hippys look like Navy Seals, you can't live without your western luxuries, and you probably indirectly fund arms companies and certainly oil companies who have a vested interest in the Iraq conflict. If you're going to talk such nonsense at least back it up and go and live in a tree. As if Blair was some kind of calmimg influence - the cunt was crying "crusade" in his sleep. What the hell are you blathering on about now. A calmimg influence? Out of interest, what do you think of Blair's record of conflicts before Iraq? I took your mentioning Britain's support as some kind of suggestion that if the US was on a revenege mission then they'd have some friends who'd say "hang' on there mate. they aren't worth it". My point is that Blair was just as politically/religiously driven as Bush. Of course I accept that any Tory would have been just as much a poodle.

I realised it would be in poor taste to counter your posts on this subject, like crushing a dying dung beetle or a retarded gerbil. Inevitably you felt the need to post more unsubstantiated and ignorant bile. I can't help wondering, if your opinion of western people and their 'bloodlust' is so low - after all, Britain did support both wars fully - why don't you go and live in a hut in Timbuktu and run about naked having given up all material possessions? Oh that's right, because despite espousing a mentality that makes hippys look like Navy Seals, you can't live without your western luxuries, and you probably indirectly fund arms companies and certainly oil companies who have a vested interest in the Iraq conflict. If you're going to talk such nonsense at least back it up and go and live in a tree. As if Blair was some kind of calmimg influence - the cunt was crying "crusade" in his sleep.

This will probably prompt more abuse from KSA but I always thought one of the factors in deciding to invade Iraq was that the September the 11th revenge bloodlust hadn't been satisfied by the up to that point "easy" invasion of Afghanistan.

I flew from Stansted to Newcastle on the day after September 11th and things were understandably twitchy. There was a bloke in front of me at check-in arguing till he was blue in the face that he shouldn't have to put his laptop in the hold as he needed it in-flight. Criminal ignorance and insensitivity.

Excellent news. "Experts predicted Newcastle to lose at least 8-0 at Old Trafford - because it was only 3-0 it was an excellent result". The previous quarter was 1.2%

Bonfire night's changed a lot in recent years though - its all public events rather than the amateur stuff we used to pull.