The high-pressure finish extended far beyond the final match of the season. As Newcastle approached the back end of the season, it became evident that they needed to win all of their final four matches in order to rack up enough points to surpass Durham, a feat that they managed by triumphing over Bradford City (6-1), Leeds (1-5), and Bradford City for a second time (0-6), accumulating all the goal difference necessary to edge out their Northeastern rivals, who also finished the year with a four game unbeaten run, topping it off with an 8-0 dismantling of Chorley on the final day.
Their rout was ultimately futile though, as Newcastle’s Kacie Elson and Katie Barker scored on the road in Bradford put the league out of reach.
In this, the club’s first season under Newcastle United’s new ownership, there has been instant impact. Fans have bought into the project with gusto, packing out St James’ Park on multiple occasions as the team pushed for promotion. While the team isn’t yet fully professional, this is sure to change as director Amanda Stavely has set her sights on the Women’s Super League, the highest tier of women’s football in England and arguably the highest standard of women’s football in the world.
Speaking after the match, off-the-bench goalscorer Katie Barker told Newcastle Untied’s website that the win marked “the best day of my life,” going on to say that “We never ever stopped battling until the end and I think in a lot of games this season we have tied them up at the end of games and that shows our fitness, our determination.”
First team manager Eddie Howe has offered the team his congratulations alongside a crop of his players, writing on social media “Congratulations on your amazing achievement… We’re so proud of you.”
Jacob Murphy added “Massive congratulations on winning the league, you’ve done everyone proud.” The ever competitive Keiran Trippier is already looking ahead to next season, however, writing “Enjoy the celebrations and go again next season.”
This trophy will see them promoted to the third tier of English women’s football, the succinctly named “Women’s National League Northern Premier Division,” where they will face off against teams such as Nottingham Forest, Huddersfield Town, and Burnley, with their furthest away days being to the Midlands outfits of Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Bromwich Albion.
