Northumbria University cruised to a decisive 5-0 victory over Newcastle at Cochrane Park on Wednesday night in the final event of an action-packed Varsity Week.
The match was action packed from the off as Northumbria took the lead in the first minute of play, slotting a tidy finish under the keeper and setting the tone for what would prove to be a largely one-sided game.
Newcastle responded well in the following minutes, employing some Sean Dyche-esque long ball football to create a handful of chances and win set pieces. However, these chances were squandered as they were denied by poor finishing and some comfortable saves from the Northumbria goalkeeper.
Northumbria also had their fair share of missed chances, shooting wide from the six-yard box in the early stages and sending a free kick into lunar orbit in the second half.
That said, Northumbria played the more impressive football throughout, the midfielders linking well with the attack to drive forward, splitting the Newcastle defense and creating chances.
After having a goal ruled out for offside at the half hour mark, Northumbria finally bagged their second with the last kick of the first half. The timing proved to be damning for Newcastle, who went into the halftime break with heads hung.
Both teams came out for the second half with all guns blazing, playing some of the most intense football of the night and creating chances at both ends.
The crowd got lively, and the rivalry began to heat up as Northumbria gained confidence and momentum.
Three Newcastle substitutions also threatened to change the game, but ultimately it was Northumbria who won out as they bagged three goals late on to put the game to bed.
While Newcastle’s performance wasn’t unimpressive, they would come to rue early missed chances as Northumbria slowly broke them down. They were thoroughly outclassed by Northumbria’s tactics and quality playmakers, as is reflected in the final score.
