User:MickMacNee/The Entertainers (NUFC)

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The Entertainers was a nickname applied to the football team Newcastle United F.C. in the mid 1990s.

The Entertainers tag was applied by the media^[1]^[2] to the team assembled by Kevin Keegan that played an attacking, almost cavalier style of football, also earning them the moniker every (neutral) fan's second favourite team.

The nature of the Entertainers tag can be seen in the fact that the tag was used for a team that suffered several spectacular defeats as well as victories, in contrast to the more successfull attacking teams of the period, such as Manchester United and Arsenal, and to a lesser extent the Blackburn Rovers team of Alan Shearer which won the Premiership in 1995 financed by Jack Walker.

Due to the eventual lack of success of the Entertainers teams in terms of silverware, the tag has produced the commonly held belief that supporters of Newcastle United, the Toon Army, would rather lose 4-3 by playing entertaining football, rather than win 1-0 with dour football. This interpretation is disputed by many, who would prefer to see both.

1 Background
2 Usage
3 Performances and players
4 Keegan returns
5 See also
6 References

[edit] Background

Under the management of returning player Keegan and the heavy investment of new chairman Sir John Hall, the team underwent a transformation, loosely termed the Keegan Revolution. The club emerged from possible relegation to the third tier of English football at the end of the 1991-92 season, to becoming champions in the very next season, winning promotion to the Premier League.

The Premier League formed one year before, had produced an upsurge in demand for televised football in England, fueled by the revamped coverage by the satellite broadcaster BSkyB. BSkyB's exclusive live television rights deal contributed to an influx of foreign stars to the league, many of which would become part of the Entertainers.

[edit] Usage

Comparative success for a newly promoted team followed for Newcastle, with 3rd and 6th place finishes, culminating in losing a 12 point lead at the top of the Premiership to eventual champions Manchester United in the 1995-96 season.

With this combination of a rapid rise up the league, increased media attention and an entertaining style of football, the moniker was coined by BSkyB^[3], and over time became cemented in English footballing culture.

After Keegan quit in a surprise move in the following season, the Entertainers tag declined after some cautious and ineffective appearances, notably in two 2-0 defeats in the 1998 FA Cup Final and 1999 FA Cup finals, as the squad was gradually replaced by Kenny Dalglish and successive managers.

Positive use of the name dissapeared as the team suffered a decline with a succession of failed managerial appointments and poor football^[4]. This was interrupted by a semi-revival under manager Bobby Robson, who in 5 years at the club, managed a team featuring attacking players such as Kieron Dyer, Craig Bellamy and Laurent Robert. Robson's entertainers produced some dramatic coming from behind games, and consecutive Champions League qualifications, although performances were marred by some high profile media scandals involving players.

[edit] Performances and players

Notable games during this period included a 7-1 defeat of Swindon Town in 1994, some dramatic matches with Liverpool, one (a 4-3 defeat) of which has since been described as the greatest ever Premiership match.^[5], a 5-0 defeat of chamions Manchester United in October 1996, a 7-1 victory against Tottenham Hotspur, just days after Keegan's resignation in January 1997, and a 3-2 home defeat of Barcelona in September 1997 in the Champions League group stages.

The Entertainer teams were characterised by fast paced attacking football from all playing positions, with lots of crossed balls, and attacks coming from over-lapping full backs and even attacking centre halves. This would produce end to end football, and just as many chances for the other team as for Newcastle.

The notable attacking players in The Entertainers teams included:

The teams were also assisted by a number of less attacking minded but regular players in Lee Clark, Darren Peacock, Steve Howey and David Batty. The main goal keepers of the period were Pavel Srnicek and latterly Shaka Hislop.

[edit] Keegan returns

With the return of Keegan to Newcastle for a third time in January 2008 (once as player, twice as manager), the moniker may well see a resurgence if he is able to achieve his stated belief about the club's fans in his opening press conference:

"Going to football in Newcastle is like people down south going to the theatre. Supporters want to be entertained."
Daily Express, 18 January, 2008.^[6]