Super Shearer becomes a distant memory as Handy Andy takes over

Everybody in football knows how much the Number 9 shirt means to the people of Newcastle with so many legendary strikers having worn it down the years. Many players have made their names wearing the number on their back.

The most famous Newcastle number 9's is an impressive list, including Hughie Gallagher, Jackie Milburn, Len White, Malcolm MacDonald, Andy Cole, Les Ferdinand and of course, the biggest of all, Alan Shearer. Many have tried and failed to make the same impact with the shirt as those names have, the most recent being Nigerian Obafemi Martins. Many questioned the decision to hand Martins the coveted shirt the season after Shearer retired, as Martins, who had been frustrated at Inter Milan had no Premier League experience and not much understanding of what it meant to the people of the area. He did however claim to understand it's meaning and history and wanted to become another famous Toon number 9, fair enough. However, people soon realised Martins wasn't quite the man for the job. Although he could produce spectacular goals out of nothing (a goal at White Hart Lane in 2007 sticks out - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJvM7ufWJdc&feature=geosearch) he didn't inspire his team as much as many of his predecessors had, he also lacked the consistent goal scoring ability. This would become an issue for Newcastle as without their most famous number 9 (Shearer) they started to drop further down the table over the next few years before being relegated to the Championship in 2008/9, with Martins only scoring 8 goals all season, which says a lot.



Carroll at 16 starting out his
footballing career

After the turmoil that followed the relegation, Newcastle rose from the ashes to romp through the Championship and be promoted as champions back to the Premier League at the first time of asking with a fantastic 102 points. This was to be the season that saw the emergence of a certain Andrew Carroll. Carroll started his career as a left sided player, who had pace and scored goals, but didn't have the height at that stage to be a towering striker that he would turn out to be. He spent a short loan spell at Preston North End during the 2007/8 season, scoring only once in 11 appearances. In the relegation season, Carroll showed glimpses of his quality, scoring 3 goals in the second half of the season, with his last his most memorable in a 1-1 draw away to Stoke City. The goal was where his heading ability was first seen - (this video shows his impact in the relegation season as well as the memorable header vs Stoke, the second goal you see in the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=voKOcnM0Vuc).



Carroll enjoyed an impressive
Championship campaign

Carroll's impact in the Championship didn't occur until the second half of the season. With him being in and out of the side during the first half of the season he took the Championship by storm, scoring 19 goals in the league, joint top within the club with Kevin Nolan, which saw him voted in the Championship team of the year for 2009/10 at 21 years old.

However, during the Championship campaign, Carroll wasn't thought of as the new number 9. He wore the number 24 shirt during that season. Newcastle signed striker Leon Best in the January transfer window of 2010 and he admitted he could have taken the number 9 shirt, but decided not to as he didn't feel it was his to take at that time, showing the power that the shirt has.

During the close season, building up to the 2010/11 season, then Newcastle manager Chris Hughton made the decision to make Andy Carroll Newcastle's new number 9, quite a moment for Carroll who is a born and bread Geordie, just like two of his most famous predecessors, Milburn and Shearer. Many people were starting to tout Carroll as a new Shearer, but Carroll's big test would be, could he handle the Premier League? Half way through the season at the moment and it has to be a resounding yes.



Carroll was starting to catch the eye
with impressive performances in
the Premier League

He couldn't have started any better, with a hatrick Newcastle's first home game of the season in a huge 6-0 over Aston Villa. Suddenly people's heads started to turn and look towards Andy Carroll as his performances continued to create praise and interest. So much interest in fact, that moves to Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham have been mooted, but all links have been quashed, which was a relief to the Toon Army. The biggest interest of all however, was from England boss Fabio Capello.

Carroll has had a mixed career so far with on the pitch issues more and more encouraging but Carroll's off the field problems have been well documented, with a couple of court cases for alleged assault, which he was later charged for, as well as being forced to live with club captain Kevin Nolan until January 10th. This lead to the torching of Carroll's car outside Nolan's house in Newcastle. All of this suddenly dampened Carroll's image, however his club and indeed his country stuck by him. Capello has already said he wishes to help Carroll through his problems and is keen to work with him. That saw the England boss give Carroll is first senior England call up in November 2010, as Carroll had already impressed for the Under 21's and of course with Newcastle in the Premier League, having scored 7 goals in 12 games in the league at the point of his call up. Capello then handed Carroll his first England cap in a friendly vs France at Wembley in November 2010. Although the game ended in defeat for England, Carroll stood out from many of the rest of the England players and other debutant's that evening and received huge praise for his performance against the French centre backs. Boss Capello has since reaffirmed his likeness for Carroll, insisting he wants to partner him and star striker Wayne Rooney up front for England in future matches. Carroll was fast becoming the man to watch.



England soon came calling and Carroll
didn't disappoint on debut

All eyes were on Carroll after his first England cap, to see whether he could continue his good form for Newcastle. He was now an integral part of then manager, Chris Hughton's plans. Carroll has continued to score goals and create other for his team since his first England cap, which again has linked him with moves away from Newcastle, however it still remains to be hard to see.

As I write this, Carroll sits on 11 Premier League goals in 18 games so far this season, only one behind super star Carlos Tevez and two behind Dimitar Berbatov. Not bad for a 21 year old in his first full season in the Premier League, with the responsibility and pressure that comes with being a Newcastle number 9.

There are attributes that Carroll has that makes him extremely comparable to the likes of Alan Shearer such as, his ability to drive a team forward, create goals and score goals. All of those attributes he has shown so far this season, are what is key to becoming not only a successful striker at the highest level but also to become a successful Newcastle United and England number 9.

Yet another pendulum Ashes series

Once again England and Australia provide us with an unpredictable Ashes series, full of enthralling drama and fantastic entertainment.

After England dominated the last half of the first test in Brisbane and all of the second test in Adelaide, it seemed as if they would simply stroll to their first Ashes series success on Australian soil since 1987. However, we should all know better than that, it was never going to be a walk in the park, this is Australia, in Australia. Okay, it may be their weakest team for decades, but that doesn't mean anything when it comes to an Ashes series.

The 2009 series gave us a good idea as to what to expect this time around, with the first test being dominated by Australia with England scraping a draw, only to reply emphatically at Lords and having most of the game in the third test at Edgbaston. In the fourth test at Hedingley, Australia crushed England and looked on course to retain the Ashes after their 5-0 domination in 2006/7. However, yet again, England replied and won the final game at the Oval, convincingly, to take the series and the Ashes 2-1.

This current series is starting the take a similar pattern to that of last year's. Although the first test was drawn it was split in half with Australia dominating the first 3 and a half days, before England fought back to decimate the Aussie bowlers in their second innings and have a slim chance of a win on the final day. England, like they did after Cardiff in 2009, had the momentum going into the second test in Adelaide and, like they did at Lords last year, romped to victory to take a 1-0 lead after two tests. England's disastrous fourth test in 2009 was still fresh in the memories of England players and supporters and the possibility of that happening again seemed unlikely but not impossible. Although not the fourth test this time, a similar disaster occurred again for England in Perth as the Aussie's ripped through England's batsmen, just like Hedingley in 2009 to level the series with two to play. Once again, England's critics rose from the praise they gave before Perth and although one test earlier than 2009, the same situation has arised, England could clinch the Ashes at the Oval in 2009 and do the same in Melbourne this time around with a win, however, with a game to spare on this occasion.

The Oval test in 2009 saw England yet again rise from a heavy defeat to roll over Australia to clinch the Ashes from the Aussie grasp and the exactly the same is occurring in Melbourne this year. England of course can retain the Ashes with a drawn series, so the game left to play in Sydney, if England win in Melbourne, effectively becomes a dead-rubber. I'm sure, if that was the case, the Aussie's will not want to lose the series overall, not that England will be too bothered about that, but a series win in Australia for any team is quite an achievement and three series wins in four versus the old enemy in recent times for England represents how much the game in our country is developing once again.