A Job Well Done

Whatever you think about Joe Kinnear - and his contradictory public comments are not helping anyone regarding Michael Owen's new contract or his expectations ahead of the transfer window - the guys has done a pretty good job.

In his twelve games as a temporary manager Newcastle have lost just two. Considering he arrived at a club wallowing in the relegation zone and devoid of confidence after the battering the club received following Kevin Keegan's sudden and controversial departure, that is impressive.

Alright, so the Magpies have won just four of those 12, but the first objective for a manager coming into a club which is in trouble is to make them hard to beat and Newcastle are unbeaten in six. Not bad for a manager who was employed in desperate circumstances because he was desperate for any route back into management after four years out of the game.

Foul-mouthed rants and two FA disciplinary hearings aside, Kinnear was right on Sunday, he should be proud of the position Newcastle are in. A four point gap between them and the bottom three isn't enough to crack open the party poppers, but it's a big step in the right direction and the wins at Portsmouth and at home to Spurs are worthy of praise.

When you also think that, had the defence not gone to sleep at two set pieces in stoppage time against Wigan and Stoke, Newcastle would have another four points and would be above Everton and just one point worse off than sixth placed Hull City.

I must say the defence, with Sebastien Bassong and Fabricio Coloccini superb, were really impressive against Tottenham. Yes, Spurs looked the better side for long periods in the second half and played the slicker football, but their goal owed much to luck and they rarely got a clear sight of Shay Given because he was so well protected by those in front of him.

I've rarely been able to say that during my time covering the club and for once we should give credit where credit is due. There was a time when Steven Taylor, as promising as he is as a defender, was seen as the best of a bad bunch. Now he can't even get into the starting line up.

The price of progress for the England Under-21 international I suppose. When he was on the pitch against Stoke, Newcastle conceded two goals. In the four games either side of that, with him on the bench, they have conceded just one!

An interesting stat, although I'm in no way suggesting he is a bad player or solely responsible for those goals. It's just evidence he still has some improvements to make before he is the England international in waiting some have suggested.

He will be back in the side eventually, not least because United have no cover for either full back and he is the obvious choice if, God forbid, Bassong or Coloccini pick up an injury. Hopefully the time on the sidelines will benefit him as a player because it is never a bad thing for a young man to spend some time contemplating things on the bench.

For all of the new optimism released by back-to-back wins, Newcastle remain a club in turmoil in many respects and Ashley doesn't help himself by continuing to give dubious interviews to national newspapers (see above comment).

There is still a lack of any long term planning and a lack of commitment from those who put themselves in charge of running the club and, in some respects, Newcastle are incredibly lucky not to be in even more trouble than they are this season given the disastrous handling of the Keegan affair and the lack of necessary activity in the transfer market in the summer.

The latter can be put right next month, but as I keep saying, don't expect Kinnear to spend big money. The best I'm hoping for is the arrival of Jimmy Bullard and a new left back, but I'm sure you have your own thoughts about who should be signing up in January.