Mick McCarthy's team, a cut-price collection of honest grafters plucked largely from the lower divisions, gave an impressive account of themselves. Dean Whitehead, a free transfer from Oxford United, directed operations with considerable authority from the back of midfield. He was booked in the first minute after clattering into Emre but did not allow his performance to be compromised. There was fine support, too, from Liam Lawrence (Mansfield Town, free) and Tommy Miller (Ipswich Town, free).Criticisms could be levelled at their defence, who somehow allowed Ameobi a free header even with everyone in the penalty area as Newcastle drew first blood, but the goals with which Lawrence and Elliott replied were of high quality.Lawrence, first going past Parker, beat Given with a skimming shot from 20 yards.
If he was relieved with the outcome, after a week of mounting pressure following the defeat at Wigan, it was only because the continued absence of Albert Luque, Kieron Dyer, Titus Bramble, Craig Moore and Celestine Babayaro, with Michael Owen now added to that list, did not undermine him again."If I could have done, I would have taken Stephen Carr and Scott Parker off at half-time," he said "Stephen has a groin injury and Scott a dead leg. They deserve a special mention for carrying on."By how wide a margin a full-strength Newcastle team would have been superior to Sunderland, one can only guess. Oh, and Emre Belozoglu's winning free-kick, beautifully struck though it was, did clip the post on the way in."I love derby games and on the whole they have been kind to me," Souness conceded, "although I was not going to tempt fate by saying so beforehand."A veteran of high-pressure shoot-outs in Liverpool, Glasgow and Istanbul, Souness was taking charge of his first in this city. Twice in front, twice pegged back by an opponent whose performance made nonsense of the Premiership table, Newcastle achieved supremacy with a goal worthy of the occasion but only after Sunderland, rather cruelly, had been denied a seemingly legitimate penalty claim and then thought they had snatched a third equaliser only for Stephen Elliott's chip over a stranded Shay Given to bounce back off the crossbar.If that were not enough to send the Sunderland supporters home feeling hard done by, there was also the knowledge that Newcastle's second goal had in fact made contact with Steven Caldwell's head rather than any part of Shola Ameobi's anatomy. Yesterday, however, he could hardly complain that the wheel of fortune had not spun kindly for him. If this was a Tyne-Wear derby he needed to win, then the fates decided he would secure his wish. Is Graeme Souness an unlucky manager? As rumblings of discontent on Tyneside begin to surface again, he may believe the rash of injuries at Newcastle this season is good reason for his critics to reserve judgement.
Substitutes not used: Kiely (gk), B Hughes, Bothroyd.Referee: H Webb (S Yorkshire).Booked: Portsmouth Robert, Vignal; Charlton Athletic Kishishev, Hreidarsson, Ambrose.Man of the match: Murphy.Attendance: 19,030.. Substitutes not used: Westerveld (gk), Griffin.Charlton Athletic (4-5-1): Andersen; Young, Hreidarsson, Perry, Spector; Kishishev, Murphy (El Karkouri, 90), Ambrose, Rommedahl (Johansson, 83), Smertin; Bent. But Portsmouth, though still relatively untroubled by the visitors, were too cautious.That approach saw them stung on 60 minutes when Ambrose fired home a neat pass from Danny Murphy, the result of some intricate play outside the penalty area.Portsmouth's response was anything but positive, and as they retreated following the equaliser, they were again caught out. Zvonomir Vukic, one of the home side's better performers in the first half, lost the ball through careless play.This allowed Murphy to thread another deft pass, this time to Dennis Rommedahl, the Danish midfielder turning well before emphatically firing the second past a helpless Ashdown.Murphy said: "If we keep playing good football, like we showed in the second half, we will win more than we lose and that is our objective, maintain a level of consistency."Goals: Silva (14) 1-0; Ambrose (61) 1-1; Rommedahl (77) 1-2.Portsmouth (4-3-3): Ashdown; Stefanovic, O'Brien, Priske, Vignal; Viafara, O'Neil, Taylor (R Hughes, 87); Silva, Vukic (Mbesuma, 88), Robert (Todorov, 87). Nor would his chairman Milan Mandaric, sitting over in his shoulder in the stand behind him.After the break the home crowd would have been expecting slightly more forward-thinking football, and more purpose, in a bid to break down any remaining resilience. The Uruguayan international set himself up after allowing the ball to bounce twice, before firing in his first goal for the South Coast club from an acute angle.Darren Ambrose was buzzing with a purpose, the young midfielder coming close twice in as many minutes, firstly with a mazy run after being set up by Darren Bent. Jamie Ashdown, though, was equal to the low shot, and would be called on again moments later as Ambrose again tested the Portsmouth goalkeeper.For the Portsmouth manager Alain Perrin, whose team looked set for their first home win of the season, the pressure was telling as he agitatedly paced his technical area.Charlton were responding to the efforts of their hosts, and Perrin would not have been pleased.
