Deliver 17th place in the Premier League and manager Chris Hughton, for the second season in succession, would be hailed an unlikely Geordie hero.
The mission, if not simple, was straightforward, but Mike Ashley and Derek Llambias, unlike their predecessors in the Newcastle boardroom, were unwilling to bankroll their manager.
Fog on the Tyne Makes me remember Gazza singing! Not very well, but it was played evry where.