THE ’STAFF OF DREAMS
Sean fires Toon to final
SEAN LONGSTAFF turned into ‘Roy of the Rovers’ to fire hometown club Newcastle into their first cup final this century.
Longstaff was born less than 10 miles from St James’ Park in North Shields and grew up watching his beloved team suffer years of struggle.
The local lad won’t have even remembered Newcastle’s last appearance at Wembley in the 1999 FA Cup final because he was less than two.
But now he will get the chance to play there himself following his stunning brace, as Eddie Howe’s men sank Southampton to reach the EFL Cup final on a balmy night on Tyneside.
Lifted
The last time Newcastle won domestic silverware was in 1955 when they lifted the FA Cup.
Saints, meanwhile, had only ever won trophy which was also the FA Cup in 1976.
And the long wait was expected to go on for Saints as they headed north as big underdogs following the 1-0 defeat in the first leg.
Newcastle had lost just twice all season in all competitions and were still to taste defeat on home soil.
Howe named the same team, while opposite number Nathan Jones made four changes, which included a debut for James Bree following his arrival from Bristol City.
Saints had to try and weather an early storm — but were engulfed by it within five minutes after a nightmare start.
That was all it took for Longstaff to start his dream night by firing the hosts ahead after latching onto a pass from Kieran Trippier, before smashing an angled drive past the helpless Gavin Bazunu.
The decibel levels went through the roof and Longstaff should have made it 2-0 moments later but fired wide.
But he made no mistake on 21 minutes, taking Miguel Almiron’s square pass before beating Bazunu again with a clinical finish.
Having scored just twice in his previous 80 appearances, Longstaff had bagged two inside half-an-hour.
Smile
Howe turned to the directors box with a huge smile and clenched fist.
He knew the contest was over and it was now just a matter of seeing how much pride the sorry Saints could salvage.
And the visitors pulled a goal back from nowhere on 30 minutes thanks to a stunning strike from Che Adams.
And it took a superb save from Nick Pope and his right foot to stop Adam Armstrong from equalising on the night with almost 20 minutes still left.
The natives were getting nervous, but not even a straight red card for Bruno Guimaraes for a crude challenge on Sam Edozie could spoil the party.
It will be manager Howe’s first cup final and if Longstaff can help Newcastle win something for the first time since 1969, he will be living proof that childhood dreams can indeed come true.