Loads of Newcastle United fans have been reacting on social media after the club shared a post harking back to when we beat Feyenoord in the Champions League.
It has now been 17 years since that joyful night, when Craig Bellamy wrote his name in folklore history by striking a stoppage-time winner to see that we progressed into the second phase of the competition.
Bellamy had opened the scoring just before half-time when Alan Shearer flicked on a long-ball forward, leaving the Welshman sprinting through on goal as the referee prepared to bring a halt to proceedings.
A perfectly placed shot from Bellamy managed to find its way into the bottom corner of the net from an acute angle with the last kick of the half, and Hugo Viana soon doubled our lead minutes after the break.
Feyenoord would pull back level with goals in the 65th and 70th minutes, but the story was not over, as Bobby Robson’s side soaked up the pressure knowing that we had to win or our journey was at its end.
It seemed to be heading that way when Bellamy and Jermaine Jenas lashed shots high and wide, but they did not give up, and in the creaking embers of the evening, Bellamy met Kieron Dyer’s parried shot and lashed the ball home via the chest of Feyenoord ‘keeper Patrick Lodewijks.
Thoughts soon turned to Kyiv where Juventus had to also beat Dynamo Kyiv, and they did with a 2-1 victory, booking our spot in the second round of the Champions League.
We would go on to fall out of the competition in the next round, and have only returned to UEFA’s premier competition once since the 2002/03 season.
Where will Newcastle finish under Bruce?
Relegated
Safety
Mid-table
Top-half
Here are some of the messages shared in response to the club’s throwback post to the night we beat Feyenoord, 17 years ago…
God if only them days could come back miss them days
— ???????????????????????????? ???????????????? (@mickey_marr) November 13, 2019
Depressed now. Used to look back on these posts with fond memories. Now it’s just a contant reminder of how far we’ve fallen. Could be worse, could be in league 1
— Khansie ⚫⚪ (@kh4nsie) November 13, 2019
NUFC will never play in the CL with Ashley as owner or Bruce as manager. Fact.
— NowhereMan ???????????????? (@Nowhere99936001) November 13, 2019
Pre-Ashley when it wasn’t about marketing SD tat, it was about the football and the hopes of a city.
Great memories when we had a club to be proud of.— The E Wing Paddock (@speedypete68) November 13, 2019
What a night that was. Then the wait for Dynamo/Juve result to see if we qualified.
At a time when we dared to dream.— Greyshrike #boycottsjp (@greyshrike2) November 13, 2019
What a night that was. If only the current crop of players gave as much effort as the teams of the late 90s / early 00s
— Chris Dobison (@TheGeordieExpat) November 13, 2019
…..and now we aim for 17th.
You should be embarrassed.
— The Geordie Boot Boy (@BootGeordie) November 13, 2019
Best game of football I’ve watched as a fan. Not for quality, but keeping you on the edge of your seat drama. Nearly hit the roof when Bellamy put that away.
— Dean (@Bix1985) November 13, 2019
If you were showing a neutral a game of football to find out a bit more about newcastle and when times were better, this game would definatley be up there with one of the best to show them. The good old days
— Terry mccarthy (@terrymac90) November 13, 2019