I asked a number of Newcastle United fans, contributors to The Mag, for their reaction to the loss of Kevin Keegan.
Monday bringing the news of his passing.
I asked The Mag writers for their tributes to Kevin Keegan, three words that describe KK best, stand out memory, whatever they wanted to say.
Davey Hat-Trick
Kevin Keegan revitalised Newcastle on three separate occasions. I cannot think of anyone who had a bigger impact on the club, and that includes Alan Shearer and Sir Bobby Robson, both of whom I revere. He improved three average to poor teams with a combination of inspiration, belief and aura.
The vast majority of managers and players get some criticism from various quarters, no matter how well they do. But I honestly don’t remember anyone having a bad word to say about KK. He was loved. RIP, King Kev.
Which three words sum up Kevin Keegan for you?
Genuine, passionate, inspirational
Which match or moment, as player or as manager, is the stand out Kevin Keegan one for you?
April 1992. We beat Portsmouth 1-0 in our final home game of the season. David Kelly scored a late winner, and to this day I have never seen a goal celebrated as wildly. And I was at Wembley when we won the Carabao Cup! The victory meant we were more-or-less safe from relegation to the old third division. We followed it up with a win at Leicester to make sure, but it’s the Portsmouth game that meant the most. The impact of that result went far beyond the there-and-then. We were promoted to the Premier League twelve months later (I was sure we would be even before a ball was kicked), and played some of the best football I’ve ever seen when we got there. I believe it was that 1-0 against Portsmouth that began that incredible run. It was transformative.
Tony Mallabar
“When we get to Europe this is what we sing, we are Geordies, Super Geordies, Keegan is our king.” This was belted out by the away end at Bramall Lane May 1994 after we had qualified for Europe.
Rewind to August 1982 when a young Mallabar entered SJP clutching his first season ticket for Newcastle vs QPR and King Kev’s debut, 36,186 fans crammed into SJP for a 1-0 victory and the journey had started.
My favourite King Kev memory was actually Lucchese away in the Anglo Italian Cup when we travelled over independently and the club wouldn’t give us tickets because we didn’t go on the club charter. Half hour before kick off we were hanging around the ground when a door opened next to the ticket office and out comes King Kev with a fistful of tickets, making sure all of us got in.
Unfortunately, on Monday I also found out one of my best mates and Bender Squad legend Bri Ormston had also passed away. Two NUFC legends. I have had better days as a toon fan.
Matt Busby said to Joe Harvey
I couldn’t believe it when Kevin Keegan signed for Newcastle United. Yes, that Kevin Keegan, THE Kevin Keegan!
Full of expectation, I tried to get inside St James Park on that glorious August afternoon in 1982, but to no avail, my thirteen year old self gutted to be shut out and not one of those fortunate souls on the Gallowgate, the ones who King Kev famously said had sucked the ball into the net as he registered on his debut against QPR.
That thirteen year old had the good sense to leave the memo so his older self did not miss the return of the messiah a decade later, an early start as I forced my way onto the Leazes terrace where I witnessed the 3-0 demolition of Bristol City, King Kev’s managerial career getting off to a flyer.
What a roller coaster journey he took us on, both as a player and as our manager. So near yet so far, such happy memories.
For me, the stand outs when Kev was playing are the trips to Maine Road and Huddersfield in our promotion run in, and the Helicopter that spirited him away following the 2-2 with Liverpool, hard men shedding a tear as they said Auf Wiedersehen and tempting fate by imitating Vera Lynn, daring to sing we’ll meet again.
And we did meet again…..
As a manager, the wins against Pompey and at Filbert Street were truly special because of what was avoided, securing ten in a row at Roker Park and hitting Leicester for six before the first half was up were fantastic wins, we were yet to be christened the Entertainers when Leicester were despatched, as he made us feel like we were the real deal.
I’ll gloss over the 12 point lead and how crestfallen our idol was, slumped over the advertising hoarding at Anfield that night. Even thinking about that period sends a cold shiver down my spine, although the Howay 5-0 goes some way to redressing the balance.
By the time King Kev reacquainted himself with NUFC for a third time, things had deteriorated under Mike Ashley’s tenure and an Employment Tribunal rightly concurred that the club he loved and had given so much to had treated him so appallingly badly. That was no way to treat a man of Keegan’s stature and Ashley is loathed to this day for that, as much as anything else.
So it’s farewell for a final time and it’s with a heavy heart that I write this. He was wor Special K.
RIP you absolute legend.
© 1989 The Mag. All rights reserved.
GToon
Make no mistake, Keegan is our King.
He is the man who saw what we saw, dreamed what we dreamed and gave everything for the Geordie cause.
I watched him play for us, scoring the goals to take us back into the top division and then I witnessed the second coming as he saved us. We were on our way down, couldn’t buy a win and then KK saved us.
The next season was dreamland as we blew the league apart, the toon army on the march, the ten in a row and the start of the entertainers on the pitch with fast paced first touch football. The word “consolidate” was banned KK said. We wanted to win the league and we were so close. What a team. I think only the keeper wasn’t an attacker. Keegan got us, knew what it meant to be a fan and he was perfect for us. Geordie passion. He could never let his club go, even coming back under Ashley to try and get us back up there.
Three words to sum Kevin Keegan up: passion, belief, energy.
My favourite moment was Sheff Wed away. It was early in the season and we were just amazing. From the kick off we just attacked them like we were a goal behind from the start. It was relentless. The drive, the passion, the goals from Ginola and Beardsley and the crowd just roaring the lads on. My dad went to that game with me and I remember turning to see the beaming smile on his face as he watched us tearing forward. I’ll never forget that. Keegan gave me that memory. RIP King Kev.