Newcastle start the match with three men forward and leave Geremi on the bench, and at first it looks like Big Sam is preparing the gift for our Christmas with another three points at home.

Damien Duff and Viduka both return to the team with Viduka coming straight into starting eleven while Duff waiting on the bench with Harper, Steven Taylor and Emre.

For Derby side, Steve Howard got his childhood dream come tru and playing inside St. James’ Park for the first time after his 13 years of career. Paul Jewell has to make a change for his squad even before the game was started. Claude Davis injuring a knee in the warm-up with Eddie Lewis coming in and Lee Holmes takes his place on the bench.

If you have any Christmas hope before the kick-off and it was for Toon not conceding another sloppy goal early from the start, I’m sorry to say that you may have been bad during this year and your wish not granted.

Miller receives a throw-in on the left on the sixth minute of play, he does well to hold off the challenge of Beye before rolling into the path of Giles Barnes who wins the possession and fires it low from 20 yards into Shay Given’s bottom corner for his first of the season.

Newcastle quickly responded, Martins dummies from Beye’s pass down the right wing and gets away from Lewis, it’s McEveley comes to Derby’s rescue as he slides to block the Nigerian’s attempted cross and United have a corner.

N’Zogbia whips over and Martins accept it with a heads at goal from six yards out, the ball strikes Giles Barnes on the line and saves the day for the Rams.

United keep pushing forward and tries everything they can before in the 27minutes Milner hoists the ball forward to N’Zogbia. Young French cuts inside Leacock and plays the ball to the edge of the area where Barton dummies it for Smith.

He goes to ground under Moore’s challenege but manages to hook the ball for Viduka. Mark no time to waste, he rifles Smith pass low and watch the despairing dive of Bywater to bring the home side level.

Make a wish again and hope somebody else have been doing good. Once again your wishes are hard to get any gift from Santa because we have conceded (again) in the same six minutes interval into second-half. This time Derby’s long punt downfield is seized upon by Derby goal scorer when they win at Pride Park.

Kenny Miller goes by the challenge of Rozehnal and cooly slotting past Given from 12 yards out to restore the Rams lead. Well, Roz needs how many more times before he can understand the England game? Next season maybe, but I guess he has to make it quickly or he will be on the bench again next fixture.

He was then replaced by Steven Taylor in 52 minute and United is once again have to make it level at home. Christmas period seems never been so friendly to us every season.

Nicky Butt is replaced by Damien Duff to make his first appearance under Big Sam in sixty-eight minutes. While Emre comes in for Joey Barton seven minutes later.

United’s effort finally found the net three minutes before the end of normal time, Given send a longball forward and Martins flicks it inside for Viduka and he fires it again first time past Bywater from the edge of the area for his and United’s second.

That’s it! Three games unbeaten and entirely typically for the Toon, we believed we’d made it. We began lethargic, sloppy and overconfident, and surprise, surprise quickly found ourselves a goal down - yet again. Newcastle have an amazing capacity to embarrass, especially during the holiday periods, and once again they came up trumps.

We were shockingly bad: no urgency or cohesion, 2nd to almost every ball, sloppy passing, lacking in movement - the lack of support for the man in possession plumbs new depths today - no control in midfield, creaky in defence, and quite frankly you would never have guessed which team was bottom of the league with only 6 points.

TEAMS

NUFC:
Shay Given, Habib Beye, Charles N’Zogbia, David Rozehnal (Steven Taylor, 52″), Claudio Cacapa, Nicky Butt (Damien Duff, 68″), Joey Barton (Emre, 75″), Alan Smith (c), Oba Martins, Mark Viduka, James Milner
Subs: Steve Harper, Geremi

DCFC:
Stephen Bywater, Jay McEveley, Dean Leacock, Kenny Miller, Gary Teale (Benny Feilhaber, 81″), Steve Howard, Eddie Lewis (Craig Fagan, 78″), Darren Moore (c), Tyrone Mears, Stephen Pearson, Giles Barnes
Subs: Lewis Price, Lee Holmes, Rob Earnshaw

Referee: A Marriner
Attendance: 51, 386

It was never been an easy way to play against Newcastle United as an exile Geordie. Lee Clark knows it very well when he scores for Fulham against his beloved Toon. Same thing will happen today when we welcoming home another Geordie lad who’s wearing the wrong color of jersey.

It’s normally for every Tyneside born lads to have a dream of playing for Newcastle one day. Derby County’s Steve Howard is another example. Born in the same county of Durham just like the old warrior Sir Bobby Robson. Both are Toon in and out but never play for Newcastle.

“I used to have a season ticket in the Milburn Stand. Then I started playing on Saturdays so I couldn’t get to games any more. I was probably 12 when I had the ticket and all my family are Newcastle supporters,” Newcastle United fan Howard told the Independent.

“They’re all black-and-white daft. When I was a kid, whenever we talked about football it was always Newcastle. It was always a big part of our lives.”

“Since I was a kid I’ve always told people I wanted to play at Wembley and St James’,” He says. “That’s never changed, and when we reached the Premier League the first game I looked for was the Newcastle away fixture.”

Today one of his wishes could come true “If Selected” like he always said everytime when being ask about Derby’s upcoming match.

“It’s an intimidating ground, you’ll have 50,000 Geordies screaming at you and it’s not an easy place to play but we’ll go there and do our best.” Howard said on his club site.

Steve Howard will have his chance of a lifetime to play inside St. James’ Park and to celebrate Chrismas with his family who are ardent Newcastle fans. Howard knows that although wanting to see his side to win, if the result shows the other way he still can be proud to have played at St. James’ Park.

Newcastle United needs all the heroes ready for Rams visit on Suday. Big Sam troopers will be armed to ram it down and be the winners after 90 minutes.

Claudio Cacapa insists he is not nervous or afraid on making his “first” home appearance for United since the 4-1 horrible mistakes against Portsmouth.

Hero needs self-convidence and Cacapa believe he is a battling personal and will always be ready when needed, even if he is not on his 100% fit like he did when out of the tunnel for Pompey’s.

“I have no worries about going out there on Sunday,” Cacapa told the Newcastle Chronicle. “I have only been here a short while but I already know that the Newcastle fans are very fair and what happened against Portsmouth is now very much in the past.”

Cacapa is always looking out for the future and never look back, the Pompey mistakes and the goal he scores against Spurs in October are all much in the past for him. He also will use every opportunity he has on Sunday to scores again.

Meanwhile, Nicky Butt has signed a one-year contract extension with United. The 32-year-old hero will see his next 12-month at St James’ Park with the option of another year.

“Nicky has been magnificent for us this season when his experience has been invaluable,” Allardyce said as quoted from the Times Online. “He is a great player to have in your squad and a terrific example for all youngsters to follow.”

For Allardyce, he saw Butt’s leaderships in Toon midifeld reminds him of Garry Speed from his old Bolton squad. Nicky Butt is also the contender to become Geremi’s deputy when the Toon skipper flying off for the African Cup next month.

Big Sam, in his exclusive official matchday programme Black ‘n’ White manager’s column, tell everything about of the “inner strength” from his team has been recover. He also be ready to mark a “milestone” achievement if his Newcastle United side can make it three wins on the bounce against basement boys Derby County.

Allardyce said, United’s lost against the Rams was our worst game of the season. All of his players will be looking to atone for that 1-0 defeat.

“We’ll be hoping to make up for that on Sunday and we want nothing less than three points.”

We have played our worst away game of the season at Pride Park and also have seen the worst games at home, so there will be no more worst games when we play both home and away games for the rests of the season, there’s always hope!

Howay the Lads!!!