Exclusive: Broadcasting legend Martin Tyler reflects on cherished memories of covering Newcastle United

A place in Newcastle United folklore beckoned as Philippe Albert gracefully strode through the Tyneside rain and prepared to put the seal on a truly memorable day at St James Park.

Without breaking the stride, the Belgian star, a defender in name only, showed class and composure as he produced a sumptuous chip that sailed over Peter Schmeichel before dipping beneath his crossbar and nestling in the back of the net.

Already four goals to the good in what felt like fitting revenge for a Wembley humbling just two months earlier, Albert’s effort took the Magpies beyond the Charity Shield hammering inflicted on them by a Manchester United side that had denied them a long-awaited top flight title during the previous season.

A heady concoction of euphoria and disbelief enveloped St James Park as Albert took the acclaim of his team-mates and the vast majority of those inside the Magpies’ famous old home. In the home dugout, Kevin Keegan and Terry McDermott embraced as all four stands rocked around him in a seminal moment in Newcastle’s Premier League history.

At home, and in many pubs and clubs around Tyneside, not for the first time in his career, the familiar sound of Martin Tyler provided the soundtrack to a truly iconic Magpies moment, as the legendary broadcaster described Albert’s goal as ‘absolutely glorious’ on Sky Sports’ coverage of the game.

Tyler, speaking exclusively to NewcastleWorld, reflected on his role relaying the action during a dramatic 90 minutes from the St James Park television gantry and enthused over the intriguing angles on display in a meeting of two of English football’s biggest clubs.

He said: “I think there are times when you might say one team is so good, one team is so bad, let’s apportion praise and blame in equal measure - but I think Newcastle were just so good that day that I didn’t feel I was digging out Manchester United for their performance that day.

“That’s my memory of that game. It was the culmination of how Newcastle had grown, how they have got into the Premier League, how they wanted to play, the Alan Shearer factor, which was relatively new and he was playing with Les (Ferdinand), which was interesting. They put everything on the line to score a goal, the Albert goal summed that up, and it just all came together that day.”

That famous afternoon in October 1996 came over 20 years after Tyler’s first visit to Tyneside, when one of his first major assignments as a junior reporter brought him into contact with Malcolm MacDonald, Frank Clark and John Tudor ahead of United’s FA Cup Final defeat against Keegan’s Liverpool. A feature giving insight into the Magpies stars and their lives away from football provided Tyler with a feeling of life on the banks of the Tyne - but it was coming into contact with two United legends of the past that left the biggest impression.

He said: "People do this all of the time these days but it was quite innovative back then as we had him talking about each of his team-mates as people, rather than as footballers.

“There were some interesting things such as John Tudor had a driving school so we had him driving across the Tyne Bridge. Frank Clark played the guitar so we had some shots of that. I had quite a few days in the North East and I got a very early feeling of what Newcastle United meant to their public up there. I met people like Jackie Milburn and Len Shackleton, who were both in the press box then and I was awe inspired by having contact with those famous faces.”

But it is Kevin Keegan, a man many believe to be the most important figure in Newcastle’s recent history, that became integral in raising the profile of the club in an era that coincided with Sky’s domination of live coverage of the newly-formed Premier League.

It is often forgotten the Magpies were still in the second tier of the English game when the new look league kicked off in August 1992. Indeed, on the first day of the Premier League, when Brian Deane headed a historic goal as Sheffield United beat Manchester United and Arsenal fell to a 4-2 defeat against Norwich City, Newcastle were battling to a 3-2 win on the opening day of what would become a successful push for promotion in Division One.

Over the following years, everything about Newcastle changed. St James' Park was developed beyond recognition, Keegan’s side evolved with intelligent additions and Tyneside danced to their manager’s tune amid a frenzy of attractive football and attack-minded players. The Magpies were Sky’s dream as viewers tuned in to watch a United side that became affectionately known as ‘The Entertainers’. Tyler became a regular visitor to St James' Park as Newcastle’s fixtures became a staple of Sky’s coverage - and he believes the club ‘played a significant part’ in a boom time for English football.

He continued: “The style of football, the calibre of individual players, particularly the attacking players and the openness of the club, Kevin was a wonderful help, how approachable the players were - that all played a part in how special Newcastle was back then.

“I spent a lot of time in Newcastle during the Entertainers years because we covered a lot of games and we usually got our money’s worth from those sides because they always produced special performances and played their part in some remarkable games.

“It felt like Newcastle were the first club to embrace replica shirts and that set off a massive trend because the stadium just felt as if it was black and white everywhere and the supporters created a wonderful atmosphere. The best game I ever covered was Liverpool 4-3 Newcastle United and there have been some candidates to usurp that but I tell everyone that was the one for me. They played a significant part in a remarkable time in the game.”

The £15m world record signing of Alan Shearer provided a landmark moment for Keegan’s first spell as a manager as he fought off competition from Manchester United to ensure the Geordie striker returned ‘home’ just a month after becoming top goalscorer at Euro 96.

Frustratingly, trophies would elude Shearer during his decade-long stay at his boyhood club but he would write his name into the history books as he plundered his way to 206 goals, surpassing the Magpies all-time record goalscorer, the legendary ‘Wor’ Jackie Milburn.

Shearer may well feel he should have added at least one more goal to his impressive Magpies haul and a Premier League tally that would end at 260 after he was robbed of an effort at the end of a week where traumatic events elsewhere had dominated the headlines.

Tyler explained: “I did the game after 9/11, which again was Newcastle United against Manchester United at St James Park. I flew up from Heathrow but I could only bring a folder because there was no hand luggage allowed at all because of the awful events of that week. The game finished 4-3 and it was a strange day but the quality of the game offered a slight feeling of warmth against a chilling backdrop.

“The winner came via a Wes Brown own goal, which Alan believed was his goal and when I see him, which isn’t often, I remind him of that goal and it’s always replayed between us. I thought it was his goal, he obviously thought it was his goal, but we can’t rewrite history, as much as he would like to. By today’s values it probably would be given as Alan’s shot was on target. I suppose 260 is a round number for Alan - but I always call him 261 because of what happened that day.”

Shearer’s attempts to overhaul Milburn’s record may well have come to a premature end had it not been for Sir Bobby Robson’s arrival at St James Park during the early weeks of the 1999/2000 season.

The England captain looked to be on his way out of his boyhood club as former manager Ruud Gullit looked to impose his own style and thinking on a United side that were struggling at the wrong end of the Premier League table. Yet Robson’s arrival brought fresh impetus, revitalised confidence and unwavering belief that better times were ahead. The nous and expertise provided by their new manager took United from relegation battlers to a comfortable mid-table finish and laid the platform for a push into the Champions League, in a story that has echoes of Eddie Howe’s impact at St James Park.

Admired throughout the world of football after leaving a significant imprint on the likes of Porto, Barcelona, PSV Eindhoven and Ipswich Town, Robson’s warmth, personal touch and knowledge left an impression on Tyler during his regular dealings with a true football legend.

He said: “Sir Bobby was someone I loved spending time with, I loved listening to him and he spoke about football with a child-like warmth that went from his childhood growing up in a football-loving community. He never lost that wide-eyed love of the game throughout his life.

“He was a football man inside-out, a fine player in his day, that should not be forgotten and he went on to be one of our greatest managers. He is still missed to this day, you can’t come to St James Park without thinking of him and I am privileged to have spent time working with him. I did the ‘Hand of God’ game in Mexico and his sense of sport being everything transcended that injustice. You talk about being gracious after an unjust defeat, I will never forget that.”

The years that followed Robson’s departure in August 2004 brought managerial changes and questionable signings as Newcastle slipped away from the chase for major honours and became an also-ran in the Premier League. For all of their on-field uncertainty, there had been an unlikely venture into Hollywood as Tyneside and St James Park became the setting for a new film - and one that would hand Tyler a new string to his bow.

“I was in Goal, the film, at St James Park and I did the commentary when the actors came on at full-time after the Chelsea cup tie,” he explained.

“I worked with Rob Lee, he was cast as my co-commentator, and that was a snowy day, it was a cold day. My son came with me, he was an aspiring film-maker back then. He stood in for me in some shots and he actually got paid. We commentated to a storyline but they changed the ending so I had to go into the studio in London and do a different voice on the actual match action. I think I was the last thing they had to do on the film and I was rushed in to do it. That proved to be the end of my Hollywood career.”

After a lengthy lull in ambition and achievements under Mike Ashley’s 13-year ownership of the club, Newcastle are now looking forwards and are starting to make an impact at the top end of the Premier League table once again. The prolonged PIF-led takeover of the club was belatedly completed in October 2021 and the new owners took little time in handing Eddie Howe a return to the dugout after he was named as successor to former manager Steve Bruce.

Fuelled by some intelligent additions to Howe’s squad and the impressive coaching of their manager and his staff, United roared away from the relegation zone and secured their Premier League status with time to spare. Howe’s first full season would bring a first major cup final since 1999 and, more surprisingly, a top four finish that saw the Magpies return to the Champions League for the first time since Robson was in the dugout and Shearer was leading the line.

Excitement has returned to St James' Park, matchdays have the buzz that dominated the city during Keegan’s reign, once again, everything and anything feels possible, even bringing an end end to their lengthy trophy drought feels like an attainable target.

“I think the excitement is tangible and the flip side of that is the expectation,” said Tyler when asked of the current state of the Magpies.

“Seeing the backdrop to what they are doing, it’s tremendous. Expectation is one of the hardest things to deal with in all walks of life and this has been cranked up from please keep us in the Premier League to where they would be disappointed at missing out on the Champions League, which, of course, they didn’t.

“That is a quantum leap forwards in a short space of time and it’s been done against great competition. Money only takes you so far, it’s better than no money, but this is a rich Premier League and there are challenges ahead for a number of clubs. The fans have done a very good balancing act with the appreciation of where Eddie and his coaches started from and where they have taken it.

“The investment in the women’s team shows this project is not just focused on the first team. They might be the message carriers and that will reach around the world. But the club is looking at wider responsibilities and that is very impressive.”