Meet the England cricketer from Ashington desperate for Newcastle United to lose tonight

What could possibly make a cheeky chappy from Ashington, the home of all-time great Jackie Milburn, support anyone but Newcastle United? Merlin, the precursor to iconic sticker brand Panini, has a lot to answer for…

Because Mark Wood, the England fast bowler renowned for scaring batsmen to death with frightening 97mph rockets, is a lifelong Wimbledon fan. That’s right, the Northumberland native who famously screamed “Shearer”, “Ketsbaia” and “Asprilla” while trying to run out New Zealand players is hoping for the Magpies to suffer Carabao Cup heartbreak tonight.

"Newcastle would have been the obvious answer," Wood told NUFC TV when asked who he supports. "I remember the 5-0 win over Manchester United, the Philippe Albert game. He apparently used to drink in Ashington every now and again. I was at my uncle's house watching and everyone was going wild. 

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“But I'd started collecting the Premier League stickers by then. You know, the book with the shinies? And my favourite colour was blue. I could have picked Chelsea or Leicester, but one of the Wimbledon stickers I had looked like my dad.

"Now I originally thought it was Hans Segers, but my uncle has since sent us a picture - he must have gone through the old sticker books - and reckons it's actually Gary Blissett, the centre-half. He's got a huge moustache, and my dad had a moustache, and I think that must have been what it was."

The bizarre connection will see Wood temporarily become the black sheep in his family should Newcastle taste defeat tonight. Eddie Howe’s men welcome the League Two outfit to St James’ Park after last week’s game was called off due to torrential rain wrecking the Plough Lane pitch.

The 33-year-old recounted how, during the tail end of the famous “Crazy Gang” days, he stunned Wimbledon players by rocking up at their hotel asking for autographs. Wood added: "They couldn't believe that a lad with a North East accent was there supporting Wimbledon. Mick Harford took me around to collect autographs. Robbie Earle, Neil Sullivan, Kenny Cunningham, Alan Kimble, Chris Perry. 

“And I obviously still love Vinnie Jones. He's iconic, isn't he, from a Wimbledon point of view even now he's gone on to Hollywood. When I was playing for England a little while ago, Vinnie Jones tweeted me and I was like, 'Oh my god, that's the best thing I've ever seen in my life!'"

Despite the Wombles connection, Wood has been snapped at several Newcastle games and keeps close tabs on the club. Shortly after England won the 2019 Cricket World Cup, Wood was invited alongside Ben Stokes, Rory Burns and Jason Roy to watch a drab 0-0 draw with Brighton.

Better days soon arrived for the Magpies following the takeover, with England’s Test side also enjoying a fresh lease of life under the “Bazball” era. Eagle-eyed Toon fans might have witnessed Sean Longstaff steaming in for Tynemouth over the summer - but Wood revealed he is not the only cricket fan within the camp.

"Sean Longstaff loves his cricket,” he said. “I've met Nick Pope at Chester-le-Street for one of the England games, Eddie Howe too. I'm just waiting for them to set up a training session where I can show off my football skills and then get at them in the nets!"