Where are they now? The Newcastle United starting XI as Alan Shearer breaks goal record against Portsmouth

A long ball by Shay Given was flicked on by the Geordie striker and he took a return pass from Shola Ameobi before poking ball beyond Portsmouth keeper Dean Kiely and into the Gallowgate net.

St James Park erupted and Shearer celebrated at the end in which he had stood many times during his time supporting the club.

He was soon to be joined in celebration by a number of his teammates - but what happened to the men that wore black and white alongside Shearer that day?

Shay Given

The popular Irish international keeper had been a regular for the Magpies ever since he has joined in a £1.5million move from Blackburn Rovers in 1997. 

Given would remain on Tyneside until February 2009 when he became exasperated with the lack of ambition and off-field controversy.  A £6million offer from Manchester City saw Given move to the North West and he went on to lift the FA Cup two years later.

He also spent time with Aston Villa and Middlesbrough before winding up his playing career in 2017 with a two-year stay at Stoke City.  Given moved into coaching as he worked under Frank Lampard at Derby County and is now current manager Wayne Rooney’s first-team coach at Pride Park.

Peter Ramage

One of the Northumberland-born defender’s first interactions with Shearer came as a ballboy following the remarkable 5-0 win against Manchester United in October 1996. 

Ramage went on to become a team-mate of the former England captain when he progressed into the Magpies first-team under Graeme Souness.

Ramage made over 50 appearances for his boyhood club before going on to play for the likes of QPR, Barnsley and Crystal Palace.

Ramage also played abroad with Indian club Kerala Blasters and American outfit Phoenix Rising - but is now back at Newcastle as a coach within the club’s academy.

Jean-Alain Boumsong

The French defender had been linked with a free transfer move to Tyneside six months before his £8million arrival in January 2015.

Despite some promising displays, his time at St James Park will be remembered for a number of errors that led to an inevitable departure in August 2006.

Somewhat surprisingly, it was Italian giants Juventus that was his next destination and Boumsong helped his new club reclaim their Serie A status during his first season in Turin.

A return to France with Lyon came in January 2008 before he brought down the curtain on his career with Panathinaikos during a three-year stay with the Greek club between 2010 and 2013.

His post-career led to a role with broadcaster beIN Sports and working under Clarence Seedorf when the Dutch legend was named as Cameroon manager in September 2018.  However, both Seedorf and Boumsong left their respective roles just a year later.

Titus Bramble

Bramble arrived on Tyneside in a £6million deal from Ipswich Town in June 2002 and became part of a Sir Bobby Robson side packed with talented youngsters.

The defender’s time at St James Park will be remembered for his inconsistent performances as so impressive displays were hampered by a number of errors.

Bramble departed for Wigan Athletic in June 2007 and scored for the Latics in a 2-2 draw on Tyneside in November 2018.

A move to Sunderland followed in July 2010 and his next return to St James Park came when he was shown a red card as his side suffered a humiliating 5-1 defeat against his former club.

Bramble was released by the Black Cats at the end of the 2012/13 season and trained with West Ham United and former club Ipswich.

However, his return to action did not arrive until August 2017 when he was named as player-coach of now-Isthmian League club Stowmarket Town.

Bramble is now working as a coach and ambassador of the Future Stars charity, which works with young people in Ghana and Togo.

Celestine Babayaro

The Nigerian international joined Newcastle as part of a double defensive swoop with Jean-Alain Boumsong in January 2005. 

The left-back endured a largely disappointing spell on Tyneside and was released by the Magpies in December 2007.

LA Galaxy would be his next destination as he became a team-mate of David Beckham’s but his time in Los Angeles lasted less than two months.

Babayaro trained with Portsmouth ahead of the 2008/09 season but was not offered a contract and officially announced his retirement in 2010.

Little is known of Babayaro’s post-career - although he was declared bankrupt just over a year after his retirement from the game.

Nolberto Solano

A cult hero over two spells on Tyneside, Solano was part of a United side that qualified for the Champions League and also appeared in the 1999 FA Cup Final against Manchester United.

Solano showed his versatility by appearing at right-back during his second stint at St James Park and will always be remembered as one of the skillful wingers to play for the Magpies during the Premier League era.

The Peruvian moved to West Ham United in August 2007 and went on to feature for Leicester City, Hull City and Hartlepool United, as well as spending time with Greek side Larissa and in his homeland with Universitario.

Solano retired at the end of the 2011/12 season and has held managerial positions with Universitario and Canadian side Internacional de Toronto.

He has spent the last five years as assistant manager of Peru and was part of the coaching staff when they reached the Copa America Final in 2019.

Scott Parker

Parker became a popular figure at St James Park following a £6.5million move from Chelsea in the summer of 2005.

He went on to succeed Shearer as club captain following his retirement and earned a recall to the England squad despite receiving some criticism for his performances in a black and white shirt.

Parker moved on to West Ham in the summer of 2007 and was named as the Football Writers Association player of the year in his third season at Upton Park.

Parker joined Spurs in a £5.5million deal as the Hammers began life in the Championship in August 2011 and ended his playing career with Fulham with a four-year stay at Craven Cottage.

A managerial career started with the Cottagers and Parker led the West London club to the Premier League during the 2019/20 season - although their stay in the elite would last for just one campaign.

Parker departed Fulham last summer and is currently leading Bournemouth’s charge for promotion into the Premier League.

Emre

The Turkish international midfielder is fondly remembered for scoring the winning goal in an epic Tyne-Wear derby against Sunderland in October 2005.

The former Inter Milan star showed some flashes of brilliance during a three-year stay at St James Park - but never really lived up to his early promise.

Emre’s post-United career comprises of three separate spells at Fenerbache, as well as stints with Spanish giants Atletico Madrid and Istanbul Basaksehir.

Controversy followed the midfielder after he was alleged to have made racist comments towards Everton trio Joseph Yobo, Tim Howard and Joleon Lescott, Bolton Wanderers forward El-Hadji Diouf and Watford’s Al Bangura during his time in the Premier League.

He spent a two-and-a-half month spell in prison after making racist comments towards Trabzonspor’s Didier Zokora in April 2012.

He retired at the end of the 2019/20 season and was named as director of football at Fenerbache but is now head coach of another of his former clubs after taking charge of Istanbul Basaksehir in October last year.

Charles N’Zogbia

French winger N’Zogbia was seen as one of United’s brightest prospects after joining the club from Le Havre in September 2004.

A debut came in a 3-0 win against Blackburn Rovers that month and he scored the Magpies first goal of the following season in a 1-1 home draw with Fulham.

A memorable solo effort in a 4-1 win at Sunderland if fondly remembered and he was the first to reach Shearer following his record-breaking goal against Portsmouth.

But the Frenchman left the club to join Wigan Athletic after being termed “Charles Insomnia” by United manager Joe Kinnear in January 2009.

N’Zogbia was named as the Latics player of the year during the following season and was linked with the likes of Birmingham City and Arsenal, as well as a possible return to St James Park being mentioned.

But it was Aston Villa that would be his next destination as he made a £10million move to Villa Park ahead of the 2011/12 season.

An achilles tendon injury disrupted his time with the Midlands club and he departed after an underwhelming five-year stay.

A reported heart issue scuppered a deal to join French club Nantes and, to this day, the now-34-year-old has still not officially announced his retirement.

Shola Ameobi

Ameobi spent over 13 years in the Magpies first-team and experienced both the highs of life in the Champions League and the lows of relegation to the Championship.

Although he often divided opinion amongst the United support, he enjoyed some memorable moments including his record against local rivals Sunderland, a goal in the Camp Nou and playing a key role in the promotion back into the Premier League in 2010.

His departure from his boyhood club led to an unexpected move to Turkish side Gaziantep in 2014 but he soon returned to England and the Premier League with Crystal Palace.

Further moves took him to Bolton Wanderers, Fleetwood Town and Notts County but he returned to Newcastle in June 2019 to take up a role as the club’s first ever loan manager.

Ameobi remains a prominent figure at St James Park and has been heavily involved in promoted the Newcastle United foundation and their outstanding work within the local community.

Substitutes

Kieron Dyer (for Solano)

Dyer joined West Ham United in a £6million move in August 2007 as his eight-year stay on Tyneside came to an end.

Injuries plagued his post-St James Park and further moves to Ipswich Town, QPR and Middlesbrough followed.

Dyer is now coaching within the Ipswich academy and has also taken part in reality TV shows ‘I’m a Celebrity, Get Me out of Here’ and ‘Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins’.

Last year it was announced he was been diagnosed with primary sclerosing cholangitis and would undergo a liver transplant.

Lee Bowyer (for Emre)

A controversial signing from the minute he joined Newcastle, Bowyer is remembered for the infamous on-pitch fight with team-mate Kieron Dyer in a 3-0 home defeat against Aston Villa.

He returned to former club West Ham United after leaving Newcastle in June 2006 and then helped Birmingham City lift the Carling Cup with a 2-1 win against Arsenal in 2011.

He brought down the curtain on his playing career with Ipswich Town before moving into management with Charlton Athletic in March 2018.

Bowyer stepped down from his role in March last year, but took over at Birmingham City less than 24 hours later.

Lee Clark (for Parker)

Popular Geordie midfielder Clark brought an end to his second spell at United and his playing career at the end of the 2005/06 season.

After working as the Magpies first-team coach and reserve team manager, Clark left St James Park to join former boss Glenn Roeder as assistant manager at Norwich City.

A first move into the main role in the dugout came with Huddersfield Town and Clark’s side went on a record-breaking 43-game unbeaten run.

He left the Terriers in February 2012 and took over at Birmingham City at the end of the season, defying the odds by keeping the Blues in the Championship with a dramatic final day draw at Bolton Wanderers in May 2014.

Clark also went on to manage Blackpool, Kilmarnock, Bury, Blyth Spartans, Sudanese club Al-Merrikh and is currently in charge of Al-Attihad in Oman.

Unused Subs

Steve Harper

After spending the vast majority of his career with United, Harper’s final moves took him to short spells with Hull City and Sunderland.

Post-playing career roles have included an academy goalkeeper coach at Newcastle and a similar role with the Northern Ireland senior side.

Harper is now back on Tyneside as the Magpies Academy Manager.

Robbie Elliott

Elliott’s second spell at United came to an end at the end of the 2005/06 season and he featured for Sunderland, Leeds United and Hartlepool United before retiring in 2008.

He returned to St James Park as an assistant fitness and conditioning coach in July that year and went on to work for the US Soccer Federation as a youth national team performance expert.

Elliott still lives in the US and is now CEO of his No3 Sports Consulting Agency.