Quite incredible – Newcastle United prepare for their ‘derby’ match next | OneFootball

I was just wondering how excited all you Newcastle United fans are for ‘derby’ day today?

Quite incredible to think BUT it is true.

Newcastle United against Manchester City, is our ‘derby’ match.

No, not a (yawn, yawn) ‘oil’ derby.

This is the real thing.

For Newcastle United fans today is the ‘nearest’ thing we have to a Premier League derby.

Just the 288 miles round trip from St James’ Park to the Etihad.

Earlier this season, Sky Sports reported that Newcastle United fans would be setting a new Premier League record this campaign:

‘The combined 9,425 miles Newcastle must travel to their Premier League away games this season. A new league record.’

Earlier on this season I also did my own breakdown of just how far United fans would have to travel this season for Premier League away trips.

The 2024/25 Premier League clubs, number of miles round trip from Newcastle United/St James’ Park to each of the 19 stadiums:

288 miles – Man City

301 miles – Man U

340 miles – Nottingham Forest

352 miles – Everton

356 miles – Liverpool

360 miles – Leicester

420 miles – Aston Villa

440 miles – Wolves

546 miles – Arsenal

562 miles – Chelsea

562 miles – Fulham

566 miles – Tottenham

566 miles – West Ham

570 miles – Ipswich

582 miles – Crystal Palace

582 miles – Brentford

645 miles – Southampton

689 miles – Brighton

698 miles – Bournemouth

Number of miles to go there and back from SJP to the 19 Newcastle United away games in 2024/25 Premier League – 9,425 miles (***All distances via stats from various online sources)

Average round trip – 496 miles

Number of round trips under 280 miles – None

Number of round trips less than 300 miles – One

Number of round trips less than 400 miles – Six

Number of round trips over 540 miles – Eleven!

In all of my decades of following Newcastle United, I have never known anything quite like this.

Put it this way, back in the 1970s and 1980s, I wouldn’t have fancied jumping into a transit van or a furniture van, to pop down to Bournemouth or Southampton!

How has this mass migration South happened? I think a lot of reasons have contributed but the fact remains that so many relatively well supported clubs of the North, have been replaced by so many relatively not so well supported clubs of the South.

Great distances opening up for your typical away trip.

Even in the Premier League era, we have seen the following clubs all spend at least some time in the top tier, apologies if I have missed any…

Newcastle United, Sunderland, Middlesbrough, Leeds, Bradford, Hull, Huddersfield, Bolton, Sheff Wed, Sheff Utd, Oldham, Man U, Man City, Liverpool, Everton, Barnsley, Blackburn, Blackpool, Burnley, Wigan

An entire Premier League 20 clubs.

Surely Newcastle United fans should wish to see as many of these as possible, as opposed to the likes of Bournemouth, Brentford and other distant pointless clubs of the South?

Maybe change is coming…

This is how the Premier League table currently looks on the morning of Saturday 15 February 2025:

Then this is the current Championship table looks on the morning of Saturday 15 February 2025:

As you can see, even if you can’t stomach the Mackems coming up, surely at least three promoted from four of the other five would be a positive step? The North fighting back.

Whilst any three of the current bottom four in the Premier League, get these clubs of the South (Ipswich, Wolves, Leicester, Southampton) sent down and replaced by our fellow clubs of the North.

Maybe at long last a case of ‘levelling up’ finally becoming reality for the North.