Following his loan move to St James Park on the final day of the January 2011 transfer window, Ireland had an ultimately unforgettable time on Tyneside, so much so that I had actually forgotten that he had once donned the black and white strip when I was researching for this article. Injuries restricted the former Manchester City youngster to only 2 appearances and 49 minutes of football in his stint on Gallowgate, before he was ruled out for the rest of the season with an ankle injury, and subsequently finished his loan and returned to Villa Park. Ironically, Ireland had made his Villa debut earlier that season at St James Park, which resulted in a 6-0 defeat. Almost seems as if that put him off