10 Darkest Days In Alan Pardew's Newcastle United Career

7. Stevenage 3-1 Newcastle

Date: 8th January 2011. To be honest, aside from a few flashes of brilliance here and there, Newcastle's modern history in cup competitions has been an embarrassment. But at least there was some intention to try and win some silverware, which - according to Mike Ashley - is just not practical anymore. This was the first step on that dark journey to nowhere, an excruciating loss to a fourth tier side that was nowhere near as close as it should have been. Inevitably, Pardew blamed the young players, who couldn't match the passion of their opponents - a trend he continues to follow now rather than accept the blame. Apparently protecting his players doesn't extend to the kids.