It might not seem such a massive achievement beside Alan Shearer's 404 Newcastle appearances, but reaching the 50 Club is one that should still be applauded. Playing that many times in front of the braying, adoring Geordie faithful tends to have a lasting impact on both player and fans, and for the most part those players should undoubtedly deserve to have reached the milestone. Unfortunately, that is clearly not always the case as lack of investment or poor judgement have meant that inferior, unworthy players have stayed around well beyond the point they should have been sold. When those players make it to 50 appearances, it feels like a betrayal - sometimes an abomination, depending on the player. Even under the 50 game threshold there are some players who have managed to put in an astonishing number of performances: Wayne Fereday played 33 times in the league, Andreas Andersson managed 32 games in total and John Karelse somehow got to 3 appearances. Even Lionel Perez's zero competitive appearances seems like too many. But there is something of an endorsement of a player's skills in the 50 game milestone - it feels like the point at which their worth to the club is assured, and ensures that they're allowed into the official history books. Sadly, some of those players probably don't deserve to have a legacy at the club...
