By David Hobbs
November 14 2004

A Ruud van Nistelrooy penalty sandwiched by a double from Wayne Rooney proved too much for Graeme Souness' Newcastle United at St. James' Park. Veteran Alan Shearer gave The Magpies a glimmer of hope mid-way through the second period but Van Nistelrooy immediately hit back from the spot.

Rooney Double Seals Newcastle Win

Newcastle United 1
Shearer 71

Manchester United 3
Rooney 7, 90
Van Nistelrooy 74 (Pen)

A Ruud van Nistelrooy penalty sandwiched by a double from Wayne Rooney proved too much for Graeme Souness' Newcastle United at St. James' Park.

Veteran Alan Shearer gave The Magpies a glimmer of hope mid-way through the second period but Dutchman Van Nistelrooy almost immediately hit back from the penalty spot. 

However, despite the vital 3 points, The Red Devils still trail Chelsea and Arsenal by 11 points and 9 points respectively.

Sir Alex Ferguson started Darren Fletcher and Cristiano Ronaldo down the flanks meaning Ryan Giggs, who recently snubbed a contract extension, could only manage a place on the substitutes bench. Goalscorers Van Nistelrooy and Rooney were preferred to Alan Smith and Louis Saha upfront.

Roy Carroll had an eventful first few minutes having to intrepidly throw himself in-front of Alan Shearer's thunderbolt free-kick and the resulting Lee Bowyer corner to keep Newcastle under-wraps.

Forward Patrick Kluivert was cued up by Craig Bellamy's chest-down to narrowly miss out on breaking the deadlock with a promising volley.

Seven minutes in, great poise and technique shown from Rooney helped the England international convert Darren Fletcher's pin-point cross. The Scotsman's byline pass was caught on the volley by the £30 million man.

Cristiano Ronaldo's selfishness got the better of him 8 minutes later when the Portugal winger chose to shoot rather than pass to options in more space. However, Ronaldo did go close with his tight-angled attempt.

Rio Ferdinand made a rare sloppy error that allowed Alan Shearer acres of space. But Shearer couldn't use the space as an advantage and panicked, firing wide.

Wayne Rooney proved that his defensive abilities aren't  up to scratch when his weak back-passed nearly allowed Newcastle to equalise. Kluivert though couldn't beat the presence of Roy Carroll in-between the sticks.

After the break, Paul Scholes' hard work in midfield to release Darren Fletcher went to waste as the Scotsman's finish went high and wide.

Graeme Souness tried to spice things up in the second half by introducing pair Laurent Robert and Kieron Dyer in replace of Lee Bowyer and Patrick Kluivert.

Wes Brown was caught napping in defence as Alan Shearer rounded Brown, advancing into the centre before firing past a hapless Roy Carroll.

The comeback was short-lived as Paul Scholes was brought down by Shay Given and United were awarded a penalty. Ruud van Nistelrooy stepped up and slotted home comfortably.

Despite Newcastle's attempts to equalise, Wayne Rooney added a 3rd deep into stoppage time to seal all 3 points. 

Final Score: Newcastle United 1 - 3 Manchester United
Att: 52,320

Newcastle United: Given, Carr (O'Brien 18), Bramble, Johnsen, Bernard, Bowyer (Dyer 54), Butt, Jenas, Bellamy, Shearer, Kluivert (Robert 62)

Manchester United: Carroll, Gary Neville, Ferdinand, Silvestre (Brown 57), Heinze, Fletcher (Giggs 75), Keane, Scholes, Ronaldo (Smith 83), van Nistelrooy, Rooney. Unused Subs: Howard, Saha.

Refereed By: M Dean