Newcastle United went five points clear at the top of the Championship with a 3-1 win over Huddersfield Town, a result which puts them 11 points clear of the third placed Terriers.
The home side started really well and were putting a lot of pressure on Newcastle, but it was Rafa Benitez’s men who took an early lead when Matt Ritchie scored from the spot after he was fouled by Nakhi Wells in the box.
Huddersfield continued to press but Daryl Murphy beat their offside trap and beat goalkeeper Danny Ward to the ball to put the Magpies 2-0 up.
The game stayed 2-0 until the 72nd minute when the visitors got a penalty of their own when Jonjo Shelvey fouled Elias Kachunga and Aaron Mooy converted.
In the dying moments of the game, substitute ‘keeper Joel Coleman was caught out by Dwight Gayle who made it 3-1.
Here our my Newcastle player ratings from the game:
Karl Darlow - 8
Barlow made a few excellent saves and never looked like conceding before the penalty.
Vurnon Anita - 7
Didn’t contribute a lot in an attacking sense but defended well, despite being on a yellow card.
Jamaal Lascelles - 8
The captain defended amazingly well, making 15 clearances.
Ciaran Clark - 10
One of the best defensive displays you’ll see all season. He was immense, winning tackles and headers all game. Superb display.
Paul Dummett - 7
A steady display from the left-back. He made one very big clearance and was solid throughout.
Christian Atsu - 5
Struggled to make an impact in the game. Was no surprise when he was taken off.
Jonjo Shelvey - 7
Forced to do more defensive work than he’s used to but he was up to the challenge. Set up Murphy’s goal but was also at fault when he gave the penalty away.
Jack Colback - 6
As usual, he hustled and bustled but didn’t get on the ball too much. Was taken off after he got a yellow card.
Matt Ritchie - 8
Helped his defenders out but looked to break when possible. Kept calm to put his spot-kick away.
Mohamed Diame - 7
Used his power and strength to battle hard and win as much ball back as possible. Was isolated at times but never gave up.
Daryl Murphy - 7
Didn’t have a lot to do in truth, but when his chance came, he took it with the calmness and coolness you’d expect from a veteran striker.
(Sub) Dwight Gayle - 7
Similar to Murphy in that he had little to do, but when the opportunity to score came up, he took it with both hands to kill the game.
(Sub) Yoan Gouffran - 6
Came on to replace the booked Colback and defended pretty well.