A YOUTHFUL Blackburn Rovers reserves were well beaten on Tyneside last night as Newcastle United recorded their fourth win in a row.

Rovers coach Alan Murray - with American David Yelldell back in goal and England Under-20 international Jerome Watt fit again - took an inexperienced side to the North East.

United, meanwhile, fielded just two players with first team experience - goalkeeper Steve Harper and midfielder Jamie McClen - but the Magpies were soon off the mark at Kingston Park, with Sir Bobby Robson watching from the stands.

And the home side opened the scoring in spectacular fashion in the sixth minute, with midfielder Martin Brittain curling a 30-yard right-footed free-kick round the Blackburn wall and into the top left hand corner of Yelldell's net.

Two minutes earlier Rovers defender Gavin Peers had stopped Lewis Guy's goalbound effort on the line after Yelldell had got to McClen's first shot.

With 19 minutes on the clock another almost certain goal was stopped by Sebastian Pelzer, who cleared Lewis Guy's shot off the line after Guy Bates had pulled the ball back.

Rovers first tested Harper in the 28th minute, when Watt's 25-yard free-kick was tipped over by the Newcastle goalkeeper.

But that was the only real save Harper had to make in the game.

Newcastle who stretched their lead in the 40th minute when Andy Ferrell scored from the spot past Yelldell. Alex Bruce had felled Lewis Guy in the box but the Rovers man escaped a sending off and was handed a yellow card.

Things got no better after the break with Guy making it 3-0 eight minutes into the half, and Bates finishing things off in inujury time.

UNITED: Harper, Gate, Cave, Ramage, Carr, Orr, Brittain, McClen, Bates, Guy, Ferrell. Subs not used: Finnigan, Smith, Norton, Webster, Pattison.

ROVERS: Yelldell, Peers, Pelzer, Donnelly, Taylor, Bruce, Watt (Weaver, 46), Johnson, Barker, Nelson (Corvino, 63), Morgan. Subs not used: Renton, Peter, Taylor, Byrom.